Greeting at the Cultural Association of Greece – Pakistan

Dear guests,

Ladies and gentlemen,

On behalf of the Minister of Health and Social Solidarity of the Hellenic Republic, it is a great pleasure to attend this important initiative of the Greek-Pakistan Association in Athens, which I had the pleasure to cooperate in the past.

The primary objective of the Health Minister is to ensure easy and effective access for immigrants, legal or not, to the health system, protecting public health.

He is not prepared, as he has already shown, to sacrifice the right of immigrants for care at the altar of the economic crisis that Greece is experiencing. Determined and always ready to fight for the common good, by taking care of the public high health good, he sees his refusal to cut the health sector by saying in the 16th European Health Forum Gastein: “There is no crisis, there is a new reality that we must face. We will never come back, so we should better reconcile with this idea. ”

Longing for work, ideas and a fist, he recalls that migrants, whether they have the necessary legal papers or not, remain people who need respect and equal treatment by the doctors who have given the Hippocratic Oath.

With respect to human beings and the need for dignified living, a conference on Migration Health, under the aegis of the Ministry of Health and the International Organization for Migration, and the support of the National Health Management Center, is being planned in support of health and its supply throughout the world.

Finally, I would like to confirm that support and assistance come effortlessly in difficult but pleasant moments. It is our pleasure and honor to invite you to such beautiful and pioneering events, where we have the opportunity to tighten relationships.

I wish good evening.

Thank you very much for your attention.

Speech at the FIGHT 4 RIGHTS launch event of the EXELIXIS INSTITUTE

Good afternoon,

Mr. Minister,

Dear Members οf Parliament,

Ladies and Gentlemen of the Immigrant Unions and public bodies,

Ensembles, Scientists, Teachers,

It is a great pleasure for my colleagues, friends and I personally to welcome you today where one of my dreams of 2012 followed by Xenophobil became a reality thanks to  YAVA FITNESS CENTERS which I have the honor of managing over the past 6 months as it financed the project fight 4 rights.

The EXELIXIS Institute, is a non-profit organization,  which operates at various levels with significant action in the field of immigrants, who are in our country and whose main objective is the education of young immigrants in cultural, historical, religious, social and political conditions in order to act as multipliers in their communities and to play a leading role in the future, with sufficient knowledge and experience of the increasingly multicultural reality in which they are invited to live, act and contribute fruitfully and constructively to the benefit of all, always respecting the host country.

In this context, we organized today’s Workshop entitled “Fighting exclusion through technology” to inform, to reflect, to raise awareness and ultimately to act as much as possible on issues of exclusion and diversity, on the problems that arise from it and to highlight the positive that this innovative fight4rights application can offer Greece and Europe statistically and in cooperation with authorities, police, justice and local government to get informed about a cases, their shape but also to sensitize the local community with workshops and related activities.

More specifically, the purpose of the Seminar is to explore the problems, the challenges, to gather from the social groups, each separately, about the problems they face and how useful this application is in their lives.

Thank you very much for your participation, which gives us the courage to continue our efforts despite all the difficulties we face every day.

MY STATEMENT ON THE CONFERENCE OF THE NATIONAL HEALTHCARE BUSINESS CENTER (EKEPY)

Centers My Statement “Illegal Immigrants. An Intercultural Phenomenon”The National Health Operations Center (EKEPY) of the Hellenic Ministry of Health organises for the first time in Athens an EU High Level Expert Meeting. The purpose of this meeting which is under the auspices of The Greek EU Presidency and the Hellenic Ministry of Health is not only discuss but proceed further to a fruitful exchange of scientific data, experiences and followed practices in the field of emergency management in the Health Sector among experts at an EU level. Health Emergency Management in the EU The Role of National Health Operations 

My speech at The EXELIXIS INSTITUTE – “Seeking Ways to Coexist with Those of Different Religion”

It is with great pleasure that our colleagues, friends and I personally,  welcome you today at the Cultural Center of the Holy Archdiocese of Athens, which honored us to host our today’s event, and for this we are very grateful to the members of the Board of Directors.

The Exelixis Institute of Evolution is a non-profit organization operating at various levels with significant action in the field of immigrants, who are in our country and whose main objective is the education of young immigrants in cultural, historical, religious, social and political conditions in order to act as multipliers in their communities and to play a prominent role in the developments with sufficient knowledge and experience from the increasingly multicultural reality the means in which they are invited to live, act and contribute fruitfully and constructively to the benefit of all.

In this context, we organized today’s Workshop entitled Seeking ways of coexistence with the different religions in order to inform, to reflect, to sensitize and ultimately to act as much as possible on issues of religious diversity, on the problems that arise from it and to highlight the positive which a fertile and creative coexistence can offer to Greece.

More specifically, the purpose of the Workshop is to explore the problems, challenges and possible solutions that arise from the co-existence of religious different in a metropolitan area, such as Athens, with the weaknesses and opportunities it offers. The main focus, is on the points that facilitate the coexistence of religions as they arise from their teaching.

The structure of the Workshop is based on two axes: a) Suggestions (15 to 20 minutes) of specialists, who through their expertise will delimit and develop academically the context of problems: problems, challenges, solutions, of religiously different. b) Suggestions (15-20 minutes) of religious officers from the main heterotethical and heterodox communities that exist and actively operate in our country within the framework of the above problem.

The talks will be coordinated by Alexander Vellios and Daniel Esdra.

Thank you very much for your participation, which gives us the courage to continue our efforts despite all the difficulties we face every day.

Message to the citizens of Agia Paraskevi

“My dear fellow citizens of Agia Paraskevi. Greece is at a critical juncture. I have always believed in Greece, its talent and genius. That is why I chose to live here, instead of France, causing surprise to many.

I believe in the ability of Greece to overcome any difficulties. During these last years, where the country faces an unprecedented brutal crisis, despite the suffering, it managed to survive. It endured because we took our responsibilities by paying heavy cost. Inaction would lead us to disaster. For the years to come, work, effort and meritocracy is what will make us stronger in order to regain control of our lives.

For these reasons I decided to ask for your trust and support in the upcoming municipal elections. With progressive and creative thinking we must act together in order to shape and create a local government with vision and prospects for all, especially for young people.

I believe that lifelong training, not only for the youngsters but also for every citizen of Agia Paraskevi can effectively combat unemployment. The aim of this is that anyone who does not have the ability or cannot afford to study in order to qualify themselves will be able to provide professional training to find a working position on their training subject or alternative roads through it.

Dear citizens of Agia Paraskevi,

We must believe again in the principle of legality. This is what protects the community; and in particular the most vulnerable social groups.

We want accountability. Accountability is a necessary condition so that you will know that your hard work and your contribution to the Municipality are utilized properly, creatively and especially to your benefit.

We want to promote individual freedom as a prerequisite for freedom of all.

We want schools in which the role and knowledge of the teacher will be recognized.

We want educators to shape children’s characters; children with responsibility, respect to social values and dedication to their personal development from an early age.

We want to act so that all children that finish primary school will have the opportunity of education and training on innovative topics and new technologies.

For all these reasons, the Alliance of Responsibility is asking for your vote.

A vote of responsibility and cooperation for a better city and a better future.”

Speech at the 1st Panhellenic Conference “Crisis Management in the Health Sector”

Migration Health: Legislative Framework and Action

Leaders of professional associations and public bodies, military officers, scientists, teachers, doctors, nurses,

I would like to thank the leadership of the Ministry of Health and congratulate the leaders who helped organize this very important conference in Greece of the crisis, and especially the Minister of Health Mr. Adonis Georgiades and the EKEPY Commander (Mr. Panos Efstathiou).

The health sector is characterized, on the one hand, by its significant prospects for growth, innovation and demonstration of dynamism and, on the other hand, by the challenges it faces in terms of the economic and social sustainability and efficiency of health care systems, due to the aging populations and of the progress made by medicine.

The sure thing is that our time is a period of inevitable movement of people to foreign countries, especially in the European Union, to find work and seek better living conditions.

The purpose of the work is the examination and presentation of the current situation regarding the health of immigrants. What are the needs for care? Are they satisfied? What problems do they encounter if they find solutions or are driven to quakes?  Are their rights to access to health protected by legislation? Within this framework, 6 thematic units are examined:

  • Equal access for immigrants to health services, which, in order to be thoroughly examined and presented without any loopholes, is dealt with by separate sections referring to the current legal framework, the right to health under the Constitution and the right to health under international law.
  • Protection of public health
  • Problems when entering the country
  • Hospitality and detention centers for Immigrants
  • Specific Issues, where this unit focuses on the rights of care for more vulnerable groups, such as women and children.
  • Deportation of Immigrants

Thank you very much for attending.