The secret of our success

Illustration by Manos Symeonakis

 As far as cringeworthy moments go, it was right up there: Prime Minister George Papandreou being given a standing ovation by his Cabinet last Friday, just a few hours after the eurozone agreed on a new support package for Greece. That’s not to say that Papandreou — or indeed Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos — doesn’t deserve some credit for the energy and purpose he brought to those marathon negotiations, but with everything still at stake and so many questions about the deal unanswered, a triumphant welcome for a conquering hero hardly seems appropriate.

To be fair, Papandreou tried to play down his moment of glory last Friday — and continued to do so over the ensuing days — by arguing that securing the second package, worth 159 billion euros, had been a “success that belongs to all Greeks.” Nevertheless, painting the deal as a success at a time when the effects of the debt crisis are being felt far and wide and when the worst is still to come seems not just premature but immature. Greece is still tiptoeing along the precipice — it’s no time to break out into song and dance.

Diaspora MPs propose launching ‘Greek Davos’ and campaign to promote local products

A group of foreign parliamentarians of Greek descent wants to help Greece recover from its debt crisis by creating an annual event to bring together leading businessmen and thinkers, similar to the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

More than 200 MPs from around the world are members of the World Hellenic Inter-Parliamentary Association (WHIA), which concluded its general assembly in Athens on Saturday.

The group, which adopted a motion calling on “the forces of Hellenism all over the world to unite in this time of need and demonstrate solidarity with Greece” and on Greeks abroad to “help and support Greece to improve its economy” will now begin efforts to initiate a Davos-style event in Greece.