ANNOUNCEMENT - ΤΗΕ RETURN OF THE PARTHENON MARBLES

ΤΗΕ RETURN OF THE PARTHENON MARBLES

Upon the prime minister of Greece, Kyriakos Mitsotakis’s recent two day visit to London for a meeting with his British counterpart Boris Johnson, there was reference to the return of the Parthenon Marbles. Even though in a public announcement in 2012, Boris Johnson was in favour of their return to Greece, he now supports that their return to Athens would be an irredeemable loss for the British museum, emphasising the legality of their possession through a non-existent decree by the Ottoman occupiers of the time. As if we don’t all know that the Acropolis was looted by Elgin who literally stripped it and took anything he could find. Whatever he couldn’t remove, he broke and destroyed with sledge hammers and saws. His work was so great that his name was given to the Parthenon marbles. In an interview on the British television network ITV, Kyriakos Mitsotakis was asked if the Government of Greece is willing to loan or donate another Hellenic Cultural artefact to Great Britain in exchange for the return of the Parthenon Marbles. He replied that he will not negotiate but looks for a solution to the problem in good faith saying that Greece could offer other showpieces and iconic artefacts that have never left the country, not only to the British museum, but to other museums around the globe. We must say here that this is a good proposal by Mr. Mitsotakis, but for the increase in revenues of Museums world-wide, instead of attending to, as is his duty, the creation of Museums in Greece to showcase the incomparable beauty of cultural treasures making our homeland a national attraction for visits, with utmost contribution to its development. This is the ethos of our Leaders, even though the majority of British citizens have stated their dissatisfaction of this disgraceful seizure of an inheritance that does not belong to them and stigmatises them for centuries. The communicative games continue. All of them apparently fight and struggle for the restoration of justice, but with no result. We have seen the handling of the situation by all parties that have governed Greece and have realised that there is no will in solving the matter. Only a government of true Hellenes can demand the Rights of our Nation. Ellinon Syneleysis will reinstate Greece in the position it deserves on the global stage with strict political actions, without fictitious negotiations and agreements just to make a domestic impression.