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η Πρωϊνή - September 5, 1997

The New Round

There can be no doubt --and we pointed this out immediately-- that when one of our Greek American newspapers writes about Patriarch Bartholomew's "pyrrhic victory" during his meetings with representatives of the Archdiocesan Council and Archbishop Spyridon over the weekend at the Phanar, this implies that "the war goes on."

A war which started very quickly, almost immediately after the enthronement of Archbishop Spyridon. It began with some comments here in America and continued with leaks in the Athenian press (like those reported in the "Vima", extracts of which you have read in the "Proini"). All this talk is now being recycled in America.

The source of all this is only one, and it is known to everybody. Besides, all reports are facsimiles of one another.

Currently, Archbishop Iakovos, the former Archbishop of America, is in Greece. Mr. Taki Gazouleas is traveling with him. Once he was his spokesman; now he is his councilor and author of his memoirs, as well as a collaborator with the "National Herald."

When Mr. Gazouleas was in Athens, he made sure to invite about ten reporters to the Hilton Hotel. They all met in the hotel's basement. The Athenian journalists were informed "off the record" and if any of them needed "more" information there was the former Archbishop off to the side.

Of course, they were brought up to date relatively fast, but at some point Mr. Taki was caught off guard when his Athenian colleagues put the question to him: "What exactly are you now?"

"A reporter" he answered.

And so understandingly they posed a second question: "So why aren't you publishing this information yourself as an exclusive report?"

Polites

[ Translated from Greek ]

[ η Πρωϊνή - September 5, 1997 - p. 6 ]