Athens Macedonian News Agency: News in English, 14-06-05

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Aristotle's Lyceum officially opened on Wednesday

[02] GD leader and two deputies stripped of parliamentary immunity

[03] Antikythera Mechanism will not travel to Switzerland

[01] Aristotle's Lyceum officially opened on Wednesday

This new and significant addition to the city's archaeological sites, which adds 1.1 hectares of open land to the capital's public spaces, can be accessed either from the entrance on Rigillis Street or from the Byzantine and Archaeological Museum on Vassilisis Sofias Avenue.

The Lyceum was founded by the famous ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle in 334-5 B.C. when his former pupil Alexander the Great had embarked on his wars of conquest in Asia. It was one of the three famous ancient schools of Athens, along with Plato's Academy and the Cynosarges Gymnasium, where he taught his so-called Peripatetic Scholars just outside the city walls, between the rivers Eridanos and Ilissos.

The area also had two temples, dedicated to Hercules and Apollo Lyceus, the latter of which gave its name to Aristotle's school.

The site was first opened to the public a month ago, for a tour forming part of the Greek Cultural Routes events organised by the culture and sports ministry. The remains on the site, covered by protective canopies, include a section of a Roman-era wrestling arena and gymnasium, a well, tank and underfloor heating system delineating rooms.

[02] GD leader and two deputies stripped of parliamentary immunity

The three have been held on remand in Korydallos Prison since last October, pending their trial on charges of forming a criminal organisation (the Golden Dawn party) and today's decision paves the way for additional charges to be filed against them for possession of firearms and ammunition.

They arrived in Parliament under tight security to address the plenum just before noon. All GD MPs and relatives of the defendants were waiting for them in front of the central gate, chanting slogans in their support.

Mihaloliakos was the first to address the parliament and, contrary to Pappas who chose to address the MPs from the podium, he delivered his speech from the seats of the his party's parliamentary group.

The atmosphere was very tense as a result of the degrading behavior and the insulting expressions used by the GD MPs.

During a roll-call vote, in which GD and Independent Greeks (AN.EL) deputies did not participate, 223 MPs voted in favor of stripping the three of their immunity. Independent MP Nikos Nikolopoulos voted "present".

Addressing parliament, Mihaloliakos, Pappas and Lagos claimed that the prosecution against them is entirely politically motivated and has been planned and directed by the government to stem GD's rise.

Mihaloliakos denounced the whole procedure saying that "the leader of the country's third most powerful political party was taken handcuffed to address Parliament."

Justice Minister Charalambos Athanassiou reiterated that "justice in our country, which operates in accordance with the rule of law, is independent. Whether some like it or not. And they will be treated with the weapons of democracy, the principles of constitutional legality and the rule of law." He also said that the justice minister and independent justice guarantee a fair trial for all involved in the case.

[03] Antikythera Mechanism will not travel to Switzerland

The decision was made by the Central Archaeological Council because of the ancient mechanism's fragile state and its major importance for archeology.

A total of 323 ancient objects will travel to Basel in the fall of 2015, while a hologram presentation will replace the actual Antikythera Mechanism.

The exhibition will also feature 42 ancient coins from the Numismatic Museum in Athens, two bronze statuettes from the National Archaeological Museum, part of the hull of the Antikythera shipwreck and an anchor that was pulled up from the bottom of the sea in 2012.

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