Mikis Theodorakis to address Athens protest on FYROM name issue

Famed Greek composer and icon of the anti-junta resistance icon Mikis Theodorakis intends to address a major Athens demonstration against Greece accepting the use of the name Macedonia by Skopje in a prospective settlement of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia naming dispute.

The president of the rally’s organising committee, Michail Patsikas, visited Theodorakis at his home to invite him to address the demonstration, which is to take place on Sunday, 4 February, in the capital’s central Syntagma Square, outside of the parliament building, according to an announcement by the organising committee of the protest.

Theodorakis is categorically opposed to the use of the name Macedonia by Skopje, on the grounds that Greece’s acceptance of that name will result in it becoming a vehicle to advanced the decades-long irredentist claims against Athens by its northern neighbor.

In recent public statements, Theodorakis outlined how the legendary Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito, who was a personal friend of the left-wing composer, named the Yugoslav province Macedonia, with a view to a possible future prospect of extending its territory to the Aegean Sea, in the Greek province of Macedonia, whose capital is Thessaloniki.

Theodorakis expressed pride in the huge turnout at the 21 January Thessaloniki rally on the naming issue.

In his meeting with Patsikas, Theodorakis promised to address the Athens demonstration, at least through a taped message.