Pana Pappas-Merchant ( Greek Πάνα Πάππας-Μέρτσαντ , English Pana Pappas Merchant , birth name of Panayot Papageorgiou ( Greek Παναγιώτα Παπαγεωργίου ) [ Greek - 2 april ], genus - 2 april , 1 - April 2) Senator from Saskatchewan ( 2002 - 2017 ), businesswoman , philanthropist and philanthropist , former school teacher . During her stay in the Senate, she was the only Greek woman in the upper house of the Parliament of Canada . The second woman representing Saskatchewan. Director of the Parliamentary Network of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund , former member of the Board of Directors of the (WHIPA). The wife of royal attorney , businessman and former politician Tony Merchant . He is fluent in Greek and English , to a lesser extent French [3] [4] .
| Pana Merchant | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greek Πάνα Μέρτσαντ English Pana merchant | |||||||
| |||||||
| Head of the government | Jean Chretien Paul Martin Stephen Harper Justin Trudeau | ||||||
| Monarch | Elizabeth II | ||||||
| Birth | April 2, 1943 (aged 76) Greece | ||||||
| Spouse | |||||||
| Children | sons Evatt, Joshua, Matthew | ||||||
| The consignment | Liberal Party (until 2014) (since 2014) | ||||||
| Education | University of Saskatchewan , Regina University | ||||||
| Academic degree | Bachelor of Science | ||||||
| Profession | teacher , businesswoman , politician | ||||||
| Activities | philanthropist | ||||||
On January 29, 2014, the leader of the Liberal Party, Justin Trudeau, although he announced that all liberal senators are excluded from the liberal caucus and will sit as independent parliamentarians [5] , nevertheless they continue to call their faction the “ Senate Liberal Caucus ” [ 6] .
Biography
Early Years, Family, and Education
Born April 2, 1943 in Greece . Pana’s father, Ioannis Papageorgiu [7] , being a 6-year-old child, fled from Athens during a ship from Smyrna (today Izmir , Turkey ) to Athens during the ethnic Turks committed by the Young Turks together with their mother and two younger sisters (see Greek Genocide ) . The third sister disappeared during the general panic and it is not known whether she survived [8] [9] [10] .
She was educated in Greece and Canada. She graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a bachelor ’s degree in humanities and Regina University with a teacher diploma [3] .
Career
Engaged in activities in various cultural, political and public associations of Saskatchewan. Participates in the life of the Greek and other communities, is the former chairman donation , the leader of the volunteers ( Regina ), the Canadian Parents for French nationwide volunteer community, and the head of the Women's Center for Women immigrants of Regina ”,“ League of Catholic Women ”, honorary patron of the Swing Soleil choir ensemble and many other organizations focused on the needs of the local population in the field of charity and health. In 1996, she became a co-founder and member of the board of directors of the Foundation, an organization that remained until her election to the Senate of Canada in 2002.
Tony and Pana Merchants are active advocates for the rights of the Indians of Canada . The merchant was admitted to the Blackfoot community under the name “Many Offerings” at the Military Bonnet ceremony (2008) in Alberta .
She was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002), the (2005), Queen Elizabeth II Gold Jubilee Medal (2012), and also in 2015 was honored at an event organized by immigrant Greeks in Montreal ( Quebec )
For many years, Tony and Pana Merchants have been patrons of the arts , in particular the visual arts , and through numerous donations they have supported collections of various government agencies and galleries in each of the four Western Provinces , including donating artworks to the National Gallery of Canada and the Canadian War Museum ( Ottawa ) , and took part in helping the ( Winnipeg ).
For many decades, travels the world. Visited more than 100 countries, studying their culture, history, as well as the management system.
In 2007 and 2008, she spoke at the Forum on Democracy, Development, and Free Trade in Doha, under the patronage of the Emir of Qatar Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani [3] .
Recognition of the Genocide of the Pontic Greeks
In February 2017, together with conservative senator Leo Husakos, she turned to her colleagues to recognize the genocide of the Pontic Greeks perpetrated by Turkey in 1916-1923, as well as to condemn all attempts to deny or distort historical truth to something less than a crime against humanity ( genocide ), and to establish throughout Canada on May 19 each year, 353,000 Pontic Greeks killed or driven out of their homes on Memorial Day. The merchant emphasized that the case of the Pontian genocide meets all the criteria specified in the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide [8] [9] [11] [10] [12] [13] . Later, Senator Husakos also noted that as a result of the world community ignoring the Armenian genocide and the Greek genocide, there was a Holocaust , and the neglect of genocide in Rwanda caused the Yezidi genocide by the “ Islamic State ” [14] [15] [11] [16] . On April 10, the Oshawa City Council ( Ontario ) recognized the genocide of the Pontic Greeks as a historical fact, declaring May 19 a Memorial Day for the victims of the genocide of the Pontic Greeks. Oshawa became the fourth city in Canada to recognize this genocide. [17] A month later, thanks to the efforts of the deputy mayor of Montreal , city council member Mary Deros and the mayor of the municipality of Pierrefon-Roxboro, Dimitrios Jim Beys (also of Greek origin), the Montreal city council recognized the genocide of the Pontic Greeks [18] [19] (see also Jim Kariannis ).
Participation in Senate Committees
- Standing Committee on Agriculture and Forestry
- Standing Joint Committee on the Library of Parliament
- Permanent Joint Review Committee
- Standing Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology [4]
On March 31, 2017, she announced her resignation from the Senate, which happened before the official date for the end of her powers in 2018 [20] [21] .
Personal life
Married to Tony Merchant, has sons Evatt, Joshua and Matthew. All three practice law [3] .
Links
Notes
- ↑ Merchant, The Hon. Pana, BA . Parliament of Canada .
- ↑ The Hon. Pana Merchant, BA (link not available) . Liberal Senate Forum. Date of treatment February 21, 2017. Archived March 6, 2017.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 Pana Merchant Center for immigrant women Regina.
- ↑ 1 2 Biography of Pana Papas Merchant . Senate of Canada .
- ↑ Cudmore, James. Justin Trudeau removes senators from Liberal caucus . CBC.ca (January 29, 2014).
- ↑ Galloway, Gloria and Wingrove, Josh. Trudeau cuts Liberal senators loose in push for a non-partisan Red Chamber . The Globe and Mail (January 29, 2014).
- ↑ Λέο Χουσάκος και Πάνα Μέρτσαντ: Πώς φέραμε τη Γενοκτονία των Ποντίων στην καναδική Γερουσία . News of the Greek Diaspora (02/20/2017).
- ↑ 1 2 Hon. Pana Merchant Motion to Call Upon the Government to Recognize the Genocide of the Pontic Greeks and Designate May 19th as a Day of Remembrance — Debate Adjourned unopened . Senate of Canada (December 14, 2016).
- ↑ 1 2 Οι Έλληνες γερουσιαστές του Καναδά ζήτησαν την αναγνώριση της Γενοκτονίας των Ποντίων . Tribune (11 Φεβρουαρίου 2017).
- ↑ 1 2 Η Γερουσία του Καναδά συζητά για την αναγνώριση της Γενοκτονίας των Ποντίων unspecified . Pontos News (10 Φεβρουαρίου 2017).
- ↑ 1 2 Liberal Senator Calls For Recognition of Genocide of The Pontic Greeks . Hellenic Post @ Μontréal (January 8, 2017).
- ↑ Canadian Senators campaign for recognition of Greek Pontiac Genocide . Πρώτο Θέμα (February 8, 2017).
- ↑ There is no question the actions taken against Greeks living in Pontos by the Ottoman Empire during 1916-21 constitutes genocide .... . Hephaestuswien (Δεκεμβρίου 20, 2016).
- ↑ Kolasa-Sikiaridi, Kerry. Greek-Canadian Senator Housakos Wants Canadian Government to Recognize Pontian Greek Genocide . Greek Reporter (February 17, 2017).
- ↑ Greek-Canadian senator Housakos calls for Pontian Greek Genocide recognition . Tornos News (02.19.2017).
- ↑ Κίνηση για αναγνώριση της Ποντιακής Γενοκτονίας στην Γερουσία του Καναδά . Αρχείον Πολιτισμού (December 14, 2016).
- ↑ Πόλη του Οντάριο αναγνωρίζει τη Γενοκτονία των Ποντίων unspecified . The National Herald GR (Απριλίου 20, 2017).
- ↑ Montreal city council recognizes Greek genocide . Montreal Gazette (May 15, 2017).
- ↑ Η πόλη του Μόντρεαλ αναγνώρισε ομόφωνα την Γενοκτονία των Ελλήνων του Πόντου . The National Herald GR (Μαΐου 16, 2017).
- ↑ Debates of the Senate of Canada . Senate of Canada (March 30, 2017).
- ↑ Merchant, The Hon. Pana, BA . Parliament of Canada .