ATHENS, 5 OCTOBER 2021. CONGRATULATORY LETTER.
Ms Annie Koutrakis, Canada House of Commons, Quebec
Mr. Peter Fragiskatos, Canada House of Commons, London North Center
Ms Emmanuela Lambropoulos, Canada House of Commons, Saint-Laurent
Ms Niki Ashton, Canada House of Commons, Churchill Manitoba
Dear Colleagues,
Please accept my warm congratulations on your re-election to the Federal Parliament of Canada. It is a special honor for Greece and Orthodoxy when our compatriots and orthodox colleagues serve the democratic process in other countries of the world for a long time.
The Interparliamentary Assembly of Orthodoxy (I.A.O.) is a political organization of a parliamentary nature, which has been operating since 1993 with its seat in the Hellenic Parliament, in Athens (https://eiao.org/). Official parliamentary delegations from twenty-five countries are participating in the I.A.O., as well as five groups of Members from other parliaments. The goal of the Organization is the development of multilevel political and cultural activity in the direction of encouraging contacts and widening relations of trust, in understanding modern political phenomena and currents of public opinion, as well as in highlighting those elements of Orthodoxy that positively affect multicultural understanding.
I wish to underline that during the critical period we are going through due to the pandemic, as well as the climate crisis, the need for trust in the instruments and processes of multilateral cooperation and international institutions has been highlighted more than ever. Canada has proven over time that can play a key role in the international arena on issues related to the protection of the environment, human rights and the principles of democracy, parliamentarism and good governance.
We would be greatly pleased if the Parliament of Canada participated with an official delegation to our Organization. We are convinced that there may be many points of permanent contact and close cooperation with the I.A.O., especially in the field of respect for human rights, religious freedoms and the protection of threatened Christians in the long-suffering Middle East. In this context, we anticipate cooperation with you and your contribution to the I.A.O. activities.
Athens, 5 October 2021. Congratulatory letter.
