[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 34 (Thursday, March 23, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E402]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                   RECOGNITION OF GREEK INDEPENDENCE

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. DAVID E. BONIOR

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 23, 2000

  Mr. BONIOR. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 179th 
anniversary of Greek Independence.
  In March of 1821, Alexandros Ypsilantis led his small band of troops 
across the Prut River into Ottoman-held Moldavia. Much like the men and 
women who fought for our own nation's independence, the soldiers who 
followed Ypsilantis came from all corners of the Ottoman territories, 
from all classes of Greek society, and from all walks of life. They 
traversed the waters of the Prut toward an enemy that vastly 
outnumbered them, and toward an empire which posed an almost 
insurmountable obstacle to the pursuit of freedom.
  Though they were defeated, the courageous efforts of Ypsilantis and 
his troops planted a seed in the hearts of thousands of Greeks. This 
seed grew into a flourishing movement toward religious freedom, a re-
inspired sense of cultural identity, and a long awaited return to the 
democratic ideals which were born in ancient Greece. On March 25, 1821, 
a series of revolts spread across northern Greece and the Peloponnese 
with the unified purpose of establishing Greek sovereignty. Today, 179 
years later, Greeks throughout the world pause in thanks to their 
ancestors for returning to them the basic rights of representation and 
civil and religious freedom that we all assume to be our birthrights, 
but which are truly blessings.
  I would like to congratulate Greece and the Greek-American community 
for their renewed freedom, and I ask you to join with me in wishing 
them an upcoming century of peace, prosperity, and self-determination.

                          ____________________