Orthodox monastery's campaign to relocate a cancerigenic old NATO radar in Santorini, GREECE

Factsheet Radar Station in Santorini island, GREECE

* In 1999, with successive decisions, the Greek Ministry of Transport & Communications, revoked the right to use and emissions of all antennas, including an old NATO Radar installation.

* Although, the radar remained pretending reasons of national security. The environmental burden is prominent on the number of measurements.

* According to the assurances of the U.S. Ambassador, the radar has been placed under the Greek Department of Defense.

* Removal of radar station away from the Monastery of Prophet Elias is an all-embracing demand of the residents and local politicians in Santorini.

* The radar is prominently located on an island which is constantly in recent years, the first touristic destination and steady source of income for Greece ...

* It creates unfavorable and noxious impression due to its age (1965), volume and other decadent elements.

* It is a monastery, which has been designated by the Greek Ministry of Culture as a historic monument with a protection radius of 500m. around it. Similarly, the mountain of  Prophet Elias, on top of which the monastery is built, belongs to the national NATURA 2000 list, and therefore, protected and incompatible with any kind of military installation.

* Without any question, monks, pilgrims or visitors of Mount Prophet Elias face increased health hazards, because of the carcinogenic electromagnetic fields, emitted daily from the radar, just 20 meters away from buildings of the monastery.

* The monastery has been struggling for 15 years, unceasingly, if not for the abolition of function of the radar, at least for its relocation and operation to another area.

* Discussed the possibility of relocating the existing radar antenna (new type that works wirelessly with solar energy) in the uninhabited islet ΜΑKRA near  Anafi island (where there is missile base in cooperation with the Americans), by transferring the received signal midst appropriate LINK through  Santorini’ s military airport (134 SP Thera.)

PLEASE CONSIDER that

this PROPOSAL was confirmed
BY Mr. MICHAEL MORGAN
who is DEFENCE attache
FOR THE BALKANS
US EMBASSY
DURING OUR MEETING
IN THE OFFICE OF US AMBASSADOR Mr. DANIEL SPECKHARD.

* It is a matter of political will to transfer the radar somewhere that will not offend the cultural and religious heritage, the sanctity of an important monastery of the Cyclades with a history of 300 years and the ecological and environmental integrity of protected sites of natural beauty, especially when the new byzantine museum of the Monastery will open for the thousands of tourists of the island.

*In the science textbook "RADIATION" of  Dr. Stephanos Tsitomeneas (page 46), except for photographs showing the state of our monastery until 2005, the professor in his comment says: "Park with antennas radio, broadcasting and radar that had heights 30-80 m, mounted on a monastery of 1700, which have now removed except for the radar still endangering the monastery in case of a war ".

Recently we sent a written question to the Minister of Defence, which was signed by His Reverence Bishop of Santorini Epiphanius, the mayor of Thira, the Regional Director of Thera, the Brotherhood of the Monastery and more than five hundred inhabitants of the island, did not take absolutely no answer. On the contrary, these days military personnel  is attempting to install new radar equipment, in order to upgrade it. All relevant documents are at your disposal . 

We ask for your precious help from any position you may represent to press the Greek State upon our fair demand to relocate the RADAR of Santorini.

the Abbot,
Archimandrite Damaskinos Gavalas

ALL RELEVANT FILES HERE



Monastic environmental campaign against cancerigenic NATO radar (ENGLISH SUBTITLES) from PROPHET ELIAS on Vimeo.