Congress Members Rep. Maloney and Rep. Bilirakis Send Letter To VISA CEO!

For Immediate Release: December 12, 2008

Contact: Nikolaos Taneris, New York, Tel. 1-917-699-9935,

Ioannis Fidanakis, New Jersey, Tel. 1-973-464-0211

NEW YORK--The Cyprus Action Network of America (CANA) and the Hellenic League of America are proud to announce that that the Co-Chairs of the Hellenic Caucus in the US Congress, U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney [D-NY] and  U.S. Rep. Gus M. Bilirakis (R-Fla.) have co-written a letter sent today to VISA CEO Joseph Saunders based on our actions to stop the false historical revisionism of the “United Macedonian Diaspora UMD” and to stop the VISA “Macedonian” Card with a Star of Vergina, that belongs to Greece.

We thank our Members of Congress and encourage our grass-roots to continue writing letters and to please take the time to personally thank our Congress members for their commitment to historical truth and Hellenism.

Please find the PDF original letter from the Co-Chairs of the Hellenic Caucus, Reps. Maloney and Bilirakis to Visa CEO Joseph Saunders on links in our homepage:  www.cyprusactionnetwork.org

(Copy of Original Letter Sent Today By Members of U.S. Congress)

CONGRESS OF THE UNITED STATES

Washington DC, 20515

December 12, 2008

Mr. Joseph W. Saunders

Chairman and Chief Executive Officer

Visa, Inc.

P.O. Box 8999

San Francisco, CA 941 28-8999

Dear Mr. Saunders,

As co-chairs of the Congressional Caucus on Hellenic Issues and the congressional

Representatives for large Greek-American constituencies, we are writing to express our strong

concern about a Visa card portraying the Star of Vergina to be issued by UMB Bank on behalf of

the "United Macedonian Diaspora."

We have long been concerned about efforts by the Former Yugoslav Republic of

Macedonia (FYROM) and its diaspora to adopt symbols and images significant to Greece as part

of a propaganda campaign. We believe that the "United Macedonian Diaspora's" efforts

regarding this credit card may be yet another example.

The Star of Vergina, unearthed in the 1970s during archaeological excavations in the

Greek province of Macedonia, is copyrighted exclusively by Greece and protected by the Paris

Convention for the Protection of State Emblems, and Names, Abbreviations and Emblems of

International Intergovernmental Organizations under the WIPO (World Intellectual Property

Organization). All historical and archaeological evidence demonstrates that the ancient

Macedonians were Greek. Macedonia is a Greek name that has designated the northern area of

Greece for 2,500 years.

Therefore, we would strongly urge Visa, Inc., to reconsider issuing this credit card with

the Star of Vergina on it, and to work with Greek-Americans to ensure that this type of situation

does not occur in the future.

Thank you for your attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

-

 Member of Congress

CAROLYN B. MALONEY

Member of Congress                         

GUS M. BILIRAKIS

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Cyprus Action Network of America (CANA)

2578 Broadway #132

New York, NY 10025

New York: Tel. 917-699-9935

Email: cana@cyprusactionnetwork.org

www.cyprusactionnetwork.org

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