Marios Andreou

Marios Andreou was born on the first of April in 1960, in Kyrenia, Cyprus. He was a quiet boy and a very good student until the age of 15, when a misfortune marked his life.
After an invasion in his country, in 1974 he became a refugee, and moved to Nicosia. Misery and problems within his family were the main reason for Marios to be entangled with a bad company which cause him an imprisonment for 6 months.
From that point on, his whole life changed: Cyprus was a very small country for him to be accepted in, and immigration to Australia was the best that could happen to him. He managed to study, to get a good job there and recently, he became mayor of the Cyprus community in Melbourne. He is also the founder of Rehabilitations for teenagers being guilty of crimes, to help young people avoid facing the same cruel and miserable conditions he had faced himself.

Contents
1. Early life
· Childhood
· Young Refugee
2. Teenage years
· Crime
· Life in prison
· Unaccepted in his country
3. Immigration
· Difficulties of adjustment to new life
· Work and studies
4. Private life
· Marital status
· Interests
5. Nowadays
· Recent achievements
· Future plans



Early life

Childhood
Marios Andreou was born on the first of April 1960 in Kyrenia, Cyprus. His parents were: Yiannis Andreou and Maroulla Kyriakou Andreou. He was the first born child of the family, and his sister Eleni was born in 1966. It was a happy and wealthy family. Marios was very obedient as a child, and an excellent student who everybody admired.

Young refugee
Unfortunately, when he was 14 years old, he and his family had to abandon their own house and properties because of the Turkish invasion in Cyprus, and moved to Nicosia as refugees. It was difficult for everybody to adjust to the new life. Poverty and hunger were the main reasons for quarrels between his parents. Mr. Yiannis couldn’t find a proper job, and the costs were running! Marios was at a crucial age.


Teenage Years

Crime
Teenagers always need more attention and advice than any other time, but none of his parents had the strength to do so, not because they didn’t want to, but as other concerns were on their mind. Marios, as a newcomer to the city, didn’t know a lot of how to distinguish good and bad boys, who were supposed to be appropriate friends, and who weren’t.
Therefore, he unwittingly found himself entangled in a theft! It was a mishap when a night in August 1975, Marios was drinking beers with his friends, in the middle of the shopping area down town. All of a sudden, one of the boys threw an empty bottle at the window of a jewelery shop, and the rest did the same. Marios, too. They broke the glass door of the shop, and the alarm system went on. Neighbours rushed into the street and in less than two minutes, the police came. Everybody got arrested, no matter that Marios was the youngest-15 years-, while the other boys were older.

Life in Prison
Marios got imprisoned for 6 months. That experience was something he would never wish for anyone-even his worst enemy- to have to go through. Even though he was accused for burglary, he was a teenager, and he was put in prison with real criminals, murderers, drug-dealers, thieves, and many other wicked persons. He had been insulted and maltreated those 6 months in that place, as no institution for young persons who committed a crime existed to help youth rehabilitate, and realize the crime they committed.

Unaccepted To His Country
When the rough time passed, Marios was out of prison, but he was confined to his home. Everyone in the country knew his crime, and as Cyprus is a very small country, he knew he couldn’t live in embarrassment and in contempt for the rest of his life.


Immigration

Difficulties of adjustment to new life
Marios’s Uncle’s invitation from Australia immigrate there, saved Marios from all these problems. The first months in Melbourne, were very difficult: Marios had to adjust to a completely new environment, he had to learn the English language, and as he went penniless to Australia, he had to find a job. It was a struggle for him, but with his relative’s support, he managed to get a job as a waiter in a restaurant and later on in a hotel, while at the same time he was going to school.

Work and studies
Marios did never give up. He went as a sociology part-time student to a University, and at the same time he was working as an assistant to a clothing industry ‘’Alexander’’ in order to cover his cost of living, and pay for the University fees.


Private life

Marital Status
Even though Marios is a very respected young man, he is still single at the age of forty nine years.

Interests
He spends most of his free time visiting young people of divorced families and helping anyone who asks for advice. That helped him a lot to regain his self-esteem.


Nowadays

Recent achievements
He is a social worker, and he recently became mayor of the Cyprus community in Melbourne. He fulfilled his vision to do something about all the young people who make the mistake of committing a crime. He founded rehabilitation for teenagers being guilty of crimes, in order to prevent them of facing the wretched conditions in prison he had faced himself.

Future Plans
Marios believes that soon he will be able to establish a similar institution for young criminals in Cyprus.


References
1. http://www.teenagerprisons.com/
2. http://www.cyprus1974.com.cy/
3. http://www.turkishinvasion.com/
4. http://www.australia.com/
5. http://www.cypruspolicerecords.com.cy/
6. http://www.rehabilitationinstitutions.com/
7. http://www.occupiedcyprus.com.cy/


External Links
1. Cyprus community in Melbourne
2. http://www.mariosteenagerehabilitation.com/
3. Marios’s institution in Cyprus


See also
Melbourne, Turkish invasion 1974, rehabilitation centers.