Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 00-04-25

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cyprus-mail.com/>

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

CONTENTS

[01] April set for record rainfall

[02] ‘We were drunk. We hit him, but when we left he was breathing’

[03] Market levels out with shares down slightly

[04] Pork destroyed after traces of banned drug found

[05] Akel steps up offensive on tax package

[06] Authorities order landlord to clean up students’ house

[07] Hoping for Ankara to change its stance

[01] April set for record rainfall

WE COULD be in line for record-breaking rainfall this month, but the torrential downpours of the last few days are unlikely to make much of a dent in the island's deep water "deficit".

April 2000 was yesterday already being counted as one of the wettest Aprils since 1901 and the Meteorological Service was predicting more rain for tomorrow and Thursday.

Meteorological Service director Cleanthis Philaniotis said this month could yet prove wetter that the wettest April since the turn of the last century, which was 1971, when 98 mm of rain fell across the island.

Average precipitation for the month is 30 mm.

After heavy rains every day since last Wednesday, total precipitation for this April had yesterday reached 58.5 mm, some 196 per cent of average.

According to the Water Development Department, a total of 4.2 million cubic metres of water rushed into dams between Thursday and Sunday.

This injection of water brought the total stored behind dam walls to 46.6 million cubic metres, or 17.1 per cent of capacity. At the same time last year, reservoirs were about 26 per cent full.

Water officials warned that the situation remained tragic and was unlikely to change, even if the rains continued.

Overall rainfall since October is still only 71 per cent of average.

All but 5.4 mm of the April rains came after last Tuesday. The wettest period was between Wednesday and Thursday morning, when a total of 22 mm of rain crashed down. Some 16 mm fell between Thursday and Friday morning, and 15.5 mm between Friday and yesterday morning.

Yesterday proved a relatively dry day and only localised rain over the mountains is expected today. But the low-pressure system which produced the downfalls of the past few days was expected to do its stuff again tomorrow and Thursday.

"We might exceed the 1971 record this year," Philaniotis told the Cyprus Mail, adding that April 2000 was already one of the 10 wettest Aprils in the last 100.

All areas got rain but some were well and truly soaked.

The mountain villages of Prodromos, Platania and Agros got well over 200 per cent of average rainfall for the whole month between Wednesday and Sunday. The same was true for Nicosia, which experienced flooding problems in the Aglandja, Dassoupolis, Palouriotissa, Strovolos and Acropolis areas.

The Fire Brigade was called out on dozens of occasions over the weekend to deal with flooded basements or motorists trapped on Nicosia roads, which had turned into rivers. Off-duty firemen had to be called in to help deal with the flood of distress calls.

The downpours were accompanied by impressive thunderstorms.

In the Larnaca area village of Skarinou, the local church was struck by a lightning bolt during the evening service on Sunday.

No one was hurt and the service continued by candle-light after the 60 church-goers and the village priest recovered from the shock of the blast, which snapped a stone cross off the church bell-tower.

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[02] ‘We were drunk. We hit him, but when we left he was breathing’

AN 18-YEAR-OLD suspect confessed to police how he and another man beat up a British tourist found dead last week, a Limassol court heard on Sunday.

But he insisted the victim was still breathing when they left him.

Christos Christodoulou, alias Kattos, was arrested just after midday on Saturday at the end of a dramatic car chase down the Limassol to Paphos highway.

He is one of two teenagers suspected of murdering 41-year-old Graham Mills from Tring in Hertfordshire.

Mills was found battered to death on Thursday morning near the old Limassol port.

Christodoulou, who refused to stop when police flagged him down, collided with several cars during the chase, only coming to a halt when one of his tyres burst.

No one was hurt during the chase.

During Sunday’s remand hearing before Limassol District Court, an apparently nervous Christodoulou, who appeared without a lawyer, said: "I admitted the murder. We were drunk. We hit him, but when we left he was breathing. It was not premeditated."

Soon after the arrest, police picked up 17-year-old Andreas Panovic, alias Panouris, named by Christodoulou as his accomplice.

Panovic, who was calm in court, appeared with his lawyer, who claimed his client suffered from mental problems.

Police told the court that the suspects had confessed that they wanted to mug Mills, not kill him; they were nevertheless investigating a case of premeditated murder against the two.

The suspects allegedly told police they had taken most of their victim’s money, but left some behind along with the victim's ring and watch in an attempt to mislead the authorities.

Police did initially rule out theft as a motive for the attack.

On Saturday afternoon, the two suspects went to the murder scene.

They also showed police where they could find the bloodstained rock they used to kill Mills.

Until then, police had thought the killers had used a metal crowbar.

The suspects were remanded in custody for eight days.

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[03] Market levels out with shares down slightly

SHARE prices drifted lower yesterday, with medium to small cap shares taking centre stage away from heavyweight banking stocks.

The all-share CSE index was trimmed 0.4 per cent in a mixed performance across sectors, which saw the banks slide while investment, industrial and insurance posted healthy gains.

Closing at 539.36, it was a rather colourless session for the bourse, which traded range-bound for most of the 90 minutes. It opened marginally firmer than Friday and briefly spiked to 543 points before subsiding again.

"The market is levelling out at Friday's position. There was a momentum on the market last week which elevated it so one should expect prices would subside slightly," said Theodoulos Charalambides of Axxia-Plus.

Turnover and the number of trades were considerably lower than Friday. Turnover was some £10 million lower at £26.4 million, while the number of deals were at a 10-session low of 7,300.

Thinner trades were also due to the Easter holiday next week.

Banking shares were pulled 0.7 per cent lower, pressured by a 16 cent slide in Bank of Cyprus to £8.26. Hellenic and Universal Savings also headed south, losing eight and ten cents respectively. Laiki continued to climb, adding 13 cents on its ordinary share value to £13.19 and five cents for its ex dividend shares.

"Banking shares were not first in the line of preference but small to medium cap shares," said Charalambides.

Kyknos Investment topped volume ranks with 1.5 million shares changing hands, climbing two cents to a last trade of 90.

Droushia Heights followed, down two to £1.08 on a turnover of 1.08 shares. In terms of net gainers, ShareLink Financial Services 1999/2000 warrants were up 80 cents to £21.30 on a volume of just 1,000 shares, followed by Astarti Development, which climbed 50 cents, or seven per cent to £7.50.

Phoenikas Investment, which made its debut late last week, climbed eighteen cents to £1.45.

Meanwhile, Cassoulides and Options Eurocongress announced details yesterday of their proposed merger into one firm, Options Cassoulides.

Under terms of the proposed merger, which needs to be ratified by shareholders in both companies and by the CSE and Securities Exchange Commission, shareholders in Cassoulides would swap every 13 shares held with seven new shares in Options.

The joint venture would concentrate on publishing in print and electronic form. Severis and Athienitis also announced it had entered agreement to buy real estate worth £400,000 from PriceWaterhouseCoopers' provident fund in Cyprus. It was a part cash, part equity deal, the firm said.

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[04] Pork destroyed after traces of banned drug found

OVER 50 pig carcasses contaminated with an illegal drug, all from the same farm near Larnaca, were confiscated from the central slaughter house in Kofinou on April 7, the Veterinary Department confirmed yesterday.

It is the fourth time that the same pig farmer has been reprimanded for dosing his pig feed with the outlawed antibiotic sulfa, banned in Cyprus since 1996.

"Published guidelines of approved animal feed and medication are known to all livestock farmers", said Veterinary Department Director Pavlos Economides.

"Our rules comply with European Union legislation and have been ratified by Brussels for the last seven years."

In accordance with the law and to ensure the safety of public consumption, the veterinary services regularly screen slaughtered meat.

The batch of contaminated pork was screened on April 5. On April 7 the results came back negative. The 4,050 kilos of meat were destroyed immediately.

"This is a common violation in Cyprus and elsewhere, particularly in the United States", said Economides.

There have been reports in the past of pig farmers deliberately adding the antibiotic to animal feed in order to prevent them from becoming ill.

But George Panayiotou, president of the Cyprus Union of Pig Farmers, said it was impossible to buy up large quantities of the drug because of the ban.

Instead, he blamed the source on a Dutch company, which includes sulfa in the milk it manufactures for piglets. The product is exported to Cyprus, despite the drug's outlawed status on the island.

It is not yet certain whether the pork was contaminated from the Dutch feed, or from the farmer's deliberate intervention.

While the drug is not banned in all countries, Economides defended the Cypriot law.

"Our standards are higher than in the EU, because Cypriots are particularly sensitive to food scares. The risk to humans is not immediate, but over a longer period of time, some people might well become ill as a result of sulfa", he said.

The Larnaca farmer has been forbidden from further slaughtering until he complies with the rules.

But Panayiotou was surprised by all the fuss.

"Such a small incidence has been blown out of all proportion. It is well known that in approved slaughter houses, when anything is detected the meat is withdrawn and destroyed. At this rate, you'd think that the meat was cancerous."

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[05] Akel steps up offensive on tax package

THE GAP between government and opposition over a proposed rise in VAT grew wider yesterday, with Akel not only insisting on bringing up its own counter-proposals for greater tax relief at the House Finance Committee, but actually calling for VAT to be lowered in the tourist sector.

The Committee was meeting to discuss a government package of tax measures to counterbalance the planned rise in VAT from eight to 10 per cent.

The measures, which will cost the government £47.2 million, aim to compensate lower income groups for the losses they will incur through higher VAT. The state hopes to raise £62 million from the two per cent rise in VAT.

But with the government calling for VAT to rise in line with EU norms (VAT averages 15 per cent across the Union), Akel yesterday proposed a cut in VAT from eight to five per cent on services and goods offered at restaurants and hotels.

Akel deputies George Lillikas and Avraam Antoniou said the cut was necessary to support the tourism industry in the wake of the government’s plan to cut direct subsidies to the Cyprus Tourism Organisation and instead fund it through a levy on tourism products.

Akel also submitted its own set of tax-relief measures. Antoniou said the measures aimed at reforming income tax brackets to take account of inflation over recent years, and to increase the tax-free threshold from £5, 000 to £7,000. The government has offered to raise it to £6,000.

Sek, Peo and Pasydi trade unions suggested the government’s plans to extend tax-free income to £6,000 should be followed up by reforms on tax deductions.

But Finance Minister Takis Klerides told the committee that the Akel and union demands were unrealistic and that the government could not afford measures that would cost it more than it expects to raise from the VAT hike. He said Akel’s plans would cost £60 million, while the trade unions' proposals would cost more than £100 million.

Speaking later on the CyBC, Lillikas said the government proposals were part of a political agenda, aimed at helping out some parties that were in deep trouble, ahead of the forthcoming parliamentary elections.

"When the same measures were proposed by Akel and the Social-Democratic movement, Minister Klerides ruled them out in Parliament, while now he favours them because they are backed by Disy and Diko," Lillikas said.

But Disy’s Prodromos Prodromou accused Akel of going back on its acceptance of the tax package, and manoeuvring now to pass the tax-relief plans while voting out the rise in VAT.

"Minister Klerides should not negotiate any more," Prodromou said.

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[06] Authorities order landlord to clean up students’ house

THE PUBLIC Health Service and Nicosia municipality have ordered the owner of 5 Arsinois Street in the Old City, where nine Pakistani students have been without water or electricity for over two weeks, to repair the place for re-inspection by May 2.

"Your complaint was justified," Health Service Inspector George Koumouris said of the story in Saturday's Cyprus Mail describing the horrendous conditions at 5 Arsinois Street, whose rent-collector admitted to turning off the water and power some two weeks ago.

The man, who told the Cyprus Mail he rented rooms to the students at the house, refused to give his surname to the newspaper, and insisted on being known only by the name Phivos.

An electricity bill the students showed the Cyprus Mail, indicating an unpaid balance of £299.02, was registered in the name of Neophytos Ioachim. A Nicosia Water Board official said the residence was also listed to the same Neophytos Ioachim and owed a water bill of £323.42.

Koumouris said the building's owner had been ordered by officers of the Public Health Service and the Nicosia Municipality to bring 5 Arsinois Street "up to the state of hygienic condition by May 2," when they would re- inspect it.

"We pointed out a lot of defects to the owner, and the owner said he would make the repairs," Koumouris said.

Besides having no water or electricity for over two weeks, the house’s walls and floors are caked with years of fried-food grease and dirt.

Its unflushable toilet has overflowed onto the floor. No water in the kitchen or shower next to it means no washing of humans, dishes or clothes.

The residents all say they are studying hotel management or business at CASA College in Nicosia, and showed CASA ID cards to prove it. Phivos denied this, claiming they were illegal workers. The students said they paid Phivos £50 a month per room - £40 for the room, and £10 for the water and electricity. They admit they have no written rental agreement, and no receipts.

The students claim Phivos misapplied their utility fees, and left the bills unpaid. He, in turn, claims they over-used the water and electricity and hid the bills from him, month on month, so he would not see them. They denied this.

Welfare Department Director Lula Theodorou and Nicosia immigration lawyer Yiannakis Erotocritou said the students should simply move out of 5 Arsinois Street.

Koumouris said they would be doing this on April 30, as their visas expire then and they will be returning to Pakistan.

Tuesday, April 25, 2000

[07] Hoping for Ankara to change its stance

Government Spokesman Michalis Papapetrou yesterday said Nicosia hoped for a shift in Turkish position after the upcoming meeting between Greek Foreign Minister George Papandreou and his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem in New York.

"The key to the success of the third round of proximity talks and the general effort for a solution to the Cyprus problem is in Ankara," Papapetrou said.

President Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash are due to resume UN-led settlement talks in New York on May 23.

Papapetrou said Clerides would be meeting with Greek Prime Minister Costas Simitis in Athens on May 19 on his way to the talks.

The spokesman also said the government had "information" the EU was trying to find a way to channel assistance funds directly to the Turkish Cypriot community.

Such EU funds have so far been sent to the occupied areas via the Republic’s Central Bank.

Papapetrou said the government had "no objection" to funds going straight to the Turkish Cypriots, as long as there was no EU recognition of Denktash's occupation regime.

"It would be unthinkable for any aid to go to the so-called authorities of the pseudostate, but beyond this we have no objection to help going to the Turkish Cypriot community," the spokesman said.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 2000

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