Cyprus Mail: News Articles in English, 01-04-04

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

Wednesday, April 4, 2001

CONTENTS

[01] Government agrees to delay all contributions to NHS

[02] Olympiakos sack Whelan

[03] Illegals rescued from sinking boat

[04] Deputies seek to force government to rescind jet ski restrictions

[05] Government moots Tel Aviv flight liberalisation

[06] Themistocleous plays down BSE risk warning

[07] Gold near Larnaca?

[08] Municipality defends decision to double parking rates

[09] Vatican says impossible for Pope to visit now

[10] Boy arrested after police find 160 firecrackers at his home

[01] Government agrees to delay all contributions to NHS

The decision came after the government agreed on Monday to exempt civil servants and bank employees from contributions until the plan was ready, in an attempt to avert a 48-hour strike. It then said that all employees contributing to union health plans would be exempted, before announcing late yesterday afternoon that no one would pay until everything was in place.

Health Minister Frixos Savvides said the initial cost of introducing the plan would be paid using existing government funds.

The Minister made the announcement following an afternoon meeting with Finance Ministry director general Andis Tryfonides.

Announcing the amendment to the bill, Savvides said: "The contributions will begin when the plan is implemented and not a day before... It should be made clear that all the costs for setting up the plan will be paid by the government, since no contributions will be coming in until then."

He said people belonging to unions health systems would be allowed to continue to enjoy any extra benefits they provided and that the state plan did not.

"I do not mind, as long as they make their contributions (to the NHS)."

The decision also put paid to concerns from the government doctors' union, PASYKI, that some categories of employees would be unfairly exempted from paying dues. The union had threatened to take action if some were made to pay contributions and others not.

Savvides said other amendments had been introduced to clarify certain points. These, he said, included small hospitals in agricultural communities having the same standards as their larger urban counterparts.

The minister said the government would be ready to take the amendments to the House Health Committee meeting tomorrow morning and, provided the Committee agreed, send the proposal to the plenum in the afternoon.

"We do not want to interfere with how the House operates, just as we do not want the House to interfere in the way we operate," he said.

Under the proposed scheme, all employees would contribute two per cent of their wages to the plan. The employer would contribute a further 2.55 per cent and 4.5 per cent would be footed by the state. These contributions will now only come into effect once the plan is implemented.

Civil service and banking unions on Monday called off a 48-hour strike due to start today after a meeting with a House Contact Committee meeting managed to bridge the gap between the two sides.

Other unions said yesterday they were pleased with the way things were proceeding.

PEO representative for the plan, Sotiris Felas, told the Cyprus Mail that recent developments had brought no reason for the union to change its largely positive stance on the plan.

"We will be satisfied, as long as the rights of the workers are maintained, " he said, adding that the union would also like to see the government adopt AKEL suggestions on lowering contributions.

Right-wing SEK union said the adoption of the plan would be a historical event that would work to the benefit of all people.

An announcement from the union said that while changes would be made to the law as it went along, it should be voted in immediately so that work could begin. "Let's look at the example of the Social Insurances scheme, which has improved to such a degree that it no longer bears any resemblance to the way it was first introduced."

DEOK's representative on the national health scheme, Joseph Anastassiou, said: "One of our foremost goals was for the introduction of an all- encompassing health plan that would see all of society contributing and receiving the same benefits. The current system has run its course. It was formed in the sixties under other conditions and needs."

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[02] Olympiakos sack Whelan

Speaking at a brief news conference, Chairman of the company Christoforos Tornarites said the decision to dismiss Whelan was taken late last night.

The new coach is adopted Serbian Toza Sambouric who in the past played for APOEL and Anorthosis.

Tornarites thanked Whelan for the co-operation, adding that the former Liverpool star had given a lot to the team.

The controversial chairman said the decision was unanimous and was prompted by Olympiakos' poor recent results, which may have cost them the ticket to Europe, albeit mathematically that possibility still exists.

Tornarites said Sampouric would have been hired at the end of the season anyway, but persistent media reports on the issue ruined the team's climate and necessitated Whelan's immediate dismissal.

Olympiakos had been revitalised since Whelan took over as coach last season. The team's good results kept Whelan in the driving seat for this season and until a couple of games ago, Olympiakos were still in the battle for the championship.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[03] Illegals rescued from sinking boat

EIGHT illegal immigrants -- six Iraqis and two Syrians -- were being questioned by Ayia Napa police last night after their fishing boat sank in international waters off Cyprus early yesterday.

Police said the two Syrians crewed the eight-metre vessel and had attempted to drop the six Iraqi men at Cape Greco. The coast guard patrol spotted the boat at around 11.30pm, intercepted it, and escorted it back into international waters.

However shortly afterwards the fishing boat began to sink and the men jumped overboard shouting for help, police said. They were rescued by the coast guard and taken to Ayia Napa police station.

Police said they could not be sure whether the men had deliberately scuttled the boat. They told officers they had paid between $700 and $900 to be taken to Greece.

Cyprus has recently increased patrols off the coast after several waves of illegal immigrants landed on the island, and has adopted a tough policy of intercepting vessels before they reach shore.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[04] Deputies seek to force government to rescind jet ski restrictions

Almost two years ago, the Plenum passed a law limiting the use of jet skis to the hours between 10am and 1pm and 4pm to 7pm.

The House Communications Committee last year proposed to lift the restrictions on the use of the pleasure craft, but the call fell on deaf government ears.

But in a bid to satisfy the demands of jet ski importers and tourists, the Committee yesterday re-tabled its proposal before Communications minister Averoff Neophytou.

"The Committee's decision to make this proposal was unanimous, but the minister for some strange reason thinks the plan would be catastrophic. In any way, the House plenum can still approve the bill and that could happen as soon as Thursday," Koullias said.

The last plenum of the current House of Representatives will be held on April 19, when the House will dissolve ahead of the election on May 27. The new House is expected to start work next autumn.

"Our proposal provides that jet skis would operate outside designated bathing areas, meaning between 500 and 700 metres off the cost. This way, they would be out of swimmers' way. They would not put them in any danger," Koullias insisted.

Koullias dismissed claims that jet skis would cause noise pollution, pledging that, "the noise produced by jet skis does not exceed 75 decibels, so it's within the limit set by the government."

A year ago, dozens of jet ski owners and importers came in to Nicosia to protest against the Communications Ministry's refusal to endorse deputies' plea to lift restrictions on their use.

The protestors argued that the lack of marinas on the island encouraged sea sports entrepreneurs to choose jet skis over other craft as their smaller size made them easier to transport and launch from the beach.

About 700,000 tourists use jet skis every year along with thousands of Cypriots.

But a spate of serious accidents in recent years prompted the government to act to restrict their operation.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[05] Government moots Tel Aviv flight liberalisation

Following a meeting of the Ministerial Committee for Air Transport, Rolandis said a decision would be taken on Monday.

Currently, the route is covered exclusively by a bi-lateral agreement between national carrier Cyprus Airways (CY) and its Israeli counterpart El Al.

New Cypriot charter firm Helios Airlines has already applied to operate flights to Tel Aviv, and is the major contender for the licence.

Until now, Tel Aviv has been protected from liberalisation to safeguard the interests of the national carrier, as it constitutes one of only three profitable routes operated by the airline, along with Athens and London Heathrow.

But Rolandis said high fares and unsuitable flight times had seen tourist traffic from Israel drop 30 per cent last year. "We have lost a lot of business in the last year," Rolandis said. "There is a lack of flights at the weekend and most of the flights are at night."

The Minister said that, according to the Cyprus Tourism Organisation (CTO), traffic had fallen off due entirely to the flights issue. He said last year some 42,000 Israeli tourists had visited Cyprus, compared to 60,000 in 1999.

"We have had many complaints, even from the Israeli embassy," he said. "They say the fare is higher than the fare to Italy, and the CTO says this situation cannot continue any longer."

Rolandis said the Ministerial Committee would take into consideration whether or not CY could improve its operations to Tel Aviv before taking a final decision.

CY spokesman Tassos Angelis said the national carrier believed it could satisfy the demands of the Israeli market together with El Al. "We believe it is too early to open up this route to other airlines and in any case it is not in Europe," he said, referring to the inevitable liberalisation that will come with the island's expected EU accession.

Angelis admitted that Tel Aviv was one of CY's most lucrative routes and that if a charter firm managed to muscle in, it would be disastrous for the national carrier. "We are talking about a tourism market here," he said.

Helios is proving to be a major contender for CY, having recently snagged the Sofia route from under the nose of the national carrier. CY complained that it had applied for the route but had been refused and the licence given to Helios.

However, Rolandis said Helios had put its application in months before Balkan Airlines collapsed earlier this year. "Cyprus Airways only asked for it afterwards," he said. "They got involved too late."

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[06] Themistocleous plays down BSE risk warning

The opinion, issued by the Commission's scientific advisers examining non- EU beef exporters, said that all countries classed in category III, including Cyprus, as well as Switzerland and seven East European countries, were likely to present a BSE risk, even if not confirmed.

The Commission is now calling on the countries at risk to remove potentially dangerous cattle tissues, known as 'specific risk material', such as spinal cords, from meat they intend to export to the EU.

The report said that countries in category III had imported significant amounts of live cattle and meat and bone meal (MBM) from EU countries where cases of BSE have been confirmed.

"The report refers to hypothetical concerns which have not been confirmed," Themistocleous said yesterday.

"Group tests on animals showed no BSE cases in Cyprus. The reason why Cyprus is included in the risk list is because 20 years ago, in 1981, we imported MBM from France. But the first cases of the disease were only reported in Britain in 1986. Plus, we have taken all necessary measures against the spread of BSE, getting in line with EU practices," the minister told CyBC, stressing that the Commission had not needed to ask Cyprus to remove any risk material from slaughterhouses because it had already done so.

The minister noted that Cyprus had spent £1.5 million to implement measures to prevent the disease from spreading to Cyprus.

In 1990, imports of MBM from all countries where BSE and scrapie had been reported were officially banned.

The European Union banned the use of MBM in animal feed for six months from January 1 and Cyprus followed suit.

MBM has been exported to more than 100 countries since 1986, when BSE was first detected in Britain.

Animal feed produced from infected carcasses is thought to transmit the brain-wasting disease.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[07] Gold near Larnaca?

Using state-of-the-art technology, the team is hoping to find strong enough veins of the precious metal to make mining profitable.

Previous attempts have proved fruitless in finding workable stocks.

Having visited the project, at an area of Kellia known as Kokkinomouti on Monday, Agriculture Minister Costas Themistocleous said yesterday; "The ministry has given permission for tests in the area. It is not the first time this type of thing has been done in Cyprus, just like it is not the first time a new mine has been opened up to find new veins of gold."

The Minister said what was different about this attempt was the modern technology used in the effort. "The company which has been given permission to carry out the tests says that the methods can, for example, check through a ton of rock and find a quantity of gold that can be used."

He said that up to five grams of gold per ton of rock could be found this way, according to the company. Samples had been sent to State Laboratory for testing, Themistocleous added.

The Russian company has not been named yesterday.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[08] Municipality defends decision to double parking rates

The new minimum rate is 50 cents for two hours, up from 25 cents, with the fee increasing incrementally by the hour at about double the previous rates. Parking your car for 10 hours now costs £1.60.

The change follows a unanimous decision by the city council and will apply to all of the city's car parks, with the exception of the ones near Ledra and Phaneromeni.

The new rates will not apply to these two car parks at any time soon because the city is trying to encourage motorists to park their vehicles at the car parks in the old town, Municipal Treasurer Kyriacos Matsis explained.

Complicating the matter, the machines at the car parks only accept 5, 10 and 20-cent coins, so if a commuter wants to pay the £1.30 required for 8 hours, he or she will have to come up with this amount in 5, 10 and 20 cent coins every day.

Matsis told the Cyprus Mail that he was unaware of this difficulty, but conceded: "it sounds like a problem."

Asked if the increases would lead to more illegal parking on pavements, he replied, "Definitely not. I don't think because parking fares were increased that people will park anywhere they want. The municipal police will definitely enforce the law."

Furthermore, Matsis told the Cyprus Mail that the rate increase was completely separate from parking enforcement by the Municipal Traffic Police, who have shown an increased presence around the old town in recent weeks.

"The parking fares were increased because we have not increased the fares for a long, long time, but compared to the private sector they are still cheaper," Matsis said, explaining that the rates had not changed for four to five years and the new prices would still cost only about 70 per cent of the average rate for private car parks.

Many of Nicosia's motorists were outraged by the changes.

Melios Georgiou, the secretary general of the Small Shopkeepers Union of Cyprus (POVEK), was quoted as saying that the decision was unacceptable because it had an immediate effect on the shops in the centre of town.

The POVEK leadership is expected to meet soon with Nicosia mayor Lellos Demetriades to discuss the matter.

One London Cypriot now living Lakatamia phoned the Cyprus Mail saying he was "somewhat peeved" about the situation and blasted the municipality for not displaying the rate change notice clearly in English, as well as Greek.

But while there is no English on the machine where motorists put their money to get their ticket, there is a bilingual Greek and English sign where the rates are displayed. A yellow sticker with the new rates now covers the old rates on an otherwise white sign.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[09] Vatican says impossible for Pope to visit now

The ambassador of Cyprus to the Holy See, Christos Psilogenis, on Friday extended an official invitation from President Glafcos Clerides to the Pope to visit the island during his trip to Athens, Syria and Malta on May 3-9.

By this time, however, the Vatican had already announced the itinerary for the tour, which was intended to follow the footsteps of the Apostle Paul, who was converted near Damascus and is said to have preached in Cyprus on his way to Rome.

If the pontiff had included Cyprus in his tour, it would have been the first time the head of the Roman Catholic Church had visited the island.

"This stage of preparations for the forthcoming trip of the Pope to Greece, Syria and Malta renders a stop-over to Cyprus technically impossible", Vatican representative Dr. Joaquinn Navarro-Valls said.

The Vatican also expressed the Pope's thanks to the government of Cyprus for its invitation and said the Pontiff wished he would be able to visit the island one day.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

[10] Boy arrested after police find 160 firecrackers at his home

Forty-nine firecrackers were found at the boy's home. He told police that he bought them in three batches instances from the nearby buffer zone village of Pyla.

The boy allegedly admitted to buying a total of 160 firecrackers.

On Saturday, police arrested another student from Sotira, again in the Famagusta district, in connection with possession and use of firecrackers.

The boy said he had bought the firecrackers from a Larnaca schoolmate and confessed that he had 37 more at home.

The boy gave police the name of another youth from Sotira, who he claimed had also purchased crackers from the same source.

Officers arrested the second youth and found 40 firecrackers in his home.

Police said the boy had already used a number of the explosive devices.

The use of firecrackers during has been the cause of many accidents over the years.

Firecrackers are banned, but teenagers often make their own explosive devices.

Copyright Cyprus Mail 2001

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