Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 01-06-07

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From: The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation at <http://www.cybc.com.cy/>

CONTENTS

[01] HEADLINES

[02] house inaugural

[03] US CY

[04] Europarliament-Turkey

[05] cler moi

[06] britain elecs

[07] arson l'ssol

[08] cse

[09] tailer

[10] weather THURSDAY 7 JUNE 2001

[01] HEADLINES

The US reiterates its support of efforts towards a resolution of the Cyprus Issue, a need also stressed by the Euro-parliament's rapporteur for Turkey;

Visiting Kenyan President Daniel Arap Moi begins official contacts on the island;

Britons are casting their votes in a general election today;

and...

Policework can be stressful, but that's definitely no excuse for what Scotland Yard describes as... "incivility"!

[02] house inaugural

Immediately after the taking of the oath of office by all members, both old and new, the island's supreme legislative body is set to elect its new President, a post contested by left-wing AKEL Secretary-General Demetris Christophias and right-wing Democratic Rally Chairman Nikos Anastassiades.

Given the support of his own party, AKEL, as well as that of the centrist Democratic Party and the Social-Democrats, Demetris Christophias is expected to be elected with an absolute majority from the first round of voting, leading to the first-ever time in Cyprus' history that a left-wing leader assumes state office.

The smaller parliamentary parties, namely the New Horizons, the United Democrats, ADIK and the Ecologists-Environmentalists, all with one seat each, have stated that they plan to abstain on the thesis that the holder of the House Presidency should by no means be a party leader as well.

The House of Representatives inaugural session, scheduled to begin at 4 o'clock this afternoon, will be carried live on our First Television and First Radio Channels.

[03] US CY

The statement was made by US Ambassador to Nicosia Donald Bandler during a reception organised by Cyprus' Washington Embassy on the sidelines of the 12th International Conference of Cypriots Abroad, in which he also stressed the significance of the current bicommunal programmes in achieving rapprochement among the ranks of what he termed "the younger generation of Cypriots".

The reception was also attended by the State Department's Special Co-ordinator for Cyprus, Thomas Weston, who noted that significant progress on the issue had been made until such time as Turkish-Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash withdrew from the UN-sponsored proximity talks.

Meanwhile, the Bush administration's positioning was reiterated by US Undersecretary of State Mark Grossman during his address to the Conference itself, while Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs Elisabeth Jones voiced the assessment that Cyprus' EU-accession constitutes "a very serious motive" for the re-unification of the island.

Former US international troubleshooter Richard Holbrooke also addressed the Conference, describing Mr Denktash as "the most reactionary individual he has ever met", and further stressed that no country can veto Cyprus' entry to the European Union, while also expressing his satisfaction over the progress achieved so far in the island's accession negotiations.

In his message, Richard Holbrooke also introduced his nominated successor as US Ambassador to the United Nations, Greek-American diplomat John Negroponte, who stated that "there is currenetly a window of opportunity" as regards the solution of the Cyprus Issue, given that the island is proceeding apace towards its accession to the European Union.

[04] Europarliament-Turkey

Within the scope of his first visit to Turkey since assuming the post, the French EuroMP met with the country's Foreign Minister, Ismail Cem, and noted that given Cyprus' projected date-of-accession, the island's long-standing problem should be resolved by the end of next year, since a failure to reach a settlement would lead to what he described as "serious problems".

On the situation in Turkey itself, Alain Lamasour said that problems are apparent in both the human rights and other sectors, adding that the European Parliament will strive to help the country's government resolve them.

[05] cler moi

A formal ceremony greeted the Kenyan head-of-state's arrival at the Presidential Palace in Nicosia, after which Daniel Arap Moi laid a wreath at the base of the there statue of Cyprus' first president, Archbishop Makarios III.

During the meeting, the two presidents agreed on the further strengthening of bilateral relations, and also signed a protocol providing for co-operation in the sectors of commerce, exports, tourism, education and health.

Following a visit to the demarcation line, President Daniel Arap Moi is currently attending a working luncheon with Foreign Minister Ioannis Kasoulides, and is scheduled to meet the Prelate of the Church of Cyprus, Archbishop Chrysostomos, this afternoon.

[06] britain elecs

Polls predicted a landslide victory for Blair despite dire warnings from Conservative icon Margaret Thatcher that the country would be headed for an "elective dictatorship" if Blair is returned to office with another big majority.

Some bookmakers even paid out on a Labour victory days before the 45 million electors started making their choice. Voting is to end at 10 pm UK time or 2100 GMT, with the results expected early tomorrow.

[07] arson l'ssol

According to the relevant police report, at around 1 a.m., as-yet-unknown individuals set fire to a car belonging to Miltiades Christodoulou, a resident of Limassol's Ayios Ioannis parish. The car was parked in the victim's garage at the time.

Despite the timely intervention of the Fire Department, the arsonists succeeded in causing serious damage to both the car and the residence itself.

[08] cse

Specifically, the All-Share Index closed at 192.19, up by just 0.43% from yesterday.

At the same time, the overall volume of trading reached some 15.8 million pounds.

[09] tailer

Specifically, a police spokesman told Reuters that the department was investigating an incivility charge during the search of a home under the Misuse of Drugs act.

Yesterday, the "The Daily Mail" newspaper printed a letter from Scotland Yard to the officers involved in the drugs raid informing them of the complaint, stating that "An allegation has been received from a person in the house that one of the male officers broke wind and did not apologise to the family for his action... The complainant felt it was rude and unprofessional."

Police did not confirm what discipline the officer might receive if found guilty of breaking wind, but the case could go down in Scotland Yard annals as "The Case of the Flauntingly Flatulent Officer"!

[10] weather

Generally fair conditions are also forecast for this evening, with winds however abating to light northwesterlies, 2-3BF, on slight seas, while temperatures will drop to 18C inland, 20C in hte south, 16C in the west, and 14C on the higher reaches of the Troodos mountains.

The fire hazard is very high in all forest areas.

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