Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 03-07-04

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

CONTENTS

[01] HEADLINES

[02] TRADE

[03] HOTELS

[04] GUL

[05] DISY

[06] IRAQ RESISTANCE

[07] PALESTINIANS

[08] BERLUSCONI

[09] CONCERT

[10] TEMPS

[11] WEATHER FRIDAY 4/7/03

[01] HEADLINES

The government is moving ahead with measures to ease trade between Greek and Turkish Cypriots,

The island breathes a sigh of relief after a last-minute deal between hotel owners and workers ended a potentially crippling dispute,

Turkey's foreign minister claimed that neither Greek nor Turkish Cypriots have accepted the Annan plan,

AND Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi met European Commissioners in hopes of mending Italy's scarred EU presidency.

[02] TRADE

Government spokesman Kypros Chrysostomides said the overriding goal of the measures is to ease the movement of goods, even if truck drivers ferrying goods to the government-controlled south aren't Turkish Cypriots.

Mr. Chrysostomides said farm produce must be inspected to safeguard public health and must be accompanied by a certificate of origin issued by the Turkish Cypriot Chamber of Commerce.

The spokesman said the government is easing the movement of produce even if its cultivated on occupied Greek-Cypriot farmland, because it recognises the labours of producers.

He made a distinction, however, between occupied farmland and hotels.

Mr. Chrysostomides said the government remains steadfast to its objections over Greek Cypriots staying overnight at hotels in the north.

[03] HOTELS

The deal was struck after a marathon bargaining session between Labour Minister Makis Keravnos, hotel owners and workers unions.

The agreement provides for gradual payment of an estimated one million pounds in back-pay owed to the worker's Welfare Fund.

Worker's Union chief Nicos Efstathiou said the deal is complete and all that remains is that it's put into action.

He added that workers again showed good will in resolving the dispute.

The Labour Minister said he is pleased that the dispute has been settled because strike action would've cost the economy dearly.

Speaking on CyBC radio, Mr. Keravnos said impact to the economy was minimal, but it's up to everyone now to repair the harm done to the industry's tarnished image.

Hotel owners' Union chief Zacharias Ioannides echoed the Labour Minister, saying yesterday's wrangling was traumatic, but mutual concessions helped save the day and preserved labour peace.

[04] GUL

Speaking last night at London's Royal Institute of International Relations, Mr. Gul also claimed that the Turkish side is working hard to foster a positive climate and will continue to support efforts for a just, lasting and "realistic arrangement".

Prompted by CyBC's London correspondent remark that the Greek Cypriot side has already accepted the Annan plan as a basis for negotiations, Mr. Gul said President Papadopoulos had expresed more reservations about the blueprint than Rauf Denktash.

[05] DISY

Deputy Disy chief Averof Neophytou said his party is ready to consult and cooperate with President Papadopoulos for the good of the island.

Speaking on CyBC radio, Mr. Neophytou said the President hasn't invited Disy leader Nicos Anastasiades for a one-on-one session since the day he took office.

He added that Disy is not about to submit lists of people it would like to see appointed to semi-state organisations, but the President should at least consult with the party on the issue.

[06] IRAQ RESISTANCE

Witnesses said two more soldiers were wounded in an explosion in the Iraqi capital today -- the U.S. Independence Day holiday.

The latest wave of attacks came as the United States stepped up its hunt for Saddam Hussein, placing a $25 million bounty on his head.

Washington blames diehard supporters of the deposed president for launching the attacks.

A U.S. military spokesman said in yesterday's attacks, a sniper shot one American soldier on a Bradley armoured vehicle while guarding the national museum in Baghdad.

The soldier was rushed to hospital but died shortly afterward.

The 10 soldiers were wounded in a mortar attack on a logistical base used to supply troops in the desert near the town of Balad, 90 km northwest of Baghdad.

News of the attacks underscored suspicions that Iraqi resistance fighters were becoming bolder, more organised and deadlier.

[07] PALESTINIANS

Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas was due to discuss the prisoners issue, and the fragile five-day-old ceasefire announced by militant groups, at a meeting with the Islamic Jihad movement later today in the Gaza Strip.

Israel's government is expected to consider releasing hundreds of prisoners at a cabinet meeting on Sunday, but the key question is whether it will free enough to satisfy the Palestinians.

Islamic Jihad dismissed the release of about 50 prisoners on Thursday as cosmetic.

It and Hamas, the other main group spearheading a 33-month-old uprising for statehood, say Israel must free all the thousands of Palestinians it holds.

Israel is unlikely to release all the prisoners, and would face a public backlash if it freed any involved in attacks that have killed Israelis.

[08] BERLUSCONI

Mr. Berlusconi appeased German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder yesterday, telling him that he regretted having compared a German politician to a Nazi concentration camp guard.

Italian President Carlo Azeglio Ciampi told a gala dinner for the Commissioners that he hoped a line could now be drawn under the row.

Friday's closed-door meeting of commissioners marked the formal beginning of work on Italy's ambitious programme for its six-month presidency.

Italy's plans include hosting negotiations to decide the bloc's historic first constitution and steering the economy back to sustained growth by pumping massive funds into infrastructure projects.

Mr. Berlusconi, a staunch ally of U.S. President George W. Bush during the Iraq war, also wants to improve transatlantic ties.

[09] CONCERT

Renowned Greek Singer Maria Farantouri teams up with Turkish singer-songwriter Zoufli Livanellli for the "We Sing for Cyprus" concert, organised jointly by AKEL, the Cultural Movement and the bi-communal choir.

Also performing tonight will be artists Doros Demosthenous, Giorgos Loris and Ergan Dagli.

The concert starts at 8:30 and the entrance is free.

CyBC's second television channel and third radio channel will broadcast the event live.

[10] TEMPS

The mercury will peak today at 40 degrees celcius, while the weekend will see temperatures rise even further.

The Weather Service said high temperatures, which are at least five degrees above the seasonal norm, are owed to hot air masses affecting the entire eastern Mediterranean.

[11] WEATHER

Temperatures will reach 40 degrees inland, 34 on the south coast and 31 on the west coast and in the mountains.

Fine tonight with fog patches and low clouds blanketing some areas.

Winds will be westerly to northwesterly light, force 2 to 3, with calm to slight seas.

Temperatures will drop to 22 degrees inland and the coasts and 20 in the highest mountains.

A reminder, as always, that the fire harzard is extremely high in all forest areas.

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