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Athens News Agency: Daily News Bulletin in English, 02-10-15Athens News Agency: Daily News Bulletin in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>October 15, 2002CONTENTS
[01] Parties assess first round local gov't pollAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Interpretation and fallout from Sunday’s first round municipal and prefectural elections expectedly dominated local media attention and political parties’ statements a day later, with both major parties (ruling PASOK and main opposition New Democracy) offering their slant on results.Government spokesman and Press Minister Christos Protopapas mostly expressed the government’s satisfaction over Sunday’s results, saying that New Democracy had tried to use the local government elections as a “lever of pressure to topple the government”. He also referred to the main opposition’s “send a message” campaign aired in television spots over the past three weeks, while highlighting results from the Athens-Piraeus super prefecture race -- where PASOK-backed MP Fofi Gennimata gained close to 40 percent of the general vote as opposed to ND-backed Yiannis Tzannetakos’ 27.5 percent. Regarding the issue of whether ruling PASOK and the government received any “messages” from the first round, Protopapas referred to “multiple messages that are being evaluated ... as every district has its own problems, and the candidates themselves play a significant role”. Finally, Protopapas said the government was satisfied with the way the election was conducted. New Democracy spokesman: Conversely, the main opposition’s spokesman offered a diametrically opposing view, stressing that the government experienced an electoral defeat throughout the country. Spokesman Thodoris Roussopoulos said the government is merely trying to defray the poor showing of most of its candidates by only pointing to the Athens-Piraeus prefecture race. He added that New Democracy elected 11 prefects outright in the first round this year, as opposed to seven in 1998, noting that three prefectures, in fact, passed from PASOK to ND. Moreover, he emphasized that votes gained by ND’s candidates in Greece’s three largest municipalities – Athens, Thessaloniki and Piraeus – more-or-less were double than those gained by PASOK’s candidates. “New Democracy does not gloat, nor does it relax, instead it listens, respects and trusts all the citizens, remaining devoted to the principles of dialogue, mutual understand and cooperation with all the political forces in the country,” he stressed. KKE, Synaspismos: In terms of other parties, the Communist Party of Greece’s (KKE) leadership reiterated on Monday that it will not back any candidates from the PASOK or ND camp during the second round of municipal elections this Sunday. As far as the candidates backed by KKE in the election are concerned, party leader Aleka Papariga said KKE posted better results in 31 prefectural races (from 1998). She also mentioned that six KKE-backed candidate won their mayoral race in the first round, whereas 25 KKE-backed candidates have made it into the second round. On its part, the Coalition of the Left and Progress (Synaspismos) said the party’s affiliated candidates posted better than expected results, and not just in the surprising showing by veteran leftist personality Manolis Glezos in the Athens-Piraeus prefecture race (nearly 11 percent). Synaspismos leader Nikos Constantopoulos will unveil the party’s official views regarding the Oct. 13 results during a press conference on Wednesday, it was announced. Sunday’s tally : Out of the 16 prefects elected in the first round during Sunday’s election, 11 were affiliated with ND and four with PASOK (four with Synaspismos’ backing). Specifically, ND-backed candidates kept the prefectures of Aetoloakarnania, Evritania, Kastoria, Messinia, Pieria, Fthiotida, eastern Attica and the Drama-Kavala-Xanthi supra prefecture in the party’s camp, while it took three prefectures from PASOK: Thessaloniki, Corinth and Magnesia. On the other hand, PASOK kept three prefectures in its camp (with Synaspismos’ support): Grevena, Thesprotia and Kozani; one with a PASOK-only candidate (Lasithi on Crete); and the Evros-Rhodopi supra prefecture by backing a Synaspismos-affiliated candidate. In terms of prefecture capitals, eight municipal races were won outright by ND (Thessaloniki, Lamia, Drama, Xanthi, Trikala, Veria, Pyrgos and Amfissa); three went to PASOK (Alexandroupoli, Ermoupolis and Katerini) outright; three went to candidates backed by PASOK and Synaspismos (Rhodes, Kozani and Edessa); one went to a candidate backed by KKE and ND (Karditsa) and one to an independent candidate backed by Synaspismos (Aghios Nikolaos, Crete). Election process: The last ballot boxes were expected to be sent to the Athens first instance court by Monday evening, with 70 percent of results from 5,693 election districts already announced. The final count is expected on Thursday. Results for individual municipal and prefectural councilors will begin on Friday. Sunday’s first round results also caused four changes in Parliament, as the election of Panagiotis Psomiadis (ND) as Thessaloniki prefect allows Stavros Kalafatis to serve as a deputy in ND’s Parliament group. Athanassios Heimarras’ (ND) election as prefect of Fthiotida lands Efstathios Angelousis in Parliament. Finally, PASOK deputy and former minister Ioannis Skoularikis was elected as mayor of ancient Olympia, leaving George Chronopoulos first in line to replace him as an Ileia prefecture-area deputy. [02] Record hits to MPA site for election informationAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Internet visits to the Macedonian Press Agency (MPA) Internet home page reached record highs on 13 October election night when results of the local government elections were being announced.Operated for the election night in cooperation with the Athens News Agency (ANA), state TV Channel ET3 and OTENET, the three servers designated by MPA for the occasion accepted approximately 2,000,000 calls, an impressive increase of 1,000 percent. The announcement of the election results was a joint effort of ANA and MPA, the two collaborating national news agencies, in co-operation with ET3 and OTENET, also broadcast by linking to www.ana.gr, www.otenet.gr, www.election2002.gr, www.ota.gr, www.phantis.com, www.elections.gr, www.stockrally.gr and www.pathfinder.gr that also experienced a high number of visits. Next Sunday’s run-off election results will also be broadcast from the same sites. [03] FM Papandreou holds talks with Bulgarian counterpart in BurgasSOFIA 15/10/2002 (ANA - S. Aravopoulou)Foreign Minister George Papandreou paid a brief visit to Burgas, Bulgaria, on Monday and, accompanied by his Bulgarian counterpart Solomon Pasi, visited local authorities and held brief discussions with regional governor Ivan Vitanov and Mayor Jon Konstadinov.The two ministers gave a joint press conference at Burgas University and underlined the significance of the visit and main issues in their talks. Pasi said talks with Papandreou concerned bilateral relations between the two countries on issues regarding the European Union, the UN Security Council and NATO and issues of interest to the two countries in particular such as border checkpoints and the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline. The Bulgarian minister added that Greece is a very important ally and partner of Bulgaria stressing the significance of the role of Athens, also in light of the Greek EU presidency, for his country's accession course towards the EU. Pasi said Papandreou's visit was also a preparatory one for the official visit Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotski will be paying to Athens on November 1. Papandreou, who said it was the first visit to the region by a Greek foreign minister, congratulated the Bulgarians for progress they have achieved in their course towards the EU and accession negotiations. He said quite a few chapters have been concluded on the issue, adding that in 2003 the two countries will work together to conclude the remaining ones as well to enable Bulgaria’s EU accession to go ahead. Papandreou further said cultural ties exist between Greece and Bulgaria and underlined the great importance of economic cooperation between the two countries and that bilateral relations have a strategic significance. Referring to the issue of the Burgas-Alexandroupolis pipeline, Papandreou said the political will and interest of the Greek government exists, but it is also a question of private investments which means it is not a government issue alone. The issue will be discussed by the two prime ministers when the Bulgarian premier visits Athens. The two ministers and their delegations attended a working lunch in Sozopolis, where local inhabitants of Greek origin, holding flags of the 2004 Athens Olympic Games, gave Papandreou a warm welcome. Papandreou said he had very good talks on Bulgaria's European course and the effort to have a clear date for Bulgaria's accession to the EU by the time of the Copenhagen summit. He further said that during the Greek presidency the Bulgarians will be helped to close most, if not all, negotiation chapters, noting that bilateral relations between the two countries are excellent and he believes the relation between Greece and Bulgaria to be a point of stability in the Balkans. Pasi thanked Greece, the Greek people and the Greek government on behalf of his country. He also thanked Papandreou for his contribution to issues concerning Bulgaria's relations with NATO and the EU. [04] Greek, French alternate FMs discuss EU & int'l affairsAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Greek and French views on a series of European Union and international affairs issues converged according to statements made by Alternate Foreign Minister Tassos Yiannitsis and his French counterpart Noelle Lenoir.During their meeting on Monday, Yiannitsis and Lenoir discussed EU issues, focusing on the future of Europe, while they also talked about the EU's enlargement in light of the EU's summit and they focused on the Greek presidency due to begin in January 2003. Lenoir said that her visit to Greece was conducted in light of Greece's EU presidency and stressed that the French government wishes to promote several case files jointly with Greece. ''We decided to set up work groups along with my colleague, working groups of experts and to continue, of course, our cooperation on a personal level. All this is done to confront the issues tabled until the end of this year and until the end of December 2003, and among them is the issue of the EU's enlargement and the work of the conference for the Future of Europe,'' she said. She stressed that enlargement is a historic moment for Europe and ''with clarity both sides stood for the enlargement with the 10 new countries, as the European Commission indicated with its report''. ''We believe that in this way the destiny that manifested 13 years ago with the fall of the Berlin Wall is realized. For many years these countries were at the doorstep of Europe and now the time has come to become one with the rest of Europe. I believe that this is a great opportunity for the peoples of Europe, as well as for the member-states themselves,'' she concluded. On his part, Yiannitsis said France, a founding member of the EU, and Greece place great importance on the thoughts and discussions on the future of Europe. He spoke of the excellent cooperation with his French counterpart and of the convergence of views between the two countries. The Greek minister said that Lenoir showed great interest in the priorities of the Greek presidency, noting that ''we discussed a series of subjects, such as illegal immigration and other issues concerning the Lisbon strategy, the Spring Summit on employment, competitiveness and the social model''. ''We also discussed the relations of Europe with the Balkans, as well as with the Mediterranean, which comprise the vital space of all of us,'' he said. Speaking of Cyprus' accession to the EU, he said that the issue was discussed, adding that the accession of the island republic has moved forward ''and of course it will be a great success if a solution to the political problem is found before the decisions of December''. Concerning Turkey, Yiannitsis said that this country should receive a message of prospect and stressed that Europe is interested in Turkey's European prospects. Speaking on Cyprus' accession, Lenoir said that ''we are waiting full of hope that a political resolution can be found on the island, so that the division of the island can be overcome''. ''Of course the resolution of the problem is not a precondition for Cyprus' accession, but it is certain that more intense efforts should be made to come to a solution as soon as possible,'' she added. Earlier in the day, Foreign Minister George Papandreou also met with Lenoir, following her visit to the foreign ministry. The French official was also received by Prime Minister Costas Simitis at the Maximos Mansion. [05] Premier’s schedule for the weekAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Prime Minister Costas Simitis will on Tuesday meet with Health Minister Costas Stefanis, prior to receiving National Economy Minister Nikos Christodoulakis, the government spokesman said earlier in the day in announcing the premier’s schedule for the coming week.Simitis receives the defense minister, Yiannos Papantoniou, on Wednesday. Finally, on Friday Simitis will receive Cyprus President Glafcos Clerides. [06] Athens strongly condemns Bali attacks; issues travel advisoryAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Greece on Monday sternly condemned the deadly nightclub bomb attacks on the Indonesian resort island of Bali late Saturday evening, which killed more than 180 mostly foreign holidaymakers.The foreign ministry in Athens, meanwhile, has advised Greek citizens not to travel to the area, with relevant warnings also passed on to the country’s embassy in Jakarta and a number of travel agencies. Meanwhile, one Australian citizen of Greek descent has been confirmed as among the victims, according to an ANA dispatch from Melbourne, while an undetermined number of Greek-Australians are also reported as missing. Finally, one Greek-Australian woman and a Greek tourist from Crete are being treated at a local hospital. According to international wire services on Monday afternoon, Indonesian authorities reiterated that no groups or individuals have so far claimed responsibility for the terrorist attacks, although initial speculation points to fundamentalist Islamic circles in Pacific archipelago country. [07] Deputy FM to address forum on Balkans in LondonAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Deputy Foreign Minister Andreas Loverdos will address the Forum Invest Economic Summit in London on Tuesday which will focus on ''Business opportunities in Central and South-eastern Europe''.Loverdos' address will deal with the Program for the Economic Reconstruction of the Balkans in the forum that was organized by Forum Invest of Romania in the framework of the Romanian Business Week in the United Kingdom. [08] Alleged "N 17" terrorists to be briefed on DNA test resultsAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Appellate court prosecutor Leonidas Zervobeakos on Monday early evening will visit the alleged "November 17" terrorist group members arrested by police over the summer to inform them of the DNA test results.The DNA test results of genetic material found in "N 17" safe houses was compared with genetic material provided by the detainees, except for two - Savvas Xiros and Dimitris Koufodinas - who refused to submit genetic material. Once they are informed of the test results they will have the right to challenge them. [09] Greece wants EU labeling of genetically modified foodsLUXEMBOURG 15/10/2002 (ANA/M.Kourmousi)Greece on Monday said that it wanted to see genetically modified (GM) foodstuffs labeled in the European Union in order to give consumers the right to choose.''GM produce is a reality. As minimum protection for the public, this information must be given. We cannot allow people to buy products containing modified organisms without being aware of it,'' Agriculture Minister George Drys told reporters in Luxembourg. ''This consumer information and protection must be imposed,'' Drys added. Handling GM produce in the market is be debated by EU committees, with approval expected at a farm ministers' meeting in November. [10] European Commission consolidates feta cheese's nameBRUSSELS 15/10/2002 (ANA - V. Demiris)The European Commission decided here on Monday to finally consolidate the name of feta cheese.According to an announcement, the European Commission ratified, with a written process, a European Union regulation by which feta cheese is finally consolidated as a product of a ''Protected Name Origin.'' The regulation notes that feta can only be produced in certain regions of Greece with strict observance of the product's specifications. Producers from other member-states or producers failing to observe specifications have a time limit of five years either to change name or stop production. [11] Fresh stake in PPC likely to be floated end-NovemberAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)A further 10-15 percent stake in the Athens-quoted Public Power Corporation is likely to be floated at the end of November, government sources said on Monday.The sources were speaking after a meeting of Finance Minister Nikos Christodoulakis and Development Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos on progress in the government's privatization program. [12] Athens airport's new general manager takes over on WednesdayAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)The Athens International Airport SA ''Eleftherios Venizelos'' on Monday announced that the airport's new general manager, Mr. Alfred van der Meer, would officially take over his duties on Wednesday, replacing the outgoing general manager Mr. Matthias Mitscherlich.Mr. van der Meer was chief executive in Schiphol International BV, a company responsible for drafting and implementing the international strategy of Schiphol Group, owner of Amsterdam's airport operator. [13] Foreign investors significantly increase their positions in ASEAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Domestic investors continued lowering their positions in the Athens Stock Exchange in July, while foreign investors raised theirs during the same period, official figures showed on Monday.An ASE report said that Greek investors' share in the market fell to 72.34 percent (49,948,758,652 euros) in July from 72.86 percent in June and 78.38 percent in May, while foreign investors' share jumped to 27.66 percent (19,096,580,073 euros) in July from 21.62 percent in May. Greek investors' share in the market capitalization of the FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks eased to 61.48 percent (22,051,768,763 euros) in July from 61.6 percent in June and 72.2 percent in May, while foreign investors' share jumped to 38.4 percent in July from 27.8 percent in May. [14] ASE finds support at 1,800 level on MondayAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)The Athens Stock Exchange found support at the 1,800 level on the first trading session of the week on Monday, reflecting gains in Hellenic Telecommunications Organization’s shares and renewed buying activity in medium-capitalization stocks.On the other hand, banks and smaller-capitalization stocks came under pressure and lost ground. The general index eased 0.06 percent to end at 1,805.97 points, with turnover a low 77.2 million euros. The Holdings, Metals and Cement sectors scored the biggest percentage gains of the day (2.87 percent, 2.23 percent and 1.55 percent, respectively), while the Textile, Banks and IT Solution sectors suffered the heaviest percentage losses (2.64 percent, 1.12 percent and 0.95 percent). The FTSE/ASE 20 index for blue chip and heavy traded stocks fell 0.23 percent, the FTSE/ASE MID 40 index rose 0.75 percent and the FTSE/ASE SmallCap 80 index eased 0.07 percent. Broadly, decliners led advancers by 161 to 143 with another 55 issues unchanged. The most heavily traded stocks in value were Hellenic Telecommunications Organization, Sex Form, Panafon, and National Bank of Greece. Derivatives Market Close: Turnover at 118.2 mln euros Monday Equity Index Futures: Stock Futures: Day's Market Turnover: 118.2 mln euros Bond Market Close: Buyers outstrip sellers on Monday Greek Benchmark 10-Year Bond Athens 2004 organizers to brief Chirac in Paris on Tuesday Athens Olympic organizers (ATHOC) will showcase ongoing preparations for the upcoming Games to a high-ranking Parisian audience on Tuesday, with France’s first citizen no less, President Jacques Chirac, due to receive the Greek delegation at the presidential mansion. Athens 2004 organizing committee president Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki is scheduled to brief Chirac on the progress of venue construction and infrastructure works, as well as focusing on the upcoming Olympics’ message, namely, the Games’ return to their ancient birthplace. The French head of state has previously stressed the fact that Athens 2004 Olympics mark the first time the Games will be held in the European Union following Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). Angelopoulos-Daskalaki is scheduled to meet with French Sports Minister Jean-Francois Lamour, an Olympic fencing champion and IOC member, afterwards. [15] Building contract signed for Olympics projectAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)A contract was signed on Monday for construction of hostels worth 25.9 million euros for use in the Athens 2004 Olympics as a media village.Undertaking the project is contractor Empedos SA, which is also handling five other works for the world event. The 15-building complex with 800 beds is due for completion in May 2004. The project was commissioned by the National Technical University of Athens for use after the Olympics by students. [16] Participants in the EQUAL initiative meet in AthensAthens, 15/10/2002 (ANA)Representatives of agencies participating in EQUAL, the European Union's program designed to combat racism and create the conditions for a multicultural society on an EU level, held a conference here on Monday.The establishment of Offices for the welcoming and orientation of immigrants, scholarships, a volunteers network, activities for immigrant social support, public information periodicals and interventions for the integration of immigrants into the labor market are some of the initiatives undertaken by the 24 EQUAL participants who include UNICEF, Doctors without Frontiers, the National Youth Foundation of Greece, the Athens University and local immigrant community organizations, among others. Established within the framework of the EQUAL initiative in Greece, the Development Partnership for Equality and Social Integrity has undertaken the realization of the “Social Solidarity Forum”, a three-year program designed to resolve problems involving primarily Attica immigrants and refugees, as well as their smooth integration into the local labor market and society. The “Social Solidarity Forum” is budgeted at 1.7 million Euro and is coordinated by the Athens News Agency (ANA). [17] National Council discusses Cyprus problem and EU courseNICOSIA 15/10/2002 (CNA/ANA)Cyprus President Glafcos Clerides briefed on Monday the National Council on his recent meetings in New York with UNSecretary General Kofi Annan and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash, as well as the European Commission's progress report on Cyprus, released on October 9. Speaking after the four-hour-long meeting of the National Council, made up of political party leaders, government spokesman Michalis Papapetrou said views were expressed mainly on the Cyprus problem and the two ad hoc committees set up at Kofi Annan's suggestion to deal with technical aspects of the question. Papapetrou noted that the National Council, top advisory body to the President on the handling of the Cyprus problem, would reconvene on October 21, after President Clerides' talks in Athens with the Greek leadership. President Clerides is flying to Athens on October 17 to meet the following day with Prime Minister Costas Simitis. He will return home on October 19. [18] ECHR President satisfied with Cyprus national courtsNICOSIA 15/10/2002 (CNA/ANA)President of the European Court of Human Rights, Luzius Wildhaber, said he was satisfied with the way the European Convention of Human Rights is applied in Cyprus and that human rights are protected by the national authorities.Speaking after meeting Cyprus President Glafcos Clerides on Monday, Wildhaber said that after visiting the Supreme Court and President, ''I am very glad to see how seriously the European Convention of Human Rights is taken, how readily it is applied by the national courts here''. This, he added, ''is of extreme importance because we do depend on the national courts for doing their job.'' The ECHR, he added, only comes in ''as a last resort at the end, but basically human rights should be protected by the national authorities. I am gratified to see that this is absolutely the case and I was also reassured, seeing the Pr Athens News Agency: Daily News Bulletin in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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