Antenna: News in English (AM), 97-04-17

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From: Antenna Radio <http://www.antenna.gr> - email: antenna@compulink.gr

News in English, 17/04/97

TITLES

• Greek peacekeepers arrive in Albania***..
• Muslim fundamentalists' move against the orthodox patriarchate in Jerusalem.
• And, a Greek tank comes to the aid of a muslim family in northern Greece.

TROOPS IN ALBANIA

The base is in Vasiari, a Muslim area. The capital has been quiet for several days, and the Greek contingent expects no trouble.

The peacekeepers' mission is to protect aid shipments to Albania.

But the first task of the Greek peacekeepers will be to clean up the base and put things in order. On Thursday, the buildings will be disinfected.

Morale was high among the troops on day one, even though they were tired after days of preparation for their mission.

ALBANIA/GR.TROOPS

Six C-130s carried the first contingent of Greek troops to Albania.

The planes landed at Tirane airport, where there were already forces from other nations. After unloadingtheir light weapons and vehiclles from the aircraft, the Greek soldiers set off to goin the anti-aircraft unit they've been posted to in the southern part of Tirane.

Earlier Wednesday, another group of 120 men sailed for the southern Albanian port of Vlore from Thessaloniki. They'll reach their destinationn in two days.

The main body of the Greek contingent, 500 men, will sail for the port of Durres by the end of the week.

Wednesday, it was a last chance for farewells as the troops waited to board the ship for the Albanian port of Vora in Thessaloniki.

Morale was running high among the ranks.

One soldier summed up his attitude to the humanitarian mission to Albania with the words: "We'll do what we have to".

Another soldier reassured his loved ones, saying he'll be careful.

Said yet another man in uniform: "We've learned a lot about Albania's history, the problems of the ethnic Greek minority, and how to treat the Albanian people".

For the relatives staying behind, there's anxiety. One woman said she just prays God gets them home safe after their 3-month tour is over.

Another woman said she's scared of what might happen to the men.

But a third woman said she's not scared at all, just proud of her grandson.

In his farewell speech to the men, defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos reminded them of the importance of their mission.

He added that in helping the Albanian people through their crisis and establish peace and democracy, the men will also be serving the interests of the Greek minority in Albania, and the interests of Greece. If there is stability in Albania, he explained, there will be be stability, peace and cooperation throughout the Balkans.

AVLONA

Tensions are running high in this southern port town at the centre of the months-long rebellion against president Sali Berisha.

An anti-Berisha rally was held Wednesday, a number of Greek-speaking people telling Antenna of their anger over the banking collapse that cost thousands of families their life savings and sparked the political crisis.

One woman said Berisha is a crook.

An angry man said the people will fight him to the death.

The residents of the city say they welcome the multi-national peacekeepers, and want peace and quiet.

But they charge that every night Berisha sends agents provocateur to disrupt their life, looting, terrorising, and even killing, to make it look like the rebel areas are out-of-control badlands.

An assassination attempt was carried out against one local rebel leader as he dined in a hotel. He escaped unharmed.

But the climate is tense. Residents fear that Berisha's men will carry out acts of sabotage against the peacekeepers too.

The Greek peacekeepers in Vlora will have a lot of work to do make their quarters at the air cadet school livable.

All the buildings on the grounds have been looted, the windows smashed.

And five families, left indigent and homeless by the banking scandal, are temporarily living in one of the compound buildings.

JERUSALEM

On the pretext that they were doing restoration work on a muslim shrine, the fundamentalists knocked down the walls separating the muslim shrine from the patriarchate, thus laying claim to two rooms belonging to the patriarchate.

Archimandrite Fotios, who lives in the two rooms, was in Constantinople when the incident occurred, so no one tried to prevent the fundamentalists from expanding their shrine at the patriarchate's expense.

Christians in Jerusalem reacted soon afterward, though, calling on Israel, Jordan and Palestine to intervene to stop he fundamentalists.

The mayor of Jerusalem termed the Muslim move "illegal". He doesn't rule out the possibility of police intervention, but calls on both sides to work the matter out between themselves.

Diodoros, the orthodox patriarch of Jerusalem and Palestine, told Antenna the church doesn't want the issue to blow up, because it could cause serious tensions between muslims and Christians.

MUSLIM MOTHER

The Greek army used an M-113 tank to bring a muslim woman and her new-born child to safety.

29-year-old AissE KelEsk had severe pains after giving birth at her isolated home. Her 42-year-old husband braved the snow in getting his family to a nearby village.

He informed the authorities that his wife needed to get to a hospital, and the army used the tank to conquer the snow and carry the family to the village of Nea Santa, near Kilkis. From there, an ambulance took the family to the hospital in Komotini.

AissE's husband thanked all those who helped his family.

Stergios Stavropoulos, governor of Rodopi in northeastern Greece, said, "Once again, we've shown that Christians and muslims can live together in peace and harmony and that real life situations don't discriminate on the basis of race or religion".

TURKEY

Alternate Turkish foreign minister Oufouk Sulemez made the threat before the other ministers at the conference, including alternate Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou.

Greece has vetoed EU assistance to Turkey until Turkey puts an end to its hostile behaviour toward Greece.

The Turkish move comes just a day after Greece agreed to allow Nato-member Turkey to vote in West European Union decisions on operations which involve Nato forces, and affirmed that it favours the establishment of a committee to examine Greek- Turkish differences, as long as Turkey agrees to take any claims against Greece to the international court.

Critical of Pasok, New Democracy asks the government what Greece has gained from its show of goodwill toward Turkey without getting anything in return.

KARAMANLIS

Kostas Karamanlis and trade union officials discussed ruling Pasok's call for social dialogue between the government and groups affected by economic austerity policies.

Like New Democracy, General Workers' Union chairman Christos Polyzogopoulos and other union leaders fear the social dialogue call is just a government ruse to make people accept tough policies the government's already decided to implement.

Polyzogopoulos adds that serious issues like unemployment, health, education, and welfare aren't even on the government's talking agenda.

He also worries that the government may be looking to make innroads on the 7 or 8-hour working day.

Polyzogopoulos says he asked Karamanlis to support the union's call for a genuine social dialogue which will aim at exploring major issues and finding solutions to major problems, like unemployment and low pensions.

PAOLA

The rare caretta-caretta turtle has become a favourite with residents on the island of Corfu.

And she's been fitted with an electronic tracking device, allowing scientists to keep an eye on the little sea creature.

The device on her shell will allow the Mediterranean Association for the Protection of Turtles to learn about the movement and behaviour patterns of the animals. Scientists hope the information they get from Paola will teach them how to better protect the endangered turtles.

© ANT1 Radio 1997

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