Action on radio, television piracy urged
NEWS IN DETAIL
Greece's political leadership expressed its best wishes for the New Year,
stressing the need to put the country on course for European unification
and economic development, and that Greece was on the brink of wide-reaching
changes .
In a New Year's message on Tuesday, President Kostis Stephanopoulos said:
"Proceeding together with the other peoples of Europe in the coming century
is a matter of national pride for the Greek people. We must not be last,"
he said.
"The economic effort we have undertaken is not only imposed on us by the
agreements concluded in the framework of Europe, it is also imposed on us
for the sake of ourselves, for the sake of our very country to enable it to
develop, strengthen itself and prosper," he said.
Prime Minister
Prime Minister Costas Simitis said the historic opportunities being
presented for the country are related to the achievement of the targets of
promoting modernisation, building a modern social state and Greece's equal
participation in European Union developments and the country's new role in
the Balkans and Europe.
Mr. Simitis said a strategic target was the country's equal participation
in developments taking place in the European Union. He said Greece's
accession to Economic and Monetary Union was not a simple economic target,
but a matter of national importance.
He said another target was Greece's new role in the geopolitical environment
being shaped in the Balkans and the Mediterranean.
"We will continue to steadfastly pursue a policy of peace and friendship.
In the same way we will steadfastly continue efforts to have the Cyprus
issue resolved in accordance with UN resolutions. There will be increased
mobility in the New Year in relation to all these issues. Prudence and cool-
headedness will be required," he added.
Thessaloniki ushers in Cultural Capital events
Greece's northern port city of Thessaloniki marked the advent of 1997 with
city-wide festivities that bodes well for the city's tenure as Cultural
Capital of Europe.
"Thessaloniki, the tender north of Greece, capital of southern Europe, a
city of history, youth, daring and music... Thessaloniki, the Lady of the
Balkans, is as of today also the Cultural Capital of Europe," renowned
Greek tragedian Irene Pappas told a gathering of thousands in the city's
centre, ushering in the New Year and inaugurating the year-long Cultural
Capital events.
Culture Minister Evangelos Venizelos told the huge crowd of personalities
and city residents he had "fighting optimism" about the success of
Thessaloniki's term as Cultural Capital of Europe.
The heavy fog covering the coast around Thessaloniki's most famous landmark,
the White Tower, gave the entire scene an ethereal feel, making an ideal
backdrop for the Byzantine hymns sung by Irene Pappas, accompanied by a
choir.
The Cultural Capital inaugural events continued with dozens of musical
groups performing from five outdoor stages set up for the events, ranging
from old Greek rembetika to jazz, latino and rock groups, including world-
renowned rocker Bob Geldof.
Festivities also took place all along the coast, with pantomime troupes,
artists and jugglers, while various stands offered revellers traditional
"mezedes" (snacks) and sweets.
Thierry Roussel files appeal
French businessman Thierry Roussel submitted a retraction appeal to the
Supreme Court , calling for revocation of decree number 4400/96 issued by
the Athens Misdemeanors Council which had acquitted the Onassis Foundation's
administration of the charge of bad faith following a lawsuit he filed.
Mr. Roussel maintains that the decree being contested required serious
indications of mismanagement at the Foundation, while it should have
conducted investigations for adequate indications.
An appeal had also been filed against the same decree which had been
overruled by an appeals court prosecutor.
Capsised vessel Distos sinks
Seventeen bodies have been recovered from the Greek-flagged dry bulk
carrier "Distos" which sunk early Thursday at a depth of 32 metres. Among
the bodies recovered are the two wives of crewmembers and the 12-year-old
daughter of one.
Divers are continuing to search for three persons still missing when the
freighter capsised off Kymi, Evia, when hit by two large waves last
Saturday causing its cement cargo to shift.
Temporary residence permit for foreigners
Labour and Social Security Minister Miltiades Papaioannou said Tuesday the
presidential decree on granting a temporary residence permit card for
foreigners in Greece will be ready in a few weeks time.
Mr. Papaioannou made his statement while attending an event organised by
the Polish immigrant community in Athens.
Mr. Papaioannou called on the immigrants to respond promptly and willingly
to the Greek authorities' call and join processes required for the
residence card. He was given a warm welcome by hundreds of Polish
immigrants. The event was jointly organised by the Polish priests and
teachers of the Polish school in Athens.
Action on radio, television piracy urged
The Supreme Court prosecutor Panayiotis Dimopoulos has sent a memorandum to
all appeals court prosecutors in the country regarding criminal sanctions
for infringements of copyright and intelectual property.
The violation of intellectual property is considered to be theft of goods
and offenders can receive up to 10 years jail and fines of up to 20 million
drachmas, the memorandum noted.
Mr. Dimopoulos said he had noted the country's judicial authorities were
dragging their feet on dealing with the "worrying dimensions" that radio
and television piracy had taken.
He added that the incidence of piracy harmed Greece's reputation internationally,
could not be allowed to continue and must be combatted with legal
means.
WEATHER
Local clouds in the west and north turning into light rainfall in the
northwest, and overcast in the rest of the country with local fog in
central and northern regions. Temperatures will range from 2-14 C in the
north, 7-20 C in the Ionian Sea and the rest of the mainland, and 11-22 C
in the Aegean. Athens will be sunny with temperatures ranging from 9-19 C.
Thessaloniki will be cloudy with temperatures between 5-11 C.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
(closing rates - buying)
US dlr. 245.044 Pound sterling 415.827
Cyprus pd 522.288 French franc 46.805
Swiss franc 181.670 German mark 157.698
Italian lira (100) 16.056 Yen (100) 210.731
Canadian dlr. 178.699 Australian dlr.195.087
Irish Punt 411.482 Belgian franc 7.658
Finnish mark 52.826 Dutch guilder 140.552
Swedish kr. 35.553 Norwegian kr. 38.134
Austrian sh. 22.438 Spanish peseta 1.873
Portuguese escudo 1.568
(C.E.)
