Athens News Agency: News in English, 11-04-16

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Inflation at 4.3% in March

[02] James Watson lecture in Athens

[03] Samaras tour of Thrace 

[01] Inflation at 4.3% in March

The EU executive's statistics agency, in a report, said the inflation rate in the Eurozone rose to 2.7 pct in March from 2.4 pct in February, sharply up from 1.6 pct in March 2010. In the EU-27, the inflation rate rose to 3.1 pct from 2.9 pct and 2.0 pct over the same periods, respectively. (ANA-MPA)

Ireland (1.2 pct), Sweden (1.4 pct) and Czech Republic (1.9 pct) recorded the lowest inflation rates in March, while Romania (8.0 pct), Estonia (5.1 pct), Bulgaria and Hungary (4.6 pct each) recorded the highest inflation rates. The inflation rate rose in 18 member-states, it was unchanged in five and fell in fourh member-states in March. (ANA-MPA)

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[02] James Watson lecture in Athens

The renowned and often controversial scientist expressed optimism that in five to 10 years there shall be considerable progress in the therapy of at least certain forms of cancer, with the help of research in genes and stem cells.

Watson made extensive historic references to the course of the discovery of the "double helix" (the DNA molecule) by him and co-discoverer Francis Crick, at the laboratories of the Cambridge University, in 1953.

Education minister condemns incident

In a related development, Education Minister Anna Diamantopoulou on Friday strongly condemned an incident caused by hooded self-styled anarchist youth a day earlier. One of the hooded youths attempted to charge against the octogenarian Watson during a lecture at a University of Patras auditorium on Thursday evening.

"We should go beyond the self-evident condemnation of the insult directed to Medicine and Physiology Nobel laureate James Watson," she said, adding that the deplorable incident should be "the spark to awaken consciousnesses".

Diamantopoulou issued the statement in response to an attack by a hooded individual on Watson, one of the discoverers of DNA, who had been invited to give a lecture at the university of Patras.

"The response to the hood-wearing fascism that threatens scientific expression and fundamental academic freedoms with raw violence should be the people's activation and conscious action in dealing with the problems faced by the Greek universities. The circumstances call for tangible and broad-based consensus for radical and in-depth changes," she stressed.

Caption: ANA-MPA / EPA file photo.

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[03] Samaras tour of Thrace

"I feel as if a period of abandonment is returning to Thrace; there's a deindustrialisation of the region, a skyrocketing of unemployment and a demographic vacuum, while the government is demonstrating what it has in store for Thrace, at least in terms of town planning: a migrant reception centre. This is unacceptable, Samaras said during a visit to the Rhodope prefecture commercial and industrial chamber in the city of Komotini.

Samaras called for a model and alternative ecological development amid an "open and democratic society". Moreover, he charged that the government is readying a merger process for the region's chambers of commerce.

Earlier, the ND leader was received by Metropolitan Bishop of Komotini Damaskinos, the Eastern Macedonia-Thrace regional Governor Aris Yiannakidis and Komotini Mufti Metso Jemali.

Samaras' two-day tour will conclude with a round of meetings with mayors in the region.

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