The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 05-01-29

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From: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <www.ert.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] Bus Crashes with Cars Serious Car Accident in Athens

By Despina Hristopoulou

Sources: ANA - NET 105.8

A KTEL Ioannina bus spread fear and panic on Karamanlis Avenue, Acharnai. A little after 7pm and while the bus was traveling towards Parnitha, it veered from its course and started colliding with parked and moving vehicles. Four people breathed their last in the accident, while another five were injured. According to the President of the National Centre for Emergency Medical Care (EKAV), Vasilis Kekeris, three of the passengers in the cars, as well as the bus driver are dead. Luckily, there were no passengers on the bus. The Traffic Police is investigating the causes of the accident; while they believe that the most probable cause may be that the bus driver lost consciousness while driving.

Driver May Have Lost Consciousness

It all began at 7:10pm. There was traffic on Karamanlis Avenue and the weather conditions were quite good. Suddenly, the bus, which was driven by 45-year-old Giannis Karamanis and was heading towards Parnitha, veered from its course and for approximately 500 metres it collided with a total of 12 cars, which were either parked or moving.

The causes of the accident remain unknown, but according to eyewitnesses the driver did not react at any point, while he seemed to have fallen over the steering wheel. The bus eventually came a stop in a shop front.

The 45-year-old driver had finished his scheduled route and was heading to Menidi, where he was to spend the night at a relatives house.

Two of the injured people were transferred to KAT Hospital, another two to Thriasio Hospital, while the fifth was taken to the Red Cross Hospital. There is no information yet on their condition.

Three of the dead people were also taken to KAT, while the fourth was taken to the Pammakaristos Clinic.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[02] Golden Tie

By Stathis Petropoulos

The Greek National Handball Team is among the twelve best teams in the world, after the 27-27 tie against Tunisia, which qualified the team to the next round. This was Greeces last match for the preliminary round and despite the fact that Tunisia seemed to control the game for the most part, Ulf Schefverts players closed the gap in the dying moments of match and tied the score just before the 60-minute mark. The end was actually quite dramatic, since the Tunisians, who were cheered along by 12,000 spectators, missed a free shot just before the final whistle.

The score per 10-minute intervals (Greece first): 3-7, 9-11, 13-17 (halftime), 18-22, 24-26, 27-27.

GREECE (Schefvert): Kafatos, Chrysopoulos, Voglis 1, Zaravinas, Samaras, Balomenos 2, Kokolodimitrakis, Grammatikos 1, Zivulovic 1, Chalkidis 2, Sanikis 3, Alvanos 8, Karypidis 9

TUNISIA (Hasanefendic): Missaoui, Maggaiz, Hedoui, Tej 6, Hmam 5, Saied, Madi, Jarou, Haj Ahmed 2, Seboui 2, Bousnina 4, Ben Aziza, Megannem 2, Ayed 6

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[03] Modest Ceremony for Former Leader Final Farewell for Zhao Ziyang

By Despina Hristopoulou

Hundreds of people gathered today at Beijings Babaoshan cemetery, in order to pay their homage to Chinas former leader Zhao Ziyang in a modest and simple ceremony, held under strict security measures. The crowd bowed three times in front of the passed away leaders mortal remains, covered with the Chinese Communist Party flag, shortly before placing him in the crematorium. Many of the people who had gathered in the cemetery were crying, while a banner with Chinese ideograms said "Farewell ceremony to comrade Zhao Ziyang." Many relatives of former prime minister and partys general secretary also attended the funeral, but Zhaos widow, Liang Boqi, failed to attend because of poor health. Jia Qinglin, Chinas fourth-highest communist party leader, as well as other officials who conveyed their condolences were also present.

Under Strict Security Measures

After the funeral, authorities issued the first official announcement regarding the former leader after 15 years of silence, in which they accuse him of serious mistakes in the handling of the 1989 student protests in the Tiananmen Square. The obituary, however, recognised Zhao's contribution to economic reform.

Authorities, out of fear that Ziyang's funeral could be turned into a demonstration, had taken extremely tight security measures and had even forbidden photographs and video cameras inside the cemetery, while dissidents and government officials known to be sympathetic to him were forbidden to leave their homes. In the fact the police were crosschecking ids before allowing people to enter the cemetery.

In the meantime, police removed more than 20 people, most of them elders, who were demonstrating: "We want human rights, we want rule of law. Zhao Ziyang's spirit remains alive," "we promise to fight corruption. We mourn for Ziyang."

"They won't let us cry in public, but here we want to cry for our beloved leader, whom we miss so much. He was a good man," said an old lady, who arrived in Beijing from the Humbei county.

Zhao Ziyang was ousted in 1989 for opposing the Tiananmen Square crackdown, and spent the last 15 years of his life under house arrest. On 17 January, at the age of 85, he breathed his last.

Translated by Sofia Soulioti

[04] Green Light for European Criminal Record

By Despina Hristopoulou

Sources: NET 105.8

The EU is considering creating a European Criminal Record database, which will provide the opportunity to the relevant authorities of the 25 Member-States to perform immediate background checks on European citizens. The informal convention between EU Justice and Foreign Affairs Minister that is taking place in Luxemburg focused on this topic. The General Secretary of the Public Order Ministry, Leonidas Evangelidis, is representing Greece at the convention. In his speech, the Greek representative welcomed the efforts by the Presidium and the Commission for a truly European perspective in criminal sanctions and the effectiveness of penalties in Member-States, while he pointed out, "The implementation of mutual recognition to the measure which guarantees that a ruling passed by one Member-State will not be disputed by another, is essential for securing justice in the EU."

Exchange of Information Imperative

During the informal convention the issue of mutual, cross-border recognition in the area of deprivation of rights was also discussed. This essentially means that the relevant authorities of the EU Member-States can find out whether a European citizen has been deprived of some rights after being convicted of an offence.

Therefore, the free movement of people within the EU demands the implementation of an exchange of information system between Member-States. However, it was proposed that it should be implemented in stages, based on the peoples beliefs with regard to the non-conviction of some actions, as well as the immediate dealing with some cases (ie child abuse, a matter on which they all agreed).

Commenting on the issues arising from the exchange of information for criminal convictions and deprivation of rights, Mr Evangelidis noted that up until now it has been proven that, "The existing mechanism of exchange of information between Member-States for criminal convictions is inadequate and cannot meet the demands of a judicial cooperation in a place with no borders, like the EU." He also added, "Our country is ready to accept the list of conviction rulings and prohibitions proposed by the Commission."

However, at the moment, the differences in the systems between Member-States are significant, since Great Britain does not have criminal records relative to those that exist in other EU Member-States.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[05] Equal Performances

By Stathis Petropoulos

The match between Apollon Kalamaria and Ionikos for the 17th round of the Greek Championship ended in a 1-1 tie. Both teams performances were not impressive, while the muddy pitch seriously hampered their efforts. The visitors played better in the first 20 minutes, but Makors header was easily saved by Zafiropoulos. This awoke Apollon, which upped its performance from that point onwards and took control of the game. In the 34, Parmaxidis kick hit the post, while a moment later Spyropoulos kick went wide. Finally, their pressure bore fruit in the 43, when Beqaz was unable to save a long kick by Petkakis.

Makor Saves the Day

In the second half, Vlachos decision to substitute Diamantis for Coimbra seemed to be correct, as Ionikos applied pressure in the offence. However, Coimbra missed the opportunity to tie the score in the 50. Four minutes later, Makor took action and with an excellent free kick, combined with Zafiropoulos inability to react, he tied the score at 1 all. Nothing changed from that point, despite the fact that Ionikos seemed determined to score a second goal.

Referee: Kasnafernis (Argolida) Yellow Cards: Nikolopoulos, Vella Junior

APOLLON KALAMARIA: Zafiropoulos, Nikolopoulos, Cleyton, Genitsaridis, Spyropoulos (66 Pappas), Iliadis, Parmaxidis (77 Wellington), Petkakis, Orfanos, Vella Junior, Papadopoulos

IONIKOS: Beqaz, King, Tsiblidis (70 Maggos), Makor, Letieri, Diamantis (46 Coimbra), Gavrilopoulos, Kotitsas, Issa, Da Costa (46 Gutman), Kendal.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[06] A Pleasant Break

By Stathis Petropoulos

Without being able to impress, as it did not perform as well as coach Rolf Fringer would have wanted, PAOK took the three points in the match that signaled the commencement of the 17th round in the Greek Football Championship. With a goal by Chasiotis in the 70, PAOK momentarily put aside the latest administrative problems it has been facing with club president Goumenos, and is satisfied with the victory, but not with its performance. The visitors dominated in the first half, and appeared relaxed following the developments with their appeal and the reduction of their penalty. They demonstrated that they were willing to play well, but were hindered by the muddy pitch, which hampered their efforts. However, Panionios was the one to have the first good opportunity in the match. In the 39, Nalitzis passed the ball to Breska in front of PAOKs nets, but goalkeeper Tochouroglou defeated him and kept the tie.

Improved Performance

Nothing really changed after the halftime and both teams concentrated in their defence. PAOK though applied pressure, since it was not happy with a draw. In the 70, following a corner kick by Salpiggidis, Chasiotis cashed in on the defenders confusion and sent the ball to the nets with a header. Five minutes later, Drobni saved a free kick by Salpiggidis, while in the 79, in yet another opportunity between the same players, the Czech goalkeeper managed to save the ball again. Panionios missed another opportunity in the 89, when both Kaissi and Mantzios failed to tie the score.

Referee: Kakos (Keryra) Yellow Cards: Andralas, Tziolis, Spacic, Karypidis, Mantzios, Domoraud

PAOK: Tochouroglou, Karypidis, Chasiotis, Udeze, Andralas (89 Zavadias), Zisopoulos, Koutsopoulos, Karadimos, Spacic (59 Theodoridis), Maladenis (54 Egomitis), Salpiggidis

PANIONIOS: Drobni, Spyropoulos, Domoraud, Giannopoulos, Vlcek, Tziolis (86 Exouzidis) Makos, Goundoulakis (51 Kaissi), Mantzios, Breska (70 Zimonjic), Nalitzis

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[07] To Investigate Any Infringements ESIEA Asks for Names

By Despina Hristopoulou

Sources: ANA

The Journalists Union of Athens Daily Newspapers (ESIEA) sent a letter to the Minister of State, Theodoros Roussopoulos, asking him to provide the names of all journalists employed in the public sector. Actually, in its letter, ESIEA noted that it has repeatedly asked for the list of names, as well as the names of those who have or have had contacts with the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, National Defence and Public Order, or the agencies linked to those, during the years 2003-2004. A similar letter was sent to the Minister last Monday, while they had voiced this demand during a discussion held in Zappeio on 27 January, after the request of Mr Roussopoulos. The Journalists Union stressed that it is asking for the names in order to investigate whether any infringements to the Code of Conduct have been carried out by all the journalists and not each one individually. The President of ESIEA, Manolis Mathioudakis, and the General Secretary, Nikos Meggrelis, signed the letter.

According to sources, the Minister of State is expected to reply to the ESIEA on Monday, by providing all available data for 2003, as per the relevant presidential decree regarding transparency in the public sector.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

[08] Waiting for Tomorrow

By Vasilis Kalpinos

The witnesses summoned by the Hellenic Association of Amateur Athletics (SEGAS), for the case of the two Greek Olympians and their coach at the time, were testifying for six hours. Apart from the known witnesses, golden Olympian Fani Chalkia, as well as Prodromos Korkioglou were also among the witnesses for the defence. The procedure will conclude tomorrow with the testimonies of Kostas Kenteris, Katerina Thanou and coach Christos Tzekos, beginning at 11am. The ruling is expected by next Wednesday.

Witnesses Summoned

Olysseas Papatolis, former head coach; Dimitris Valasiadis, the official responsible for anti-doping control in the Olympic Village; Giannis Papadogiannakis, the head of the Greek delegation, Mr Christopoulos, manager of the Agios Kosmas sports facilities; and Giannis Stamatopoulos, head of the Greek Olympic Team, all testified in todays hearing.

Translated by Vicky Ghionis

Related News:

Testimonies Before SEGAS

[09] Testimonies Before SEGAS

By Mary Lou Tzempelikou

Kostas Kenteris, Katerina Thanou and their former coach Christos Tzekos are testifying before the SEGAS Disciplinary Committee since early in the morning, regarding the incidents during the Athens Olympic Games. The two Olympians and their coach arrived on Saturday morning at the offices of the Hellenic Olympic Committee, in Maroussi, where the 5-member SEGAS Committee convenes, in order to present their views. Captain of the Olympic team, Giannis Papadogiannakis, and IOC anti-doping control member Dimitris Valasiadis will also testify before the Disciplinary Committee. It should be noted that IOC President has also been called to testify, but Dr Rogue has not answered back so far.

Translated by Sofia Soulioti

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