MPA NEWS IN ENGLISH (02/07/1996)

From: Macedonian Press Agency <mpa@philippos.mpa.gr>

Macedonian Press Agency News in English Directory

MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Thessaloniki, July 2, 1996

NEWS IN ENGLISH

[A] NATIONAL NEWS

[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

TITLES

[A] NATIONAL NEWS

[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

NEWS IN DETAIL

[A] NATIONAL NEWS

[01] GREEK HUMAN RIGHTS ACTIVISTS EXPELLED FROM TURKEY, RETURN TO ATHENS

The three Greek citizens, members of human rights organizations, who were expelled from Turkey today, have returned to Greece.

Attorney at law Dimitrios Hatzipanayiotou, his wife Kanella, and Magdalini Spiliopoulou were arrested by Turkish police, together with a German member of the team, Greens party Euro- deputy Heidi Lipmann, outside the Bairampasa Prison yesterday, while they were waiting to get permission to enter the facilities. The four are participants of an international mission that aims to investigate the living conditions of prisoners in Turkey.

The three Greeks, who were accused of organising a protest rally outside the prison and of trying to get the attention of the media, were expelled after being interrogated by the local police.

Greek Consul-General in Constantinople, Grigorios Vasilokonstantakis was informed on the Greeks' arrest by the German Euro-deputy and followed the case closely.

[02] EU COURT RULES AGAINST GREEK LAW ON CITIZENSHIP FOR PUBLIC JOBS

The European Court of Justice ruled today against Greece's law that gives its citizens exclusive rights for work in the Greek public sector.

The ruling calls on Greece to allow citizens from other EU member-states to work in sectors related to education, health and telecommunications as well as the wider public sector.

Based on the Court's ruling, the Greek citizenship pre- condition can be enforced only for employment in the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Interior or the national security agencies.

The Court's ruling condemns Greece for violating Article 48 of the European Community Treaty concerning the free movement of citizens in the member-states and also for violating the Community regulations concerning the employment of other EU citizens in the greek public sector.

The European Court of Justice also found Belgium and Luxemburg at fault for similar violations.

According to the Court's ruling, Greece's pre-condition of greek citizenship for employment in a number of public sector companies is in conflict with Community Law. As such, the Court finds, Greece should move toward the adoption of the necessary legislative regulations aiming at putting an end to discrimination based on an individual's citizenship.

[03] US SATISFIED BY ELECTION OF SIMITIS AS PASOK PRESIDENT

The United States government has expressed its satisfaction for the election of Prime Minister Kostas Simitis to the post of PASOK's party President.

In an official announcement issued yesterday by White House spokesperson Nicholas Burns, the US regard Mr. Simitis' election as party president to be a positive development for Greece.

Moreover, Mr. Burns expressed the hope that the Greek government will remain a close ally of the United States.

[04] US UNDERSECRETARY OF STATE ON VISIT TO ANKARA AND ATHENS

United States Undersecretary of State Peter Tarnoff has embarked on a tour through Athens and Ankara, within the framework of the american initiatives for the Aegean and Cyprus.

State Department spokesperson, Nicholas Burns characterized as positive the circumstances under which Mr. Tarnoff's visit is taking place since, as he stated, there is political stability in Athens as well as in Ankara, despite the rise of the islamists.

During his visit to Ankara, Mr. Tarnoff will conduct talks with Turkish president Suleiman Demirel and he may meet with new Prime Minister Netsmetin Erbacan.

According to Mr. Burns, the US aim at having a harmonious cooperation with the Erbacan government, although it was made clear to Ankara that the US are not willing to accept Turkey's steering away from its western direction.

[05] SIMITIS MET WITH PANGALOS TO DISCUSS US UNDERSECRETARY'S VISIT

Prime Minister, Kostas Simitis met today with Foreign Minister, Theodoros Pangalos to discuss the visit to Ankara and Athens by US Assistant Secretary of State responsible for political affairs, Peter Tarnoff.

According to information, they discussed the visit's goal which is the improvement of the greek-turkish relations and the easing of tensions in the Aegean.

At noon today, the US Assistant Secretary of State met with turkish Foreign Affairs Undersecretary, Onur Oimen and earlier had talks with turkish Defence Minister, Turhan Tayan.

Mr.Tarnoff stated that those contacts will contribute to the further improvement of the US-Turkish relations and added that he discussed with the turkish officials the issue of the multi- national force deployed in Turkey at the borders with Iraq.

[06] ELECTIONS WILL BE HELD IN OCTOBER 1997, REITERATES ATHENS

Greek government spokesman, Dimitris Reppas reiterated today that elections in Greece will be held in 16 months, in October of 1997.

Mr.Reppas pointed out that the opposition's demand for early elections has negative effects on the greek society and especially on the country's economy.

The greek government spokesman also announced that the cabinet ministers will meet on Friday morning, to discuss issues concerning only the Justice Ministry.

[07] MAIN OPPOSITION SEES EARLY ELECTIONS IN THE NEAR HORIZON

The possibility of elections taking place at any given moment foresees Miltiades Evert, the leader of main opposition party New Democracy.

To prove his point, Mr. Evert geared up his party for election readiness, during today's meeting of New Democracy's Central Committee, wherein he outlined the three strategical points of attack aimed at ruling PASOK.

The first is ideology, the second is New Democracy's programs and the third is the accomplishments of New Democracy's works so far.

Meanwile, New Democracy parliamentarian Sotiris Kouvelas stated that Mr. Simitis' election as PASOK president was to be expected, and assessed that the various -and vocal- juxtapositions that surfaced during the ruling party's recently-held congress among the PASOK delegates, will deepen and will obstruct the government from achieving its goals. He, too, called for early elections, saying that it would be the only way to relieve the country from the dead end it currently faces.

[08] ALTERNATE FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER

Alternate Foreign Minister George Romeos met with Bulgarian Prime Minister Zhan Videnov today, to whom he expressed Greece's unwavering support in Bulgaria's process of accession to the European Union.

The two men met in Sofia and discussed the upcoming meeting of Balkan Foreign Ministers scheduled to take place next weekend in the Bulgarian capital.

[09] GREEK MEP FORESEES SOLUTION TO PROBLEM OF NAGORNO-KARABAH

The proposal to form mixed parliamentary committees that will oversee the application of the cooperation agreements drawn between the European Union and Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia, has been brought forward by Greece's New Democracy eurodeputy Antonios Trakatelis.

Participating in a europarliamentary delegation tour of these three countries, Mr. Trakatelis told the Macedonian Press Agency that the aim of these committees would be to overlook the application of the according agreement in various sectors, such as the TACIS programs which are mentioned in the areas of energy, agriculture and the training of manpower in the service sector.

The proposal has been accepted by the presidents of all three countries, Azerbaijan's Aliev, Georgia's Sevardnadje and Armenia's Petrossian.

The delegation focused on the rising conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia regarding the Nargorno Karabach geographical region, one which during the Soviet Union's era belonged to the first, although the majority of its population was of Armenian origin.

According to Mr. Trakatelis, the delegation adopted the view that a fair solution must be reached based on the border inviolability principle, the return of the approximately 800,000 refugees and the guarrantees for securing the rights of the Armenians living in Karabach, an issue which, according to the Greek eurodeputy, should also concern the United Nations.

[10] FYROM:CATTLE TO BE SLAUGHTERED DUE TO FOOT AND MOUTH DISEASE

The outbreak of foot and mouth disease cases noted in the southwestern part of FYROM appears to be taking unprecedented dimensions as current estimates assess that approximately 15-30 per cent of the local cattle have been stricken by the disease.

In addition to the strict ban imposed by Greece on the importation of all live animals from Skopje, FYROM's Agriculture Ministry has quarantined and will slaughter thousands of the suspect animals. According to the Skopjan press, the A-22 virus considered responsible for the deadly illness is highly resistant and extremely dangerous.

FYROM's Agriculture Ministry maintains that the disease stems from livestock that was illegally imported to Skopje from Albania.

Speaking to the Macedonian Press Agency, George Koukakis, supervisor of the Evzoni Greek-Skopjan border, stated that the importation of any livestock or animal products from FYROM is strictly banned and vehicles entering Greece from Skopje have to immerse their tires in a trench filed with disinfecting caustic potash.

[11] BRITISH AMBASSADOR SPEAKS IN THESSALONIKI ON BRITAIN-GREECE TIES

British Ambassador to Athens Sir Michael Liewellyn-Smith stated today that Great Britain is and will remain a member of the European Union, while, at the same time, maintaining its national traditions.

Speaking at the event themed "Great Britain, Greece and Europe, organized by the British-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce, Sir Liewellyn-Smith also referred to the significant relations between Greece and Britain, pointing out that the volume of bilateral trade amounts to more than one-and-a-half billion british pounds. Moreover, he pointed out, Great Britain is currently Greece's third largest importer, closely following Germany and Italy, and, conversely, its fourth largest European exporter.

Referring to Thessaloniki, Sir Liewellyn-Smith acknowledged the city's strategic position by stating that its significance as a cultural, business and commerce center is continuously on the rise.

[12] GREECE-FYROM AGREEMENT FOR ELECTRICITY LINK IS IN THE WORKS

Greece's Public Power Corporation (DEI) is working closely with its FYROM counterpart in achieving a bilateral cooperation agreement that aims at providing service to each of the two neighbors, whose power systems are already interlinked.

According to DEI's assistant general director, Raphael Maiopoulos, such an agreement is especially useful for handling problems that may arise during the functioning of the systems.

The Greek Public Power Corp. had drawn a similar agreement with former Yugoslavia's Power Co. "Yugel". However, "now that the region is made up of various smaller states, the signing of separate agreements with each company is necessary," Mr. Maiopoulos stated to the Macedonian Press Agency, and added that the agreement with FYROM will be similar with the one signed between Greece and Yugoslavia.

[13] ECOLOGICAL CONGRESS TO BE HELD IN HALKIDIKI THIS FRIDAY

The 3rd Ecological Congress scheduled to start on Friday, July 5 in Halkidiki, will study the interaction between tourism activity and the enviroment.

The congress is jointly organized by the Halkidiki Hotel Owners' Association and the area's Municipalities and Communities Association.

Development Minister Vasso Papandreou and Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Philippos Petsalnikos are scheduled to address the Congress, along with undersecretary of National Economy Christos Pachtas and the secretary of the Greek Tourism Organization (EOT).

[14] MINI HEATWAVE IS EXPECTED IN GREECE IN THE NEXT THREE DAYS

Mini heatwave is expected in Greece in the next three days with temperatures reaching 39 to 40 degrees centigrade on Thursday, according to the National Weather Bureau. The high temperatures will continue until Saturday.

The Ministry of Health has announced precautionary measures and hospitals are in a state of preparedness in order to be ready to handdle heat related health problems.

[15] ALTERNATE FOREIGN MINISTER TO MEET WITH BULGARIAN PRESIDENT, PREMIER

Alternate Minister of Foreign Affairs George Romeos will meet today with the Bulgarian President Zeliu Zelev and Prime Minister Zhan Videnov, within the framework of his three-day working visit to Sofia.

Mr. Romeos' visit will focus on the relations between Bulgaria and the European Union and Greece's role in promoting these ties.

The alternate Foreign Minister has met with the Bulgarian Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Irina Bokova and is also scheduled to meet with Bulgarian Foreign Minister Georgi Pirinski.

[16] "PARTNERSHIP FOR PEACE" COUNTRIES TO PARTAKE IN NATO EXERCISE

Four "Partnership for Peace" countries, Bulgaria, Malta, Moldova and Romania, will participate in NATO's military exercises to be held on July 4-12, according to a communique issued by the Alliance.

Greece, Turkey and the United States will also participate in the army exercise which is named "Cooperative Determination '96." The exercise will take place in Bulgaria's Belene training camp and its aim is to train forces for peacekeeping, humanitarian and disaster rescue missions.

The operation will be commanded by US Admiral Leighton Smith, who is the commander of southern Europe's allied forces, and will be coordinated by Greek General Dimitrios Spyridon.

[17] OTHER 14 TRADITIONAL GREEK FARM PRODUCTS ARE UNDER THE PROTECTION OF EU LEGISLATION

The names of other 14 traditional greek farm products are being protected by the EU legislation.

After a recent decision based on which, the EU legislation protects 318 European Union products, among them 44 greek products the greek feta cheese included, the European Commission adopted yesterday a new regulation for the protection of other 64 EU farm products, 14 of which are greek.

The European Commission is expected shortly to approve the protection of more traditional EU farm products and foodstuffs.

[18] ECOLOGICAL CONGRESS TO BE HELD IN HALKIDIKI THIS FRIDAY

The 3rd Ecological Congress scheduled to start on Friday, July 5 in Halkidiki, will study the interaction between tourism activity and the enviroment.

The congress is jointly organized by the Halkidiki Hotel Owners' Association and the area's Municipalities and Communities Association.

Development Minister Vasso Papandreou and Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Philippos Petsalnikos are scheduled to address the Congress, along with undersecretary of National Economy Christos Pachtas and the secretary of the Greek Tourism Organization (EOT).

[19] SPECIAL PROGRAM TO BE BROADCAST FOR SERB TOURISTS IN GREECE

A special program targeted at Serb tourists in Greece will be broadcast daily by the Greek Radio Company (ERA), providing news and public service announcements on local festivities and entertainment to take place in the areas where the tourists are vacationing.

The program, which will run through August 31, will be broadcast every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 18:05 to 18:55 from the local radio stations of Kavala, Serres, Volos, Larisa.

[20] TURKISH FILM THEMED "FRIENDSHIP IN THE AEGEAN" IS UNDER PRODUCTION

A film embracing the idea of Greek-Turkish friendship will be produced in Turkey by the Smyrna "9th of September" University's School of Fine Arts.

According to turkish newspaper "Hurriyet", filming is set to start in September under the direction of the School's professor Dr. Pagkin Taranz.

[21] LEGAL AID FOR TOURISTS IN THE GREEK CITIES OF VOLOS, KAVALA, PATRAS AND IRAKLION

A three-month programme for legal aid to tourists began operating yesterday, materialized by the Quality of Life Consumers Association in cooperation with the local Consumers Associations in the cities of Volos, Kavala, Patras and Iraklion, Crete.

Legal Aid Offices for tourists have opened in the cities mentioned above and specialized lawyers will give answers for free to any consumer questions that need legal opinion. Also, those offices will offer information and will assist the consumers who feel that their rights as tourists and consumers are being violated. Similar information will be offered and to those who are about to visit other parts of Greece or any country abroad.

A Legal Aid Office for tourists will also open in Athens, while similar offices will serve tourists in Italy, Spain and Portugal.

[22] ROMANIA'S FOREIGN MINISTER WILL VISIT ATHENS ON JULY 8-9

Romania's Foreign Minister, Teodor Melescanu will make a formal visit to Athens on July 8-9 after an invitation by his greek counterpart, Theodoros Pangalos.

According to a statement by the romanian embassy in Athens, the two Foreign Ministers will discuss issues concerning development and cooperation in the region as well as, Romania's participation in the european institutions.

Mr.Melescanu will also meet with greek President, Kostis Stephanopoulos, Parliament President, Apostolos Kaklamanis and other officials and his contacts will focus on "the further development and strengthening of the excellent greek-romanian relations", according to the romanian embassy statement.

[23] SERIES OF STABILIZING MEASURES TO BE TAKEN FOR ECONOMY

In a strengthening act of consolidation following Prime Minister Kostas Simitis' success in winning the PASOK presidency, Minister of National Economy Yianos Papantoniou and Finance Minister Alekos Papadopoulos are preparing a series of measures aiming at stabilizing the economy, starting with interest rate reduction.

According to press reports, Mr. Papadopoulos plans to bring the new state bonds' -scheduled to circulate on July 15- interest rates down to 13 per cent, compared to the present 13.3 per cent. The rates are expected to be further reduced at the end of July.

Also on the government economic team's agenda is the reduction of public expenditure.

National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou has stated that a new bill aimed at cutting down in expenses will be completed by the end of the month.

Moreover, the public corporations' reform bill is also to be activated, as the government is seeking ways to push ahead with major public works, considered vital for the economy's evolution at this point.

[24] ALTERNATE FOREIGN MINISTER MEETS WITH BULGARIAN PRIME MINISTER

Alternate Foreign Minister George Romeos met with Bulgarian Prime Minister Zhan Videnov today, to whom he expressed Greece's unwavering support in Bulgaria's process of accession to the European Union.

The two men met in Sofia and discussed the upcoming meeting of Balkan Foreign Ministers scheduled to take place next weekend in the Bulgarian capital.

[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS

[25] UNITED NATIONS SPECIAL ENVOY HAN SUNG JU ON EUROPEAN TOUR

United Nations Secretary-General's Special Envoy for Cyprus Han Sung Ju embarks today on a tour of european capitals, aiming at the coordination of the efforts of all those countries which are involved in solving the Cyprus problem.

Mr. Ju is accompanied by the alternate special envoy Gustav Feischel, who stated that the all-embracing approach remains the UN's choice, and clarified that was is sought now is a starting point for a total settlement.

Concurrently, Mr. Feischel pointed out that a way must be found to examine the various ideas that are presented, and supported that the two sides of the island are not yet ready to proceed to a compromise.

[26] SIR DAVID HANNAY WILL NOT BE A CANDIDATE FOR THE POSITION OF THE EU SPECIAL OBSERVER IN THE TALKS FOR CYPRUS

A British Foreign Ministry spokesman stated that, Sir David Hannay is not a candidate for the position of the European Union Special Observer in the Cyprus problem talks.

The British official made the statement obviously in response to the statement made yesterday by greek Foreign Minister, Theodoros Pangalos who said that, the greek government reacts strongly to mr.Hannay's appointment to the position of the European Union Special Observer in the Cyprus problem talks.

Mr.Pangalos had stated that Greece will not accept mr.Hannay as mediator in Cyprus because Britain was indifferent to the suffering of Cyprus for 22 years.

[27] REACTIONS TO ERBAKAN-CILLER COALITION GOVERNMENT CONTINUE IN TURKEY

Reactions in Turkey continue against the coalition government formed after an agreement between the "Welfare" islamist party leader, Necmetin Erbakan and Tansu Ciller, leader of the "True Path" party.

Ciller received thousands of letters and telephone calls from turkish women voters, who are protesting against the coalition government with Erbakan. According to the british newspaper "Daily Telegraf", protest demonstrations are being organised to take place in the city of Ismir.

"True Path" party officials mention that the party's success in the December 1995 parliamentary elections was largely due to the votes it got from women voters who believed in Ciller's statements that she was against islamism which, as she had said during her pre-election campaign, "threatens to bring Turkey back to the Middle Ages".

[28] "SOLIDARITY ASSOCIATION OF TURKS IN WESTERN THRACE" PRESIDENT ARRESTED IN CONSTANTINOPLE

"Solidarity Association of Turks in Western Thrace" President, Taner Mustafaoglu and other three members of the association were arrested today by the turkish authorities when they attempted to hold a protest rally outside the greek Consulate's building in Constantinople, according to the turkish news agency Anadolu.

Based on eye-witnesses, strong police force was used to stop the demonstration.

The members of the association had organised the demonstration to express their opposition to the appointment of a five-member committee which will manage the public welfare and religious institutions of the muslim minority in Thrace.

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