Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2001-03-28
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, March 28, 2001
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
TITLES
[Á] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] "VENIZELOS" AIRPORT RECEIVES FIRST LANDINGS
[02] APPEALS COURT ACQUITS SUSPECTED TERRORIST
[03] MEDITERRANEAN TV CONFERENCE IN THESSALONIKI
[04] GREEK, BULGARIAN PMs DISCUSS FYROM SITUATION
[05] GREEK SHIPS ARE STILL LEADERS IN WORLD'S FLEET
[06] CHURCH EXTENDS PETITION DEADLINE BY A MONTH
[07] GREEK, YUGOSLAV PMs TO ADDRESS BALKAN FORUM
[08] EIB TO FINANCE OLYMPIC AIRWAYS FLEET RENEWAL
[09] PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION IN CUBA
[10] STEPHANOPOULOS-SIMITIS MEETING
[11] ROMANO PRODI WILL INAUGURATE A PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION IN
THESSALONIKI
[12] SMALL LOSSES IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE
[13] GREEK BUSINESSMEN WILL VISIT JAPAN IN MAY
[14] THESSALONIKI'S INTER-BALKAN MEDICAL COULD BECOME A UNIVERSITY
HOSPITAL
[15] THE PRIME MINISTER IS SATISFIED WITH THE COURSE OF THE
OLYMPIC GAMES PREPARATIONS
[16] THE 8TH COPEAM CONFERENCE OPENS IN THESSALONIKI TODAY
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[17] THE GREEK "SOLIDARITY CARAVAN" WILL VISIT BELGRADE
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] "VENIZELOS" AIRPORT RECEIVES FIRST LANDINGS
Athens' new international airport "Eleftherior Venizelos" is
to receive its first regular landing today, while full operations
are to commence tomorrow morning.
The state-of-the-art facility was inaugurated yesterday by
Prime Minister Costas Simitis, in the presence of the President of
the Hellenic Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos and other dignitaries.
In his address before a crowd of 3,000, Mr. Simitis noted
that the project was delivered on time, thereby defying naysayers,
and stressed that it meets all specifications, with transparency
and controlled cost, in accordance with public interests.
Furthermore, the Premier stated that the 658-billion-drachma
project is the result of continuous efforts by successive
governments and added that it will render Greece a key junction
for southeast Europe and the east Mediterranean in modern
international transport networks.
The airport's initial capacity is 16 million passengers
annually, with a potential for expansion to 50 million passengers
a year.
Two runways allow for simultaneous take-off and landing of up
to 600 aircraft per day.
The state-of-the-art facilities will provide for both an
expanding tourism industry and the demands of the Athens-held
Olympic Games of 2004. Higher airport taxes and fees charged to
airlines are to result in increased ticket prices and,
subsequently, boost revenues, bringing Athens into line with other
large European airports.
The new airport has involved investment by both Greek and
foreign companies and an innovative co-operation between private
companies and the Greek public sector. More than 100 Greek
constructors were involved in the work. The operating company,
Athens International Airport S.A. (AIA), owned 55% by the Greek
state and 45% by the German Hochtief group, was responsible for
the airport's construction and remains responsible for its
operation for the next 30 years. More than 7,000 permanent jobs
will be created at the airport and in associated services.
A large portion of AIA's operating costs will be covered by
income from concession agreements for the provision of passenger
services and facilities. The airport terminal will feature 10 food
and beverage outlets spanning an area of 2,000 square meters.
Among the dignitaries attending yesterday's ribbon-cutting
ceremony were United States Ambassador to Athens Nicholas Burns,
main opposition New Democracy leader Costas Karamanlis, ND
honorary president Constantine Mitsotakis, ATHOC chairwoman Yianna
Angelopoulos-Daskalaki airport chairman Haris Stamatopoulos, its
Chief Executive Officer Dr. Matthias Mitscherlich and contractor
firm Hochtief AG's chairman, Dr. Hans Peter Keitel.
[02] APPEALS COURT ACQUITS SUSPECTED TERRORIST
Suspected leftist terrorist Abraham Lesperoglou, who was
charged with the October 1982 attempted murder of a policeman, was
acquitted of all charges by the Athens appellate court yesterday.
With a four-to-three verdict, the court overturned a lower
court's 17-year prison sentence, handed down last October.
Lesperoglou, who police believe was a member of the 1980s
terrorist group Anti-State Struggle, was convicted of trying to
kill policeman George Psaroudakis during an attempted burglary.
Psaroudakis has testified that Lesperoglou was the man who shot
him.
According to the appellate court, however, Lesperoglou had no
part in the incident, which involved three burglars, and is not
the person who had shot and wounded policeman George Psaroudakis.
Lesperoglou was not released as he is still serving a six-year
prison term for evading enlistment in the military and for using
forged state documents, while he is still suspected of involvement
in terrorist actions in Greece.
[03] MEDITERRANEAN TV CONFERENCE IN THESSALONIKI
The eight annual conference of Copeam (the Permanent
Conference of the operators of the Mediterranean Audiovisual) is
to get underway in Thessaloniki today, themed after "Mediterranean
identities: Crisis issues and the mass media's responsibility".
Organized by Greece's state-owned ERT-3, in cooperation with
COPEAM and the Mediterranean Association of Television Stations,
the four-day event is to be presented live on the Macedonian Press
Agency's web site.
COPEAM was established in 1996 in Cairo, where it became a
non-profit International Association with a Chairmanship, three
vice presidents, an office, a committee and a general secretariat.
COPEAM numbers 80 founding members, five inter-government
institutions, two international agencies, five international
associations, 31 radiotelevision bodies, 12 professional
independent agencies and ten operators.
The cooperation among the European, African and Mediterranean
television station aims at designating -through audio-visual means-
a "renewed Mediterranean policy".
[04] GREEK, BULGARIAN PMs DISCUSS FYROM SITUATION
Prime Minister Costas Simitis and his Bulgarian counterpart
Ivan Kostov had a telephone conversation where they discussed the
latest developments in FYROM, following the military's prevalence
in villages previously controlled by the Albanian extremists.
According to press reports, Messrs. Simitis and Kostov agreed
that a withdrawal by the predominately Albanian parties from the
current government coalition in FYROM would cause even more
dramatic political problems.
Meanwhile, Greece's Foreign Minister George Papandreou is
traveling to Skopje today, where he will hold talks with his FYROM
counterpart Srgjan Kerim and will meet with Greece's ambassadors
to the Balkan countries.
In an interview with CNN from London, Mr. Papandreou stated
that the terrorists must understand "that they do not represent
the Albanian populace and the Albanian community; they are a
small, isolated group."
Furthermore, he stated that problems in the region have to be
solved through democratic means and procedures, and not through
violence or terrorism, adding that Greece desires a "stable and
multi-ethnic" FYROM, without any changes in borders.
[05] GREEK SHIPS ARE STILL LEADERS IN WORLD'S FLEET
The Union of Greek Shipowners and the Greek Shipping
Committee of London held their annual meeting in the UK capital
yesterday, where it was ascertained that Greek-managed ships still
led the world fleet.
At the same time, the groups announced that the number of
Greek-flagged vessels remains low due to a lack of measures to
improve the Greek registry's competitiveness.
Both groups also stressed the importance of officer training,
which would determine the sector's future along with
competitiveness.
[06] CHURCH EXTENDS PETITION DEADLINE BY A MONTH
A committee of the Holy Synod of the Church of Greece, has
decided to extend the deadline for the gathering of signatures for
a petition aimed at getting the government to back down from its
decision to scrap the mention of religion on ID cards.
The committee, which convened yesterday, announced that the
deadline will be extended to the end of April, hoping that it will
net the increased number of faithful who will be going to church
during the Easter holidays.
The petition's signatures are to be double-checked via
computer.
The Church opposes a government decision, in force since last
summer, to stop listing a person's religion on police-issued
identity cards on the grounds that this is sensitive personal
data.
[07] GREEK, YUGOSLAV PMs TO ADDRESS BALKAN FORUM
Prime Minister Costas Simitis and his Yugoslav counterpart
Zoran Zizic are to be among the speakers at a Balkan forum to be
held in Thessaloniki on April 2-3, organized by the Association of
Industries of Northern Greece and the Hellenic American Chamber of
Commerce.
The foreign ministers of three Balkan countries will also
speak at the meeting, namely Albanian's Paskal Milo, FYROM's
Srgjan Kerim and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia's Goran
Svilanovic, who will discuss the topic "Southeastern Europe:
Political Stability as a Prerequisite for European Cohesion".
National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou will also be
joined by four of his counterparts, namely from F.R.Y., Cyprus,
Albania and FYROM, who will review the latest developments in
their countries' economies, under the scope of Greece's Balkan
Reconstruction Plan.
Other speakers include Bodo Hombach, the Balkan stability
pact coordinator, and senior U.S. State Department official James
Swiggart, director of the Office of South Central European
Affairs.
According to the organizers, the event aims at serving as the
platform for peace in the Balkans and an exchange of ideas on
social and economic development in the region.
[08] EIB TO FINANCE OLYMPIC AIRWAYS FLEET RENEWAL
The European Investment Bank appears to be willing to finance
the fleet renewal of national air carrier Olympic Airways,
according Transport and Communications Minister Christos Verelis.
The state-owned airline, which is slated for privatization,
presently has a fleet of 32 aircraft, 11 of which, all 737-200s,
must be retired in a year as they do not meet new, more stringent
noise level specifications.
At the same time, OA's operating costs are expected to
increase tenfold from the high charges at the new airport, a fact
which, according to Mr. Verelis, is to significantly affect
prospective buyers.
[09] PARLIAMENTARY DELEGATION IN CUBA
A Greek parliamentary delegation will depart for Cuba
tomorrow to attend the 105th Inter-parliamentary Union Conference
that will take place in Havana on April 1-7.
In the conference will be discussed issues concerning the
international political, economic and social situation and the
contribution of state parliaments to the safeguarding, respect and
promotion of an international humane legislation.
[10] STEPHANOPOULOS-SIMITIS MEETING
The conclusions reached in the EU Summit meeting in
Stockholm, the economic situation in Greece, the big public works
projects and the international developments were discussed in the
meeting prime minister Kostas Simitis had in Athens today with
president Kostis Stephanopoulos.
After the meeting, Mr. Simitis stated to reporters that a
number of big projects are underway. Namely, the Aktion-Preveza
underwater tunnel connection will be completed by the end of the
year and a large part of the "Egnatia Odos" road network will soon
be open for use, while a notable progress is being made in the
Rion-Antirion bridge connection.
The prime minister also said that the European Council in
Stockholm confirmed that the course of the international economy
is positive and the prospects are good.
[11] ROMANO PRODI WILL INAUGURATE A PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION IN
THESSALONIKI
A photo exhibition by famous Spanish photographer Fernando
Morales under the title "Young Slaves" will be inaugurated by
European Commission president Romano Prodi at the CEDEFOP building
on Saturday March 31.
Mr. Prodi will inaugurate the exhibition during his visit to
Thessaloniki held within the framework of the 20th anniversary of
Greece's EU membership.
This important exhibition comes to Greece for the first time
at a period when the EU is very concerned over the issue of child
labor. According to the International Labor Office, 61% of the
children in Asia and 32% of the children in Africa are part of the
work force. A shocking fact is that 5 million children work in the
EU and the majority of them are involved in pornography, drug-
trafficking and sex tourism.
[12] SMALL LOSSES IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE
Small losses were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange
today. The general index dropped to -0.23% at 3.050,71 points,
while the volume of transactions was small at 178.59 million Euro
or 60.85 billion drachmas.
Of the stocks trading today, 234 recorded gains and 95 had
losses, while the value of 45 stocks remained stable.
[13] GREEK BUSINESSMEN WILL VISIT JAPAN IN MAY
Thessaloniki's Commerce and Industry Chamber seeks to give a
boost to the Greek-Japanese trade and economic relations with a
business mission to Tokyo and Yokohama it has organized to take
place on May 21-27.
In 1999, the Greek exports to Japan showed an impressive
increase of 29.7% compared to 1998 and reached 12.6 billion yen.
The Japanese market is a challenge for the Greek businessmen as
the per capita income in the country is among the highest in the
world.
Very favorable for the Greek companies are the prospects in
the sectors of food and beverages, building materials, tourism and
software development.
[14] THESSALONIKI'S INTER-BALKAN MEDICAL COULD BECOME A UNIVERSITY
HOSPITAL
Thessaloniki's Inter-Balkan Medical claims the title of the
most modern and well-equipped Medical Center in Europe, according
to British Imperial College Medical School director Judy McKimm.
The view that Thessaloniki's Inter-Balkan Medical would be
extremely suitable to assume the university hospital title was
expressed after the visit of a high-level Imperial College
delegation.
Thessaloniki's Inter-Balkan Medical has already become a
reference point in the sector of health not only in the Balkans
but in southeastern Europe as well.
[15] THE PRIME MINISTER IS SATISFIED WITH THE COURSE OF THE
OLYMPIC GAMES PREPARATIONS
The Athens 2004 Olympic Games ministerial committee met under
the presidency of prime minister Kostas Simitis today. In the
meeting participated eight ministers, four undersecretaries,
"Athens 2004" Organization president Yianna Angelopoulos-
Daskalakis and new managing director Yiannis Spanoudakis.
In statements after the meeting, undersecretary of press
Tilemachos Hitiris pointed out that the prime minister stressed to
the responsible ministers that the intense efforts should continue
in order to have perfectly organized Olympic Games in 2004.
The prime minister stated that everything goes well and
mentioned as an example the new Athens airport at Spata. He said
that the airport was the result of coordinated efforts and
underlined that the government will continue its work aimed at
meeting the goals it has set in every sector.
[16] THE 8TH COPEAM CONFERENCE OPENS IN THESSALONIKI TODAY
Practical solutions on cooperation issues concerning the
audiovisual media in the Mediterranean will be discussed in the
8th Conference of the Mediterranean Association of Television
Stations and other audiovisual operators (COPEAM) that opens in
Thessaloniki today.
The conference under the title "Mediterranean identities: The
issues at stake and the responsibility of the media" is co-
organized by state-run television station ERT-3 and COPEAM and it
will be broadcast live by Macedonian Press Agency on its Internet
site (www.mpa.gr). The ET-3 viewers will be able to watch
extensive parts of the conference proceedings as well as speeches
delivered by the participants.
Until March 31, directors, presidents and senior executives
representing audio-visual media from the Mediterranean Basin and
the Balkans will be discussing interesting issues concerning
television co-productions, multi-media, long distance education,
radio, cinema, the electronic portal, the organizing of festivals
and other issues of mutual interest.
ET-3 television channel will broadcast a special on
Mediterranean cinema, the "cinema of our neighborhood", on the
occasion of this important meeting that takes place once a year
each time in a different Mediterranean city and country.
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[17] THE GREEK "SOLIDARITY CARAVAN" WILL VISIT BELGRADE
The Greek "Solidarity Caravan" will visit Belgrade again to
deliver economic assistance to over 800 orphan and handicap
children.
According to Yugoslav news agency Tanjug, the "Solidarity
Caravan" will be in Serbia until April 3 and visit a number of
cities.
It should be noted that it was founded in 1992 by three Greek
Euro-deputies Alekos Alavanos, Avgerinos Paraskevas and Panagiotis
Lambrias. The organization delivered its first humanitarian
assistance to Serbia on May 9, 1999, namely, medicine and medical
equipment worth DM450.000. In July 2000, 504 children, victims of
the NATO bombings, received the sum of DM150 each as an assistance
offered by the "Solidarity Caravan".
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