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Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2001-10-09Macedonian Press Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH Thessaloniki, October 9, 2001 SECTIONS
The protest in Thessaloniki was also without incidents. The protesters of Youth Action for Peae and the Anti-war Committee of Bodies with various other organizations, including "Genoa Initiative 2001", marched to the American Consulate and spray painted "Stop, no involvement" on the sidewalk outside, and put flowers on the ground. [02] EU FOREIGN SECRETARIES EXAMINE ATTACKSThe attacks of the US against military targets in Afghanistan, the democratic course of the country and the supply of humanitarian assistance were the issues that Foreign Secretaries of the EU examined, during their meeting of the Committee for General Affairs of the EU[03] STEFANOPOULOS-MILLER MEETINGPresident of the Republic, Kostis Stefanopoulos, expressed his deep sorrow for the victims of the terrorist attack on the US, in the meeting he had with the new US Ambassador, during which Mr. Miller presented his credentials.Mr. Stefanopoulos mentioned that he welcomed the American Ambassador with joy, who, in addition, as he said, is an old acquaintance of Greece, and in turn, Mr. Miller thanked the President in Greek. Their meeting lasted half an hour, and after it the US Ambassador did not make any statements. It should be noted that Mr. Miller arrived and left the Presidential Mansion under extreme security measures. [04] AVRAMOPOULOS FOR THE FIGHT AGAINST TERRORHis solidarity in the fight against terrorism was expressed by the President of the Free Citizens Party, Dimitris Avramopoulos."Of course we stand in favor of the struggle being made today by the democratic and civilized world, to strike terrorism at the root" he underlined, speaking to the Central Committee of the Party. "This cancer, terrorism, must be struck at the root", stressed Mr. Avramopoulos and added that "we ask of all those handling the matter to be strict and fair". Mr. Avramopoulos also pointed out that actions must proceed with great care, no one people or any nations should be turned with common culture should be turned into demons in people's eyes. [05] 15.000.000 DRS LOANS TO GREEKS LIVING ABROADLoans reaching 15.000.000 drachmas will be granted to Greeks living abroad, after a joint decision of the Minister of the Interior, Vaso Papandreou, and the Minister of Economy, Giannos Papantoniou, to raise the size of loans that can be taken by repatriated Greeks to cover their housing needs.Their payment in full has been set to be within 15 years of receiving the loan. According to what is foreseen the first payment must be made after two years of the signing of the loan, at the latest. [06] 4,8 RICHTER IN RHODESAn earthquake of 4,8 points on the Richter scale, took place yesterday afternoon at 14.40, with its epicenter 5 kilometers north of the island of Rhodes, and according to the Geophysics Institute of Thessaloniki, its development will be observed for at least the next 24 hours. The earthquake was noticeable, but no damage was incurred on any buildings.[07] ROUGHLY 75 VIBRATIONS IN THESSALONIKIAbout 75 vibrations with the same epicenter – 15 kilometers northeast of Thessaloniki, near Asvestohori – were recorded by the seismographs Geophysics Institute of the AUTh, of which more than 45 were higher than 2 points on the Richter scale and another 8 over 3 points.[08] FEAR OF TERRORIST STRIKES IN GREECEOne out of two Greeks fears a possible terrorist strike against Greece, while the majority disapprove of the US attacks on Afghanistan, according to the results of the "ALCO" company, which were published in the "Eleftheros Typos" newspaper.52,1% of those asked stated that they live in fear of a terrorist attack on our country and 42,6% is not afraid of such a possibility. Younger people, aged 18-24, (61,3%),women (61,2%) and the elderly (59,5%), are most afraid. 40% of men are afraid and 39,1% of people aged 25- 34. 61,2% of the people asked disagree with the way the US reacted and 57,3% considers the attack against Afghanistan unfair. 29% agrees with the attack and 26,4% can see the reason behind it. The vast majority (83,9%) of those asked believe that the retaliation of the US will open a new vicious circle of violence and terrorist strikes, and only 7,4% think that it will have results in the war against terrorism. The survey took place on Monday, one day after the bombing in Afghanistan commenced. [09] CHRYSOCHOIDIS ON KYSEA DECISIONSMinister of Public Order, Michalis Chrysochoidis, advised the country to keep its composure and self control, underlining that we are completely safe, in statements he made after the meeting of the Governmental Council on Foreign Affairs and Defense, during which he presented the plan on increased security measures for sensitive targets in Greece.Mr. Chrysochoidis stressed that all services are vigilant and ready to deal with any danger, and that civilians should feel secure. The plan for increased security includes guarding of embassies, civilian and military airports, harbors, water supplies, power plants, Olympic projects, the subway, stadiums, theaters, cinemas, and ministries and public organizations by police forces. Also, increased security measures have been taken in the naval yard at Souda, as well as the Air Force bases in Araxos and Actio. A grea ter role in the emergency guarding plan has been given to the army, since from now on it will guard sea and land borders against the entrance of illegal immigrants into our country. [10] 156 REFUGEES FOUND IN CRETE156 North African refugees, Moroccan in their majority, were spotted this morning, on the highway Rethymno-Chania in Crete. So far it is unknown how they were transported to the northern part of Crete.[11] PRESIDENT OF THE REPUBLIC IN RETHYMNOPresident of the Republic, Kostis Stefanopoulos, will be in Rethymno on November 8. Mr. Stefanopoulos will be present at the events of the 135th anniversary of the holocaust at the holy Arcadiou Convent.[12] SCIENCE FICTION "COMES TO LIFE" IN THESSALONIKIClones, ancient organisms coming alive, viruses threatening mankind, mysterious insects reigning terror, invisible people, monster reproduction, mutated beings, interstellar civilizations, in fewer words images from the world of science fiction will come alive for a few days in Thessaloniki. All this will happen at the first international science fiction conference, organized for the October 18-21 period. The Department of American Literature and Culture of the English Language and Literature Department of the Auth, on "Biotechnological and Medical Issues in Science Fiction".[13] FRANKFURT BOOK FAIR EXTREME SECURITY MEASURESThe opening of the 53rd Frankfurt International Book Fair this afternoon, will take place under extreme security measures, in the presence of the Greek President of the Republic, Kostis Stefanopoulos, and the German Chancellor, Gerhard Schreder.Authorities have taken all necessary security measures, so that not even the slightest incident may take place during the fair, especially after the threat of terrorist attacks in Europe and the US. 87 Greek publishing houses are participating in the Book Fair, which are supported by the Ministry of Culture with 1 million drs, while approximately 850 new Greek books will be presented. [14] ISMAIL CEM WILL BE IN ATHENS ON NOVEMBER 7-8Turkish foreign minister Ismail Cem will be on a working visit to Athens on November 7-8.Mr. Cem will have talks with his Greek counterpart Giorgos Papandreou. [15] THE MUSLIM MPs CONDEMN BIN LADEN'S STANCE ON JIHADThe Muslim deputies in the Greek parliament elected in Thrace, northeastern Greece, condemned Osama bin Laden's stance expressing their opposition to his invitation for Jihad or Holy War, stressing that they support the fight against terrorism.Speaking to MPA, governing socialist party of PASOK parliament deputy Galip Galip, who is elected in the prefecture of Rodopi, stated that this is a case of terrorism. Mr. Galip said that Bin Laden through his statements and the expressions he used has admitted indirectly that he is the one behind the September 11 attacks. The Muslim MP expressed his personal opposition as well as, the opposition of the Muslim minority in Thrace to terrorism regardless of where it comes from. He said that there is no question of a holy war as this is not a religious issue but an issue of terrorism. As far as the US attack on Afghanistan is concerned, he said that he does not see it as an attack on Muslims, stressing that it is a move targeting terrorism and not Islam. The same stance was adopted by another Muslim Greek parliament deputy with the party of PASOK, who also comes from the prefecture of Rodopi, Mr. Mehmet Ahmet. He said that he does not agree with bin Laden's invitation to a holy war, stressing that the Muslim minority's advisory committee has issued a resolution condemning terrorism that has already been forwarded to the United States. He said that bin Laden's invitation to a holy war is condemned, stressing that he is against terrorism regardless of where it comes from and that he backs the fight against terrorism. Referring to the US attack on Afghanistan he said that this is not a crusade or a jihad but a war against terrorism. Speaking about the Muslim-Christian relations, he said that the relations between the Muslims and Christians living in Thrace are a model of peaceful coexistence. [16] PAPANTONIOU: THE CRISIS WILL HAVE SHORT-LIVED EFFECTSThe government economic staff is alert to establish what will be the likely effects the attacks on Afghanistan will have on the Greek economy. The assessments already made remain unchanged and according to them, the effects will be limited and short-lived given that there will be no further escalation of the crisis.The above were stressed by national economy minister Yiannos Papantoniou after the meeting he had this morning with prime minister Kostas Simitis. He stressed that there will be a more clear picture on the state budget and the course of the macro-economic indexes by the end of October or early November. The materialization course of the Community Framework of Support was also discussed in the meeting of Mr. Papantoniou with the prime minister which was held in the presence of undersecretary of national economy Christos Pachtas [17] LABOR MINISTRY: POSITIVE INDICATIONS ON EMPLOYMENTThe indications on employment are positive for the year 2001, based on figures provided by the Greek labor and social security ministry and the assessments made by independent institutions.According to those figures, there is an increase in employment in 2001 that corresponds to 75.000 new job positions, while the increase recorded in 2000, based on second trimester figures, was only 6.500. The research was based on a sample of 2.309 businesses and compared to the previous year, the number of employed individuals has increased by 1.92%. [18] TWO PEOPLE KILLED AND 7 INJURED IN A FREAK ACCIDENTTwo women, a mother and her daughter, 73 and 54, were killed in their house and other seven people, car drivers and passengers, were injured when a truck veered off course due to break failure and literally flattened a house in a Thessaloniki suburb today, after colliding with passing vehicles.The truck was carrying building materials and its 29- year-old driver, who was unable to regain its control, was also injured. [19] DORA BAKOYIANNI CALLED FOR NATIONAL UNDERSTANDINGRight-wing main opposition party of New Democracy parliament deputy Ms. Dora Bakoyianni called for an understanding of all political parties at a national level and underlined the need for the cooperation of political forces. She also characterized as satisfactory the planning aimed at dealing with the situation that was created after the terrorist attacks on the United States and the reprisals on the Afghanistan.Ms. Bakoyianni accompanied by her colleague Spilios Spiliotopoulos, head of New Democracy's national defense department, met with defense minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos today and was briefed on the current developments. She stated that New Democracy believes that there should be a national understanding among all political parties, adding that the cooperation of political forces is necessary. On the question concerning the measures taken by the government, she stated that the briefing was complete and the planning appears satisfactory. [20] REPPAS: GREECE IS A SAFE COUNTRYGreek government spokesman Dimitris Reppas characterized as interesting the opinion poll presented today by the Athens newspaper "Eleftheros Tipos" according to which, 57% of those questioned believe that the attack on Afghanistan is unfair.Mr. Reppas stated that war is not a popular option as everybody wants a peaceful life. However, he underlined that the terrorist attack on the United States must be seen as a challenge for humanity and western civilization. The response to this challenge must be effective and decisive, said Mr. Reppas and stressed that the world cannot be apathetic to such a terrorist attack. He also said that the Greeks must feel safe, adding that Greece is a safe country and all measures have been taken to deal with every possible threat. However, he stressed that there is no evidence showing that Greece could become the target of such an attack. [21] ND PARLIAMENTARY GROUP MEETINGThe international developments, the US attack on Afghanistan and the effects it will have on Greece, are being discussed in the right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy parliamentary group meeting that is being held today presided over by party leader Kostas Karamanlis.In his speech Mr. Karamanlis stressed that the military operations in Afghanistan are placed within the framework of international law and take place after UN decisions, while he expressed satisfaction over the fact that the targets of those military operations are limited to terrorist bases. He called on the government to give a decisive battle to stamp out every remnant of terrorist organization and the fear of a terrorist attack. Mr. Karamanlis called again for a meeting of the Political Leaders Council, presided over by president Stephanopoulos and suggested the establishment of the Foreign Policy Council with wider authorities. On the domestic policy, he said that ND will watch the government closely and will not make any concessions on issues concerning transparency on the management of the tax- payers' money. [22] THE 1ST HELLENIC TRADE AND CULTURE EXHIBITION-2001The advantages of the 1st Hellenic Trade and Culture Exhibition-2001 and the opportunities it offers to the participants to sign deals of strategic importance were presented by its organizers to the business world in northern Greece.In an event that took place at the World Council for Hellenes Abroad, SAE, offices in Thessaloniki it was stressed that a total of 300 companies (100 Greek and 200 American) have filed applications to participate, as this is the first business to business Greek exhibition that will be held in America and it is believed that it will boost Greek- US business relations and especially, the business relations between Greece and the American Midwest. The first part of the exhibition will concern trade and will take place in Chicago on November 5-6, organized by SAE, the World Trade Center in Chicago (WTCC), the Hellenic- American Chamber of Commerce, the Greek Center for Investments and the Association of Exporters in Northern Greece. The initiative is backed by the ministries of defense, foreign affairs, development and national economy. SAE president Andrew Athens and the WTCC president, speaking through teleconference to those attending the event, gave an emphasis to the special characteristics of the exhibition. The exhibition is organized based on the partenariat method and therefore, the Greek companies have prearranged meetings with US companies according to their commercial interests. Most of the commercial interest focuses on food and beverages, textile and clothing, building materials, and high technology, while investment interest focuses on computers, telecommunications, tourism, food, chemicals, plastics, mines, and metallurgy. A one-day conference on economic and investment issues will take place at the same time with the trade exhibition. In the conference will be invited companies which are interested in the US capital market and the investment opportunities offered by the wider US market. Also, the exhibition is expected to strengthen the political relations between the two countries through the already scheduled cultural events. [23] SMALL GAINS IN THE ASESmall gains were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index rose to +0.23% at 2.220,41 points, while the volume of transactions was very small at 78.90 million Euro or 26.89 billion drachmas.Of the stocks trading today, 182 recorded gains and 121 had losses, while the value of 75 remained unchanged. [B] INTERNATIONAL NEWSMacedonian Press Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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