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Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English, 98-12-03Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next ArticleFrom: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.BRIEF GREEK NEWS BULLETIN BY THE MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCYThessaloniki, December 3, 1998TITLES
NEWS IN DETAIL[01] CUSTOMS WORKERS STRIKE CRIPPLES FUEL MARKETThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)Customs workers are pressing on with their strike which has paralyzed the fuel market and the product imports-exports.According to Undersecretary of Finance George Drys, the each day of the strike costs 6.8 billion drachmas to the Greek state. The head of the customs workers federation has insinuated that the strike could roll into next week if their demands are not met. After the Ministry of Economy sought legal recourse to declare the customs workers' action as illegal and abusive, the Athens First Circuit Court ruled that the action is indeed illegal, but not abusive. A.F. [02] GREEK-AMERICANS AT THE WHITE HOUSE TO DISCUSS NATIONAL INTEREST ISSUESWashington, December 3 (MPA)A delegation of Greek-Americans leaders is to visit the White House today in order to discuss matters of national interest, such as Greek-Turkish relations and the Cyprus issue, with the US President's National Security adviser Sandi Berger.According to reports, President Clinton is expected to briefly attend the session which will feature the participation of US coordinator for Cyprus Thomas Miller and other Sate Department officials. A.F. [03] BULENT ECEVIT APPOINTED PRIME MINISTER DESIGNATE IN TURKEYAnkara, December 3 (MPA)Turkish President Suleiman Demirel has assigned the formation of a new government to Bulent Ecevit who accepted the order and is expected to cooperate with the parties of outgoing Premier Mesut Yilmaz and former PM Tansu Ciller.Mr. Ecevit's cabinet will lead the country to April's general elections. A.F. [04] DELEGATION OF GREEK BUSINESSMEN TO MEET WITH FYROM'S GOVERNMENTThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)The Trans-Balkan and Black Sea Business Center (DIPEK) is organizing a mission to FYROM today, where Greek businessmen are to become acquainted with the country's new government.The event is taking place within the framework of the Greek Products Exhibit currently held at Skopje. FYROM's new Prime Minister and leader of the "Democratic Alternative" Liupco Georgievski is to unveil his government's policy during the meeting, this being his first appearance at an international level following his cabinet's formation. The meeting, which is held for a second successive year, DIPEK will present its "FYROM Business Guide" and its "Report on FYROM's Economic Cohesion". A.F. [05] HOLOCAUST CONFERENCE MAY SET GUIDELINES ON RETURN OF LOOTED ARTWashington, December 3 (MPA)Delegates from 44 countries, including Greece, attending a Holocaust conference held in Washington have agreed on a set of 11 principles that would enforce a moral commitment to identify and publicize works of art looted by the Nazis during WWII so the original owners can claim them.Under the 11 principles, countries are called on to make an active commitment to encourage the process of identifying the stolen art and returning it to the rightful owners. For the past 50 years, many governments have obstructed such claims. One of the ways to facilitate the process is a a central registry of information about art looted by the Nazis, to be established on the Internet, so that claimants can have easy access to it. Nevertheless, a the conference failed to reach a consensus on the issue of returning stolen art as Switzerland, France and Germany have requested that a clause be inserted in the draft document which would clearly state that the principles are not binding and that each country acts within the context of its own laws. Progress was noted on other aspects of the conference such as insurance claims filed by Holocaust survivors or the relatives of victims, claims to communal property and education about the Holocaust. A major breakthrough was achieved in October when the U.S. National Association of Insurance Commissioners, six European insurance companies and several European supervisory bodies agreed to set up a $90 million humanitarian fund to aid Holocaust victims and to conduct an audit of their books to identify unpaid Holocaust-era claims. A.F. [06] MEGADATABASE TO DOCUMENT LIVES OF WARTIME EUROPEAN JEWSWashington, December 3 (MPA)The Israeli delegation attending the Washington-held international Holocaust conference, which concludes today, has announced that its Yad Vashem Holocaust institute is compiling a computerized megadatabase" documenting the lives of millions of wartime European Jews.The database, the first of its kind, could potentially track someone from a list of Jewish ghetto residents to a slave labor factory to a concentration camp and through postwar life. The chairman of Yad Vashem, called it "the absolute needed tool" for researchers and claimants, who will be able to access it. Britain also suggested holding an international "Holocaust Day of Remembrance" each year for victims of Hitler's troops. Each country would select dates, but the British suggested three possibilities: January 27, the anniversary of the liberation of the Auschwitz concentration camp; June 12, Anne Frank's birthday; and Yom Ha Sho'ah, a day in the Jewish calendar for Holocaust remembrance, which falls on a different date each year. Greece is represented at the conference by Greece's Ambassador in Washington Alexandros Filon, History professor George Dertilis, Foreign Ministry's Historical Archives Director Fotini Konstantopoulou, the secretary-general of the Israeli Community of Thessaloniki Albert Hawel, History professor Hagen Fliser, and researcher Gabriela Etmektsoglou. A special edition issued by the Foreign Ministry and titled "Documents on the History of the Greek Jews", will be presented in a ceremony at the Greek Embassy in Washington this evening. A.F. [07] ONLY ONE TRAIN PER ROUTE TO RUN, STRIKE CONTINUES UNTIL TOMORROWThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)Only one train per route will run today throughout the country as the workers at the Greek Railways Organization, (OSE) have upped the ante in their mobilizations by embarking on 24-hour rotating strikes until Friday.The rail workers are protesting a bill tabled in Parliament which calls for reforms in their sector. Court employees have also announced that they will hold a 48- hour warning strike for the sake of their economic and institutional demands. A.F. [08] STUDENTS PERSIST TO RESIST EDUCATIONAL REFORMSThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)Greek high school and university students are to conduct massive rallies in Thessaloniki, Athens and other large cities today, expressing their resistance to academic reforms proposed by Education Minister Gerasimos Arsenis.Defying the low temperatures, the persistent students will block 14 major roads in Athens and will conduct a rally to the building housing the Ministry of Education. The President of the Hellenic Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos stated that he advocates the reforms and advised the students to stop the sit-ins at the school buildings. A.F. [09] J.P.MORGAN: GREECE WILL BECOME 12TH MEMBER OF EMUMilan, December 3 (MPA)Financial analysts from J.P. Morgan have assessed that Greece will become the 12th country to enter the Economic and Monetary Union, given the positive curse of the country's economy.Speaking at a road show on the Greek economy, analyst Rebecca Peterson stated that Greece is presently at the point where Italy was two years ago, stressing that both the course of the country's macro-economic sizes and the national currency's accession to the Mechanism of Exchange Parity are two most encouraging signs. Nevertheless, a sine qua non for achieving accession to the EMU is the government to proceed with reforms. A.F. [10] MINOR OPPOSITION PARTY LEADER CONTINUES TOUR OF AUSTRALIAMelbourne, December 3 (MPA)The leader of the Democratic Social Movement (DHKKI), Dimitris Tsovolas, continues his nine-day tour of Australia, which began yesterday, invited by the Greek-Australian communities of Melbourne and Sydney.Mr. Tsovolas will be received by the State Premier of Victoria Jeff Kennet today and will also meet with federal government officials. A.F. [11] SAE CONTINUES SESSION IN THESSALONIKIThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)Yesterday's session of the nine-member board of the Council of Greeks Abroad (SAE), held in Thessaloniki, was dedicated to the Greeks from the former Soviet Union and the program of establishing 21 medical clinics in the former block's republics.The President of the SAE Andrew Athens presented the results of a televised marathon which amassed $837,000 for the creation of the clinics which will provide free health services in Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan and would also be open to the local population. Today's session will deal with changes in the presidential decree concerning the formation of SAE's plenary session, next year's budget and the upcoming World Youth Conference. A.F. [12] CONFERENCE ON THE EMU TO BE HELD IN THESSALONIKI ON MONDAYThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)A conference titled "The target of EMU and the Challenge of Social Europe. The Liberal and Social-Democrat Proposal" is to be held in Thessaloniki on Monday, organized by the Political Research and Dialogue Group.Featured among the speakers will be PASOK deputy Haris Kastanides, New Democracy deputy Dora Bakoyianni and Coalition of the Left and Progress deputy Yiannis Dragasakis. A.F. [13] OCTOBER'S UNEMPLOYMENT RATE SLIGHTLY DROPS IN N. GREECEThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)The registered unemployment rate slightly dropped in northern Greece during the month of October, falling to 9.9%, according to the Organization for Staff Employment (OAED).August's rate was 10.38% , dropping to 10.3% in September. Also according to OAED, 10,569 persons lost their jobs in northern Greece in October. A.F. [14] FYROM: TUPURKOVSKI TO VISIT THESSALONIKI NEXT WEEKThessaloniki, December 3 (MPA)The leader of FYROM's Democratic Alternative Solution party, which is participating in the coalition government, Vasil Tupurkovski is to visit Thessaloniki next week.According to local press reports, Mr. Tupurkovski will meet with officials from the Thessaloniki Port Authority as the president of the newly-formed organization of Rebuilding and Development of Skopje. Responding to a question on the progress of name-related talks between the two countries, Mr. Tupurkovski refuted reports that FYROM is on the verge of accepting a solution that will contain the name "Republic of Macedonia-Skopje. "It is still too early and we need to see the development of the negotiations held in New York under the aegis of the United Nations," he stated. He added that economic cooperation between Greece and FYROM needs to further develop since "we are neighbors and friends." A.F. Macedonian Press Agency: Brief News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article |
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