Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 00-09-20

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From: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.

CONTENTS

[01] GREEK-ALBANIAN ANTICRIME AGREEMENT PAYS OFF

[02] PM PRAISES YOUNG WEIGHTLIFTER FOR BRONZE MEDAL

[03] PAPANDREOU: THE SERB PEOPLE ARE NOT BEING TOLD BY THE EU WHO TO VOTE

[04] COMMENTS BY REPPAS ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE

[05] LOSSES OF 1.47% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

[06] PAPANDREOU: GREECE AND CYPRUS COORDINATE THEIR ACTIONS ON THE CYPRUS

[07] TSOVOLAS WILL BE IN BELGRADE FOR THE ELECTIONS

[08] GREECE PREVAILS ON BALKAN RECONSTRUCITON BASE

[09] DEPUTY SPORTS MINISTER HOSTS RECEPTION IN SYDNEY

[10] TWO LIONS WILL SOON FLY TO ENGLAND FROM GREECE

[11] ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY GIVES TVX FINAL APPROVAL

[12] THESSALONIKI MAYOR IN SYDNEY AS FORMER ATHLETE

[13] A COMPARISON BETWEEN THE ELECTIONS IN GREECE AND YUGOSLAVIA

[14] SKOPJE DENIED THE INFORMATION ON THE FYROM NAME

[15] FATOS NANO REJECTS THE OPENING OF GREEK SCHOOLS IN HIMARA

[16] THERE IS NO LEGAL BASIS FOR THE RETURN OF THE PARTHENON MARBLES,

[17] TOMORROW'S SCHEDULE FOR THE GREEK ATHLETES

[18] A GREEK-AUSTRALIAN WAS ONE OF THE DIRECTORS OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES'

[19] OLYMPIC TORCH VANISHES FROM SYDNEY STADIUM

[20] BULGARIAN ATHLETE LOSES MEDAL OVER SUBSTANCE

[01] GREEK-ALBANIAN ANTICRIME AGREEMENT PAYS OFF

A delegation of Greek Police detectives is presently in Tirana, investigating the fatal shooting of a border guard by Albanian drug smugglers in June, a result of a bilateral cooperation agreement between the two countries in the area of crime combat.

Three suspects have been apprehended by authorities in Tirana, while the Greek authorities are also preparing a file on the incident which will be sent to Interpol.

Greek border guard Yiannis Pamboukidis, 30, died on June 28 during an exchange of fire with Albanian criminals in a forest near Argos Orestiko in the area of Kastoria in western Macedonia.

Last month, Albanian police arrested two Albanian Gypsies for involvement in the killing of border guard Dimitrios Zaromytidis in March 1998 outside the village of Ammoudero, near Kastoria.

The Greek courts are to file an extradition request today.

A.F.

[02] PM PRAISES YOUNG WEIGHTLIFTER FOR BRONZE MEDAL

Prime Minister Costas Simitis sent a congratulatory telegraph to Greek weightlifter Yianna Hatziioannou who won the bronze medal in Monday's 63kg women's finals, with a total lift of 225.5 kilos.

In his message, Mr. Simitis praised the 19-year-old athlete for her efforts and noted that she was the first woman athlete to bring home a Olympic medal in weight-lifting.

The Munich-born Thessaloniki-raised Hatziioannou, lifted 97.5kg in the snatch and 125kg in the clean and jerk. She had almost refrained from taking part in the Games due to earlier injuries.

A.F.

[03] PAPANDREOU: THE SERB PEOPLE ARE NOT BEING TOLD BY THE EU WHO TO VOTE FOR

The Serb people will decide in their own way and based on their own choices. We must respect the election result if there are democratic procedures and freedom of expression.

The above were stressed by Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou regarding the developments in Yugoslavia and the EU stance on the issue, in statements he made immediately after the meeting he had with prime minister Kostas Simitis today in order to brief him on the course of the national issues.

Mr. Papandreou stated that there is room for smooth democratic development in Yugoslavia if all sides want this as well as, room for a new relation between the EU and Yugoslavia.

On the text issued by the 15 EU foreign ministers, Mr. Papandreou clarified that the EU does not ask from the Yugoslav people to vote against Milosevic or for one or the other candidate.

The Greek foreign minister pointed out that for the first time the EU speaks about the lifting of the sanctions imposed on Yugoslavia linking this decision with democratic developments in the country. Mr. Papandreou also said that the EU reaches its decisions unanimously, adding that they are the product of many views and they do not necessarily reflect the views of one country or the other.

[04] COMMENTS BY REPPAS ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE

The Cyprus problem must be resolved exclusively based on the UN decisions, stated government spokesman Dimitris Reppas, who added that the recognition of the Turkish-Cypriot regime or the partition of the island will not be allowed.

Responding to questions concerning the alleged promotion of a confederation solution in Cyprus, Mr. Reppas stressed that the position of the Greek government is clear and final and reiterated that the Greek and the Cypriot governments want a solution based on the UN decisions. He also pointed out that there are many difficulties in the progress of the talks and that every party must display the utmost responsibility.

[05] LOSSES OF 1.47% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

Significant losses of 1.47% were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange and the general index was at 4.103,01 points, while the volume of transactions was small at 96.5 billion drachmas. compared to the high turnover of the previous sessions.

Of the stocks trading today 82 recorded gains, 263 had losses and 38 remained unchanged.

[06] PAPANDREOU: GREECE AND CYPRUS COORDINATE THEIR ACTIONS ON THE CYPRUS ISSUE

Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou in statements he made today after the meeting he had with prime minister Kostas Simitis to brief him on foreign policy issues, stressed that the position shared by the Greek and the Cypriot side is that they will reject any solution that will not be based on a federal two-zone, two-community solution, in accordance with the UN Security Council resolutions.

Mr. Papandreou briefed Mr. Simitis on the talks he had in New York with his Turkish counterpart Ismail Cem as well as on the developments in the Greek-Turkish relations after the agreement for the promotion of confidence-building-measures in the Aegean.

On the Yugoslav issue, he said that Greece backs the promotion of democratic institutions in the Balkans as the basic precondition for stability in the region and added that the Greek policy is vindicated as the European Union agrees that the European course will benefit Yugoslavia.

Mr. Papandreou said that the democratic procedures in Yugoslavia are supported and that Greece recognizes any result that is the product of those democratic procedures, while he expressed discontent over the shutting down of mass media by the Milosevic government.

[07] TSOVOLAS WILL BE IN BELGRADE FOR THE ELECTIONS

Leader of the Democratic Social Movement Dimitris Tsovolas, heading a delegation of his party, will be in Belgrade on Friday to observe the September 24 elections.

The invitation to Mr. Tsovolas to observe the election procedures had been issued by the Yugoslav ambassador to Athens in a meeting they had in the Greek capital.

[08] GREECE PREVAILS ON BALKAN RECONSTRUCITON BASE

Greece's positions regarding the Thessaloniki headquarters of the Balkan Reconstruction Organization prevailed during a discussion held by the European Parliament's Budgetary Review Committee.

Even though a number of participating eurodeputies and committee members requested that the said headquarters be moved to Prishtina, Greece's positions prevailed, albeit with a narrow difference, during the votes that followed.

Interjections made by two of the European Parliament's Greek deputies, Christos Folias (New Democracy) and Manolis Mastorakis (PASOK), averted a potential reversal of the decision to base the Organization's headquarters in Thessaloniki.

A.F.

[09] DEPUTY SPORTS MINISTER HOSTS RECEPTION IN SYDNEY

Deputy Sports Minister George Floridis, presently in Sydney, hosted a reception in honor of the Premier of Bosnia-Herzegovina Tusevljak Spasoje, the sports ministers from 30 various countries and the leaders of the Greek sports mission, on the premises of the "1000 Years of Olympic Games" exhibition.

In his address, Mr. Floridis stressed that Australian Greeks' involvement in organizing the Sydney Olympics was a very positive event.

"Greece," he stated, "needs experienced and specialized human resources to organize the Olympic Games of 2004, who can transfer the necessary know-how and make the organization of the Athens Games more complete."

Mr. Spasoje, awed by the Greek ancient artifacts on display, referred to his country's friendly sentiments towards Greece and wished every success to the organizers of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games.

A.F.

[10] TWO LIONS WILL SOON FLY TO ENGLAND FROM GREECE

A ten-year-old lioness and a four-year-old lion will be hosted for a few hours at Thesssaloniki's "Macedonia" airport on Monday, en route to a better habitat in England.

The two majestic animals were kept at the zoo of Florina, which recently shut down. Thanks to the efforts of the Born Free Foundation, an international wildlife charity, the two lions will be transported by plane to England where they will be taken to a man-made jungle.

A.F.

[11] ENVIRONMENT MINISTRY GIVES TVX FINAL APPROVAL

TVX-Hellas Gold Metallurgy has announced that the Environmental Impact Study (EIS) for its Olympiada polymetallic gold project in northern Greece, has received the final approval of the Ministry of the Environment, City Planning and Public Works, thus granting the mining company the go-ahead to proceed with the development of the 254,000-ounce per year gold project.

"The approval of the EIS confirms the Greek government's continued support of the development of the Olympias project and allows the Company to complete the permitting process, which is at an advanced stage", according to a company press release.

The EIS was approved after the completion of a ten-month review period that involved Greek government ministries, the Prefectural Council of the Chalkidiki peninsula region and the public.

SNC-Lavalin America, which was awarded an Engineering, Procurement and Construction Management contract for the development of the Olympias deposit in November 1999, has completed basic engineering and confirmed total capital costs.

The 1999 bankable feasibility study estimated that, upon commencement of commercial production, the Olympiada project would produce 254,000 ounces of gold along with 2.3 million ounces of silver, 21,500 tons of zinc and 22,500 tons of lead annually over the first five years of production. Cash costs, net of byproduct credits, were estimated to be $91 per ounce over the period, improving to $87 per ounce over the projected +18-year life of the mine.

The 248-million-dollar project has reserves and resources totaling 4.1 million ounces of gold. With the inclusion of the adjacent Skouries project, TVX's reserves and resources at its Greek projects total 9.4 million ounces of gold.

A.F.

[12] THESSALONIKI MAYOR IN SYDNEY AS FORMER ATHLETE

Thessaloniki Mayor Vasilis Papageorgopoulos, a former track and field champion who had served as the Greek team's flagbearer in the Montreal 1976 Olympic Games, is departing for Sydney today, at the invitation of the Greek Olympic Committee 2004 organization.

In his prime, Mr. Papageorgopoulos held a 21-year national record at the 100m sprint with a time of 10:22 achieved during the Smyrne-held Balkaniad in august of 1972.

A few days later, during the Munich Olympics of 1972, Mr. Papageorgopoulos achieved an impressive 10:22 in the preliminaries, which, if he were to repeat during the final race, could have earned him a silver medal; an injury kept him out of the race.

A.F.

[13] A COMPARISON BETWEEN THE ELECTIONS IN GREECE AND YUGOSLAVIA

Belgrade's newspaper "Glas Novosti" published a report by its correspondent in Athens, Miroslav Josic on the way elections are held in Greece in order to draw a comparison with the election procedure followed in Yugoslavia.

He mentions that it would have been inconceivable for the Serbs the fact that during the pre-election campaign in Greece the news reports and political ads on the governing party and the main opposition party were of the same duration and had the same gravity and objectivity.

At the end of the pre-election campaign there is a television debate and the leaders of the two main political parties respond to questions by journalists from different television stations.

Regarding the men in uniform, namely, police, army and fire-fighting officers, they do not dare to make the slightest statement and their only mission is to secure free elections.

After the polling stations are closed the votes are being counted and the winner celebrates in the streets until the morning. On the day after, everything is back to normal and the country has a new government. People go about their work, read newspapers and comment on the results allowing life to continue until the next elections.

The journalist ends his report wondering why things are totally different in Serbia.

[14] SKOPJE DENIED THE INFORMATION ON THE FYROM NAME

FYROM government spokesman Antonio Milosevski denied the Tanjug and Makfax news agencies' report according to which, Skopje is going to accept the name "Slav Macedonia" as it was proposed by Greece.

Mr. Milosevski in statements he made to reporters reiterated that his government's position is clear and is not about to abandon the constitutional name of the country.

He also stated that he regards the Tanjug news report as a pre-election marketing scheme by Slobodan Milosevic, adding that the FYROM government will soon make a formal statement on the issue.

The Tanjug report, citing diplomatic sources from Skopje, mentioned that the Skopje government is willing to accept the name "Slav Macedonia" and in return Greece will offer its support to the quick association of FYROM with the EU and NATO. Tanjug also mentioned that the FYROM foreign ministry has not confirmed or denied the information.

[15] FATOS NANO REJECTS THE OPENING OF GREEK SCHOOLS IN HIMARA

Socialist governing party president Fatos Nano wrapped up his pre-election campaign at the south coasts of Albania on Monday and in the city of Himara he rejected the Greek minority demand for the opening of Greek schools.

Fatos Nano, responding to the demand expressed by the residents of Himara to reopen a Greek school that is being kept closed since 1946, called for more Albanian schools to preserve their national identity, as he stated characteristically.

Therefore, last Monday, the first day of the school year in Albania, the 39 Greek elementary school children of the first grade were unable to attend a Greek school, as the demand for Greek schools was rejected by the Albanian authorities for a third year in a row.

The Socialist leader had underlined the necessity for good relations with Greece throughout his pre-election campaign in view of the October 1 municipal elections. However, he used the language of Aesop to get his nationalist messages through. At the village of Borsi, which is mainly inhabited by Albanians, Nano said that they are there to defend the national identity of the land, stressing that they are the ones who welcome their friends to their houses but they are also the ones who have given the right response to those who entered their houses through the windows and tried to stab them in the back.

[16] THERE IS NO LEGAL BASIS FOR THE RETURN OF THE PARTHENON MARBLES, ACCORDING TO THE BRITISH CULTURE MINISTER

British culture, mass media and sports minister Chris Smith in statements to the newspaper "Sydney Morning Herald" made the outrageous allegation that there is no legal basis for the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece.

Among others, he stated that the marbles came to Britain legally and added that if they had stayed in the Parthenon they would have been eroded beyond recognition.

According to the British culture minister, about 6 million tourists visit the marbles in the British Museum every year which would have been impossible in the Parthenon or anywhere else. The newspaper commented that the issue of the return of the Parthenon marbles to Greece has created an international campaign that has been supported by a number of political leaders in Australia, including former federal prime minister of Australia Gough Whitlam.

[17] TOMORROW'S SCHEDULE FOR THE GREEK ATHLETES

Tomorrow's schedule for the Greek athletes is poor as on the 6th day of the Sydney Olympic Games Greece they will compete only in the swimming events.

Specifically, Katerina Bliamou will compete in the women's 200m back-stroke and Marianna Liberta in the 800m freestyle.

[18] A GREEK-AUSTRALIAN WAS ONE OF THE DIRECTORS OF THE OLYMPIC GAMES' OPENING CEREMONY

A part of the Olympic Games opening ceremony and specifically, a part of the dream of 13yearold Nicki Webster was directed by Greek-Australian Lex Marinos.

He was born to Greek parents in Australia and lives in Sydney. He has directed 9 films and many television series. He stated that directing the opening ceremony was one of the biggest challenges in his career, while the main difficulty he encountered was the big crowd attending the event.

He expressed satisfaction over his cooperation with 13yearold Nicki Webster and stated that she was bright, calm and concentrated. He visited Greece two years ago and among his plans is a trip to Peloponnese, southern Greece, the birthplace of his forefathers.

[19] OLYMPIC TORCH VANISHES FROM SYDNEY STADIUM

The torches that carried the Olympic flame on its 100-day relay run across Australia have been stolen from the Sydney Olympic Stadium and local police are still looking for the culprits.

The two torches vanished after arriving on Friday for the opening ceremony where the cauldron was lit.

"They are more important for their historical and sentimental value than their monetary value," said a spokesman for the Sydney Games organizers.

A.F.

[20] BULGARIAN ATHLETE LOSES MEDAL OVER SUBSTANCE

Bulgarian weightlifter Ivan Ivanov was stripped of his silver medal today after testing positive for furosemide, a diuretic, following Saturday's 123-pound competition.

Diuretics are used to flush fluid from an athlete's body to reduce weight, but also can mask the presence of other performance-enhancing drugs.

The vice president of the International Weightlifting Federation Sam Coffa stated that that Ivanov, a 1992 Olympic champion, originally tested negative when all weightlifters were drug-tested eight days prior to the games.

With Ivanov out, the original third-place finisher, Wu Wenxiong of China, moved up to take the silver at 123 pounds. China's Zhang Xiangxiang was elevated from fourth place to the bronze.

A.F.

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