Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-10-26

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

CONTENTS

[01] DISPUTES OVER ALBANIAN BOY AND FLAG

[02] ATHENS 2004 SEMINAR ON TECHNOLOGY

[03] PARALYMPIC GAMES ADVISORY COMMITTEE

[04] 2004 PARALYMPICS TO BE HELD ON SEPTEMBER 17-28

[05] GRAND NATIONAL SPONSORS BRIEFED

[06] MESSAGE BY MR. KARAMANLIS ON THE OCTOBER 28 ANNIVERSARY

[07] PRESIDENT STEPHANOPOULOS AGAINST ANY KIND OF FANATICISM

[08] THE LABOR MINISTER VISITED THE GREEK GENERAL CONFEDERATION OF LABOR

[09] THE GOV'T SPOKESMAN ON THE PRODI STATEMENTS

[10] MARGINAL GAINS IN THE ASE

[11] TAX REFORM FRAMEWORK READY BY THE END OF 2001

[12] PRODI: CYPRUS WILL BECOME AN EU MEMBER

[13] EURODEPUTY ON ANTHRAX SECURITY MEASURES

[14] G. PAPANDREOU ON NEW GOVERNMENT

[15] A GREEK-AMERICAN DONATED US$250.000 FOR THE REBUILDING OF ST. NICHOLAS

[01] DISPUTES OVER ALBANIAN BOY AND FLAG

A misadventure similar to that of others of the same nationality as him seems to be in store for 12-year-old Jordan Grika from Albania, distinguished student of the 6th grade, who has all the requirements needed for a student to be the flag-bearer in the student parade.

Despite the clarity of the law and the crystal clear position of the Ministry of Education on the issue of the rights of those participating in Greek education, some people react. The student, who has been baptized, wants to hold the Greek flag, but his performance in school is of absolutely no interest to some of the residents of Agriosykia, in Pella. They are threatening with abstention from the festive events.

In any case, the city council of Pella has decided to that the 12-year-old will be aloud to carry the flag.

[02] ATHENS 2004 SEMINAR ON TECHNOLOGY

During a special presentation in Athens, ATHENS 2004 President Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki pointed out that the massive technological requirements of the Olympic Games will contribute to an extensive overhaul of Greece's infrastructure in basic sectors.

Ms. Angelopoulos-Daskalaki also said that total investment in the communication sectors will amount 120 billion drachmas (approximately 352 million EURO) and urged Greek enterprises to participate in this technological regeneration.

[03] PARALYMPIC GAMES ADVISORY COMMITTEE

The ATHENS 2004 Board of Directors has established a nine-member Advisory Committee to address all issues concerning the Paralympic Games.

Specifically, the Committee will provide advice on issues related to training sites, accommodations, and on transportation for the athletes and their associates.

ATHENS 2004 Managing Director Ioannis Spanudakis was appointed President of the Advisory Committee.

[04] 2004 PARALYMPICS TO BE HELD ON SEPTEMBER 17-28

The Athens Paralympic Games shall be staged from 17 to 28 September 2004, following the final decision taken by the Steering Committee of the ATHENS 2004 Organising Committee for the Olympic Games.

Forty-four years after the first Paralympic Games in Rome in 1960, ATHENS 2004 aims at presenting the most successful sporting event ever.

For the first time in Paralympic Games history, the athletes will not pay any participation fees. By abolishing the participation fees, there is no discrimination between the athletes taking part in the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and equal opportunity becomes a reality.

Athens will host 4,000 athletes with a disability from 125 countries and 3,000 official accompanying people. They will also be accommodated in the Olympic Village which will be renamed into Paralympic Village.

Three thousand media representatives will cover the Paralympic Games, while 1,000 Technical delegates and at least 10,000 volunteers will contribute to this effort. The sporting event will be watched by 2,500 official guests belonging to the Paralympic Family (representatives of the International Paralympic Committee, of the National Paralympic Committees, etc.).

[05] GRAND NATIONAL SPONSORS BRIEFED

The President of the ATHENS 2004 Organising Committee for the Olympic Games, Gianna Angelopoulos-Daskalaki, Executive Director Marton Simitsek and the Marketing team briefed the Grand National Sponsors' top management on the progress in the preparation for the Olympic Games and the development of the sponsoring programme.

A series of meetings, initiated today, will be conducted every couple of months, aiming at informing the Grand National Sponsors on the progress towards 2004, so that they can benefit from their sponsoring programme in Greece, following the example of the Olympic Partners (TOP Sponsors) worldwide.

Mr. Simitsek underlined that "there are two prerequisites for a successful Olympic sponsorship - know-how and cooperation."

The sponsoring programme of ATHENS 2004 has reached 72.7 billion drachmas (207.715 million US dollars), thus covering 107% of the budgeted target, with only 7 out of 40 product categories signed on so far.

Representatives of Grand National Sponsors ALPHA BANK, OTE, KOSMOTE, ATHENIAN REWERIES, DELTA, FAGE, ERT, HYUNDAI HELLAS, ELTA, SWATCH participated in this first meeting .

[06] MESSAGE BY MR. KARAMANLIS ON THE OCTOBER 28 ANNIVERSARY

As a historic event, the October 28, 1940 anniversary commemorating Greece's entry to WWII is a source of self-knowledge and awakening, stressed right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis in his message on the occasion.

Mr. Karamanlis underlined that the situation at an international level is at a borderline point creating new facts that dictate new forms of international-bilateral and ultra-national cooperation.

He said that Greece has the historic and cultural infrastructure to play its own role as a power that wants peace, democracy, stability, prosperity, and the respect of human rights and International Law.

[07] PRESIDENT STEPHANOPOULOS AGAINST ANY KIND OF FANATICISM

President of the Hellenic Republic Kostis Stephanopoulos expressed opposition to any kind of fanaticism and especially, the religious kind, characterizing it as the worst of all, in his speech during the formal luncheon that was given in his honor in Thessaloniki today by Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Giorgos Paschalidis.

Mr. Stephanopoulos referred to the terrorists, who were killed by crashing the airplanes they hijacked into the Twin Towers in New York, and pointed out that religious fanaticism can lead to actions of self-sacrifice but these actions are still regarded as terrorist actions, actions that are repulsive, targeting not only human lives but the democratic way of life itself.

Mr. Stephanopoulos referred to the fanaticism of political dispute that Greece has experienced in the past and stressed that the country has managed to overcome fanaticism which befogs and blocks dialogue.

[08] THE LABOR MINISTER VISITED THE GREEK GENERAL CONFEDERATION OF LABOR

New Minister of Labor Dimitris Reppas visited today the Greek General Confederation of Labor offices and held his first meeting with its presiding board.

When asked when the dialogue of the social security system reform will get underway, he responded that the issue will be examined in the following days and social security will be the topic of a separate dialogue. For this reason, stated Mr. Reppas, the discussion has to move ahead through agreements instead of confrontations.

Greek General Confederation of Labor president Christos Polizogopoulos stated that today's meeting signaled the start of a new political behavior that wants solutions and agreement.

[09] THE GOV'T SPOKESMAN ON THE PRODI STATEMENTS

The visit of European Commission president Romano Prodi to Cyprus comes to confirm what has been stressed repeatedly namely, that Cyprus will be in the first EU enlargement wave, stated Greek government spokesman Christos Protopapas when he was called to comment on the statements made by Mr. Prodi in the Cypriot Parliament on the issue of Cyprus' EU accession course.

According to the government spokesman, Mr. Prodi stressed for one more time that the EU wants the solution of the Cyprus problem but this is not a precondition for Cyprus' accession into the European Union. The Cypriot Republic, stated Mr. Protopapas, has covered most of the way to its EU accession.

[10] MARGINAL GAINS IN THE ASE

Marginal gains were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index rose to +0.23% at 2.370,46 points, while the volume of transactions was 88.33 million Euro or 30.1 billion drachmas.

Of the stocks trading today, 176 recorded gains and 129 had losses, while the value of 72 stocks remained unchanged.

[11] TAX REFORM FRAMEWORK READY BY THE END OF 2001

The first meeting new Minister of National Economy and Finance Nikos Christodoulakis had with the presiding board of the Greek General Confederation of Labor focused on the six basic issues raised by the trade unions.

The issues in question are the state budget, the unemployment benefits, the social security system, the tax reform, the 3rd Community Framework of Support and the introduction of the Euro as the single EU currency next year.

Mr. Christodoulakis stated that he will soon give his response to the issues raised, while on the tax reform he stated that the necessary framework for the social dialogue to get underway will be ready by the end of 2001. On the social security issue, Mr. Christodoulakis stated that the policy framework is being prepared.

[12] PRODI: CYPRUS WILL BECOME AN EU MEMBER

Cyprus will become a European Union member during the first EU enlargement wave regardless of whether there will be a settlement on the Cyprus problem, stressed European Commission president Romano Prodi speaking in the Cypriot parliament yesterday. He expressed the wish that the citizens of Cyprus will vote in the 2004 Euro-elections and invited both the Greek Cypriots and the Turkish Cypriots to take advantage of every opportunity for the solution of the Cyprus problem before the EU accession.

Mr. Prodi underlined that the EU wants a solution for the Cyprus problem before the EU accession stressing, however, that this will not be a pre-condition for Cyprus' accession into the EU.

He also expressed the belief that the solution of the Cyprus issue is feasible and stated that Cyprus, as an EU member, will participate in the European Union Council.

[13] EURODEPUTY ON ANTHRAX SECURITY MEASURES

The amendment of community legislature on pharmaceutical patents, so that antibiotics for anthrax can be freed from the monopoly and the high prices enforced by pharmaceutical companies, was asked of the European Commission by Al. Alavanos. The Member of European Parliament also asked for the recording of all labs where anthrax viruses or other diseases are kept, asking for a strict communal check to be initiated.

[14] G. PAPANDREOU ON NEW GOVERNMENT

The new dynamics will lead PASOK to the materialization of its works and victory in the coming elections, underlined Minister of Foreign Affairs Giorgos Papandreou, commenting on the new government composition.

[15] A GREEK-AMERICAN DONATED US$250.000 FOR THE REBUILDING OF ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH

Greek-American Christos Kotsakos, president of the E' Trade Group Inc. donated US$250.000 to rebuilt the St. Nicholas church in Manhattan buried under the rubble of the Twin Towers which collapsed on September 11 after the terrorist attack on the United States.

The donation was announced in the US-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce 53rd annual formal dinner at New York's Metropolitan Club last Friday when Mr. Kotsakos was declared Businessman of the Year.

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