Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-12-04

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

CONTENTS

[01] SIMITIS: GREECE ENTERS A PERIOD OF BIG CHANGES

[02] INTERBALKAN UNIVERSITY

[03] 11 PEOPLE INDICTED ON RIKOMEX DEATHS

[04] THE MAJOR BALKAN CITIES NETWORK IS A REALITY

[05] SMALL GAINS IN THE ASE

[06] THE COOPERATION OF BALKAN CITIES WILL CONTRIBUTE TO PEACE

[07] MANOLIS MITSIAS' CONCERT IN BULGARIA

[08] PRESIDENT PUTIN WILL BE IN THESSALONIKI ON SATURDAY

[09] NEW FAULT DISCOVERED IN NISIROS, SOUTH AEGEAN

[10] GENTSEV: EFFECTIVE COOPERATION AMONG THE BALKAN CITIES

[11] TALKS ON CYPRUS RESUME IN JANUARY

[12] 35% OF STUDENTS SMOKES

[01] SIMITIS: GREECE ENTERS A PERIOD OF BIG CHANGES

The 2004 elections will be held based on the existing electoral law as they cannot be held based on another electoral system if there is no agreement by the 2/3 of the parliament deputies, stated Prime Minister Kostas Simitis in a press conference he gave in the Foreign Press Correspondents Association luncheon in Athens.

On PASOK's leadership, he said that he will be the party's leader in the next elections.

On the municipal elections, he refused to refer to specific names of candidates and stressed that they have a political character but they are not a political party battle.

On the social security system, he said that the government examines a plan and a dialogue will get underway in January.

Mr. Simitis stated that a number of significant events will take place in Greece by 2004, stressing that the country enters a period of changes that will make it even stronger both inside the EU and internationally. Specifically, he said that the Euro will be the single European currency starting on January 1, Greece will take over the EU presidency in the first half of 2003 and the Olympic Games will take place in Athens in 2004.

He said that the agreement reached between Cypriot President Glafkos Clerides and Turkish Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash is a progress and added that he does not have an illusion that the meetings will result to a solution for the Cyprus problem. He appeared reserved toward Ankara, saying characteristically that in the case of Turkey he is neither optimistic nor pessimistic.

On the FYROM name, he said that it is time for the issue to be resolved and stated that he had consultations with the FYROM Prime Minister and Greece is expecting Skopje's response.

[02] INTERBALKAN UNIVERSITY

The creation of an inter-Balkan University and the organization of an international meeting of Chambers of Commerce and Associations in September 2002 in Thessaloniki, was proposed by the Mayor of Thessaloniki, Vasilis Papageorgopoulos, presenting the directives of the Network of Major Balkan Cities. The agreement to create the Network will be signed today in the margin of the 2nd Friendship and Cooperation Meeting of Major Balkan City Mayors.

[03] 11 PEOPLE INDICTED ON RIKOMEX DEATHS

After the order of the relevant judicial council, 11 people have been indicted on charges of premeditated murder, a felony.

Rikomex factory collapsed in an earthquake on September 7th 1999, and resulted in 39 workers losing their lives.

Among the accused, are members of factory's Board of Directors, civil engineers and an architect.

[04] THE MAJOR BALKAN CITIES NETWORK IS A REALITY

The 2nd Friendship and Cooperation International Meeting of major Balkan city mayors was completed today with the signing of an agreement for the establishment of the Balkan City Network. The founding agreement was signed by 28 Balkan city mayors.

The city that will hold the network's presidency in 2002 will be Sofia, while in 2003 will be Skopje and in 2004 will be Piraeus.

The network's basic axes in 2002 will be the European programs and their exploitation for the promotion of development in the wider Balkan region, and the cooperation of the productive forces and the support of their initiatives by the network. Also, among the basic axes will be the establishment of an International Inter-Balkan University with the cooperation of the city network universities funded by the Stability Pact, and the activation of creative forces in culture, sports, and education as well as the promotion of new technologies.

[05] SMALL GAINS IN THE ASE

Small gains were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index rose to +0.11% at 2.682,69 points, while the volume of transactions was 124 million Euro or 42 billion drachmas.

Of the stocks trading today, 138 recorded gains and 169 had losses, while the value of 60 stocks remained unchanged.

[06] THE COOPERATION OF BALKAN CITIES WILL CONTRIBUTE TO PEACE

The view that cooperation among the Balkan cities can contribute to the peaceful coexistence of the peoples in the region was expressed by the local administration representatives who addressed the 2nd Friendship and Cooperation International Meeting of major Balkan city mayors that will be completed in Thessaloniki today.

Addressing the participants, Piraeus mayor Christos Agrapidis called for EU and state support to the Balkan city mayors network.

FYROM city of Skopje mayor Pisto Penev referred to his priorities. He said that the city is modernized, while the traffic problem is being resolved and an environment protection plan proceeds with the assistance of the European programs. He also said that the historic mission of the local administration representatives is to bring their countries closer and build conditions of stability, security and economic prosperity in the Balkans.

The Greek and Albanian minority coexist peacefully in Ghirokastre, underlined city mayor Murat Katsi. He said that priority for the municipality is the restoration of its medieval monuments and the modernization of infrastructures.

The promotion of Istanbul to a Balkan economic center was suggested by City Council chairman Umit Uzerol, who backed the peaceful coexistence of the Balkan peoples and expressed the belief that the local administration representatives can contribute toward this direction.

[07] MANOLIS MITSIAS' CONCERT IN BULGARIA

The songs of great Greek composers will be performed by well-known Greek singer Manolis Mitsias in a concert that will take place in Sofia, Bulgaria organized by the Greek state ERT3 television station.

Mr. Mitsias will be accompanied by the Serres Music Workshop orchestra and chorus.

[08] PRESIDENT PUTIN WILL BE IN THESSALONIKI ON SATURDAY

Russian President Vladimir Putin will be in Thessaloniki on Saturday. Mr. Putin will arrive in Athens on Thursday for a three-day visit during which he will have meetings with the country's state and political leadership, while several bilateral cooperation agreements will be signed.

Mr. Putin is scheduled to visit the Monastic Community of Mount Athos on Saturday morning accompanied by Greek President Kostis Stephanopoulos. In the afternoon, he will visit the church of St. Dimitrios, the patron saint of Thessaloniki, and later in the evening he will attend a formal dinner that will be given in his honor by Minister of Macedonia-Thrace Giorgos Paschalidis. The Russian President will depart for Moscow early on Sunday morning.

[09] NEW FAULT DISCOVERED IN NISIROS, SOUTH AEGEAN

A fault, 400 meters deep and 3 meters wide, was discovered near the southeastern Aegean island of Nisiros, 800 meters away from the crater of the island's volcano.

According to scientists, the fault could be the result of earthquakes recently recorded in the region.

[10] GENTSEV: EFFECTIVE COOPERATION AMONG THE BALKAN CITIES

The belief that cooperation among the Balkan cities through the network, that was created by the mayors attending the 2nd Friendship and Cooperation International Meeting of major Balkan city mayors, can give results was expressed by the Bulgarian city of Plovdiv deputy mayor Nedialko Gentsev.

In statements made to MPA, Mr. Gentsev pointed out that culture and the EU programs on the Balkans can become excellent areas of cooperation.

He pointed out that the Greek businesses that are active in Plovdiv and offer work to the Bulgarians contribute to the strengthening of bilateral economic relations.

[11] TALKS ON CYPRUS RESUME IN JANUARY

The talks on Cyprus will resume in January 2002 under the auspices of the United Nations, according to UN secretary-general special envoy Alvaro de Soto.

The talks will be direct and will be held in the UN headquarters.

They will be characterized by four principles: no preconditions, all the issues will be on the table, commitment for good faith negotiations until a comprehensive solution is reached and nothing will be regarded as settled until a final solution is reached.

[12] 35% OF STUDENTS SMOKES

An extremely large percentage of Greek teenagers smokes, with girls at times with a clear lead, and at others neck and neck with boys, according to a study performed by the disease research laboratory of the pneumonological clinic of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, which was concluded a few days ago.

The survey was performed on high school students of both sexes, as well as on men and women around the age of 35 in Thessaloniki and cities of Western Macedonia, and will be presented at the 11th Panhellenic Medical Conference for Illnesses of the Thorax, organized by the Association for the Study of Pneumonic Illnesses and Professional Illnesses of the Thorax, and will take place from December 6 to December 9 2001, in the Macedonia Palace hotel of Thessaloniki.

According to the evidence of the survey, 35.1% of all high school students in Thessaloniki smoke, of those 36.3% are girls, and 33.7% are boys. Correspondingly in Western Macedonia 29.7% of high school students smoke, (33.3% boys and 26.1% girls). To the question of why do you smoke, 43% answered from spite, while 21% smoke because their role models smoke. In adults between the ages of 28 and 42 it was discovered that 57.7% of all men and 34% of all women smoke.

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