Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 02-02-06

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

CONTENTS

[01] MILOSEVIC GREEK BANK ACCOUNTS OPENED

[02] SHOCKING INFROMATION ON YOUNG OFFENDERS

[03] EFFORTS FOR THE PROMOTION OF OLYMPIC TRUCE

[04] PROTOPAPAS ON THE FARMERS' MOBILIZATIONS

[05] THE JUSTICE MINISTRY RESPONSE ON MILOSEVIC WILL BE ISSUED TOMORROW

[06] PROTOPAPAS ON THE MILITARY MATERIAL IN CYPRUS

[07] LOSSES IN THE ASE

[08] GOVERNMENT MEETING TO COMBAT CORRUPTION

[09] VIVODI IS THE NEW FIXED LINE TELEPHONE OPERATOR

[10] AMERICAN SURRENDERS TO GREEK POLICE

[11] SIMITIS MEETINGS IN ROMANIA

[12] KARAMANLIS MET WITH THE BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY

[13] EURO-DEPUTY XARHAKOS ON THE TELEVISION CAMERAS IN ATHENS

[14] GREEK BUILDS UNIVERSE IN LAB

[15] KARAMANLIS-RIFKID MEETING

[16] KARAMANLIS: MORE EU IN THE BALKANS

[01] MILOSEVIC GREEK BANK ACCOUNTS OPENED

The opening of all bank accounts of Slobodan Milosevic, was decided upon by Greek Justice, lifting banking confidentiality privileges, and turning over all information to the Prosecutor of the International Court of Justice.

According to today's Vima article, Milosevic and five members of his family, had bank accounts behind cover companies or unknown natural entities- which will now be obligatorily be opened, and revealing evidence will be turned over to the International Court of Justice.

The opening of the accounts and the information to be turned over to Prosecutor Carla del Ponte, will, as judicial sources in Greece appreciate, substantially contribute to the building of a case against Milosevic, and will prove extremely useful to the Prosecutor of the International Court of Justice.

The decision of Greek Justice, with its self-evident importance and consequences for Greece's international relations, facilitates developments in the enlargement of the criminal case against Milosevic. The opening of the powerful former Yugoslavian leader's bank accounts, reveals evidence and moves which are important and hold criminal interest.

The historical decision of Greek Justice made by the Athens Magistrates Court Committee would not have been made, if the Prosecutor of the International Justice Court, Carla del Ponte, had not had specific evidence, and had not asked, in writing, for Greece's contribution in shedding light on Milosevic's bank accounts, which had been traced to Greek Banks.

Del Ponte's request arrived on August 13. The Prosecutor asked that Greece contribute to the international effort of the court to solidify the charges against Milosevic, he has been indicted as a criminal against humanity and for many violations of war law by allowing dozens of bank accounts to be opened.

The dozens of bank accounts that were opened, belong to companies and other natural entities (unknown to the broader public). Milosevic's accounts were traced to five banks in Greece, and the order was given for their immediate accessing.

The banks, according to the court order, must lift the banking confidentiality privilege, and turn over all evidence on transactions to a Greek prosecutor, right now.

The Greek prosecutor is the Judge in charge of the 11th Standing Interrogatory

[02] SHOCKING INFROMATION ON YOUNG OFFENDERS

Young offenders, whether or not they are in correctional institutions, have undergone various forms of abuse and exploitation.

According to a survey of three professors of the Penal and Criminal Sciences sector of AUTh Law School, published in today's Macedonia, 41% of young inmates, aged 14 24, of the Kassavetia prison in Volos and Korydallos, admit that they have been the victims of some crimes, mainly battery and theft. At the same time, offenders the same age as them who are not in prison, admit that they have even been raped, and most of them by their parents.

Professors E. Symeonidou-Kastanidou, M. Kaiafa-Gbadi and Assistant Professor A. Pitsela, investigated all social-journalistic evidence on the young offenders, whether they are imprisoned or not, concluding the immediate necessity of change both in the institutional framework as well as in the structure of services pertaining to this fragile group.

According to the survey, 41% of imprisoned offenders stated they had been victims of crimes, 48% stated they have not, and 11% refused to answer.

Of these young people, 63% state they were beaten. Of that 63%, 96% blames the police and only 4% blames their fellow inmates. Furthermore, 54% of young inmates were victims of theft. 18% stated that their friends were responsible, 18% blame other inmates, and 64% will not mention the perpetrators.

As far as attacks are concerned, 83% stated they were beaten. Of those, 46% stated that their friends were responsible, 8% stated it was their parents, 1% blame the police and 12.5% blame the correctional institution employees. 14% of the individuals that were crime victims, admitted they were raped. Of those, 25% blame their friends, while 75% accuse their parents, meaning that three out of four of them were sexually abused by their parents.

[03] EFFORTS FOR THE PROMOTION OF OLYMPIC TRUCE

Greek Foreign Ministry general secretary Dimitris Dollis, responsible for the Greeks Living Abroad and governing Socialist Party of PASOK Euro-deputy Anna Karamanou will carry letters by President Kostis Stephanopoulos and Foreign Minister Giorgos Papandreou to the Middle East promoting the idea of the Olympic Truce.

On February 8, they will meet with Israeli Foreign Minister Simon Peres and on February 9, with Palestinian President Yasser Arafat.

The move is placed within the framework of the special Foreign Ministry missions that are being held in consultation with the political parties for the promotion of the Olympic Truce idea in view of the Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.

[04] PROTOPAPAS ON THE FARMERS' MOBILIZATIONS

The farmers have the right to protest but the Greek society wants mobilizations that will not hurt the Greek people and obstruct the economic and social life of the country, stated government spokesman Christos Protopapas responding to questions on the mobilizations of the farmers.

He said that a sum of 90 billion drachmas will be paid as compensation to the farmers and it will be absorbed through quick and effective procedures.

Mr. Protopapas also expressed the hope that the mature and responsible thoughts will prevail among the farmers and the unionists, pointing out that the government is trying to find the best possible solutions.

[05] THE JUSTICE MINISTRY RESPONSE ON MILOSEVIC WILL BE ISSUED TOMORROW

The Greek Justice Ministry will give a complete response tomorrow to the questions raised on Slobodan Milosevic by Carla Del Ponte, the International Tribunal in The Hague prosecutor.

According to government spokesman Christos Protopapas, on August 13 the prosecutor had asked for evidence and clarifications by the Greek authorities concerning the movement of capital in Greece that belonged to Milosevic. The Greek government, said Mr. Protopapas, has responded to the demand and expressed its willingness for a close cooperation. The Greek Ministry of Justice will give a response tomorrow.

[06] PROTOPAPAS ON THE MILITARY MATERIAL IN CYPRUS

The transfer of military material from Turkey to the Turkish occupied northern Cyprus creates or increases tensions in a sensitive region, stated Greek government spokesman Christos Protopapas responding to a relevant question, and reiterated that intransigence is a bad councilor.

Such moves must be avoided because they create a climate of tension in the region, stated Mr. Protopapas, adding that Turkey should display a more responsible position at a time when dialogue is underway.

[07] LOSSES IN THE ASE

Losses were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index dropped to -0.44% at 2.551,97 points, while the volume of transactions was at 93 million Euro.

Of the stocks trading today, 173 recorded gains and 138 had losses, while the value of 60 stocks remained unchanged.

[08] GOVERNMENT MEETING TO COMBAT CORRUPTION

The government is determined to take all necessary measures against corruption, stated Undersecretary of Press Tilemachos Hitiris after the meeting that was held today under the presidency of Prime Minister Kostas Simitis.

Mr. Hitiris stated that the phenomenon of corruption is traced mostly in the area of economic crime as well as, in the public services employees' relation with the citizens and therefore, it was decided that the mechanisms of prevention and enforcement must be strengthened.

On illegal gambling, the government considers the establishment of a control mechanism to combat the phenomenon.

[09] VIVODI IS THE NEW FIXED LINE TELEPHONE OPERATOR

A new fixed line telephone operator will offer its services to consumers in Greece starting this month.

The VIVODI company has reached a deal with the Greek Telecommunications Organization, OTE, and apart from the fixed line telephone service it will also offer a fast internet line via the technologies ADSL and DSL.

[10] AMERICAN SURRENDERS TO GREEK POLICE

Legitimate questions are raised by 32-year-old Peter Sedom's action. The American was in Greece in the 1980s and worked with the Grigorakos crime family. In 1990 he was accused of the murder of 20-year-old university student, Stefania Sardi, a charge which was dismissed.

Last April, however, he appeared at the Attica Security Police Department, and confessed to the crime. In the courtroom he repeated that he committed the murder of the 20-year-old, and asked the court to be as strict as possible.

Sedom seems to prefer spending some years in a Greek prison, to being extradited to the US, where he also has charges pending against him. The 32-year-old American was taken to the Korydallos Prison, a few hours before Theodoros Grigorakos was found dead in his cell.

[11] SIMITIS MEETINGS IN ROMANIA

Meetings with the Presidents of the Senate and the Parliament of Romania, Nicolae Vacarou and Valer Dorneau, were held in the framework of Prime Minister Simiti's visit to Bucharest.

The Prime Minister stressed that cooperation in the Balkans does not just concern the financial sector; it also concerns the institutional sector, which concerns the better functioning of democratic institutions and the application of human and minority rights.

It is in the best interest of both Greece and Romania, that we promote democratic institutions and secure stability and financial growth throughout Southeastern Europe.

[12] KARAMANLIS MET WITH THE BRITISH FOREIGN SECRETARY

The climate was heavy in the meeting of right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis with British Foreign Secretary Jack Straw in London.

Mr. Karamanlis was met with the intransigent stance of the British government on the issue of the Euro-army and according to his statements, nothing was said about a new formula.

Mr. Karamanlis stated that an EU member-state should not be treated the same way with a country that is not a member of the EU and that the Greek people deserve and demand to feel as safe as the rest European citizens. He stressed that this is a matter of principle and not a matter of political party viewpoint as all the parties in Greece share the same views.

On the Cyprus issue, Mr. Karamanlis stressed that everybody wants a political solution to the problem warning, however, that no EU enlargement is possible if Cyprus is not in the group of the new EU member-states regardless of whether a solution is reached.

He also raised the issue of the return of the Parthenon Marbles to Greece and the only response he received from the British Foreign Secretary was a smile.

[13] EURO-DEPUTY XARHAKOS ON THE TELEVISION CAMERAS IN ATHENS

The television cameras that are being placed in downtown Athens will turn the city into a huge Big Brother house and the people will become involuntary players. The above were stated by Greek right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy Euro-deputy Stavros Xarhakos, who tabled a question on the issue to the EU Council of Ministers.

Mr. Xarhakos wants to be informed if the EU legislation for the protection of the private life of individuals is being violated in Greece and what are the risks from the installation of the specific devices.

[14] GREEK BUILDS UNIVERSE IN LAB

The creation of the universe may not be a mystery for much longer, after the recent experiments of a Greek professor in his lab in London.

According to today's publication of the "Eleftherotypia", Dr. Michalis Tatarakis and his associates managed to create the greatest magnetic field on Earth, with the help of lasers, while the results of his experiments, recently published in "Nature" magazine, clear the path to understanding all the procedures for the creation of the universe.

The creation of these powerful magnetic fields in a lab is important, because they are very close to the magnetic fields present in space, specifically those in neutron stars and White Dwarves, the remainders of suns.

The creation of such powerful magnetic fields is important, because in order to understand our own existence we must first understand how the Universe was created. Thus, we will be able to understand how suns like ours were created. Also, these powerful magnetic fields are very important in the creation of high energy electron beams, which can be applied in many branches of science and technology.

[15] KARAMANLIS-RIFKID MEETING

The President of New Democracy Kostas Karamanlis met with the President of the Scottish Conservative Party and former British Foreign Secretary, Sir Malcolm Rifkid.

During the meeting that was held in a hall of the historical Edinburgh University, where Mr. Rifkid and Mr. Karamanlis exchanged views on the Balkans and the Cyprus issue.

Mr. Rifkid seemed especially interested in the latest developments of the Cyprus issue and the Cleridis- Denktash discussions.

Sir Malcolm Rifkid brought Mr. Karamanlis forward and introduced the topic of his speech at Edinburgh University, noting that since the neoclassic period, Edinburgh has been known as the Athens of the North.

[16] KARAMANLIS: MORE EU IN THE BALKANS

The need for more systematic intervention of the EU in the Balkan region, was pointed out by the President of New Democracy, Kostas Karamanlis, in a speech at Edinburgh University, titled Time for a new approach of the Balkans.

Mr. Karamanlis underlined that the best answer to the vision problem the southern Balkans are facing, could be the combination of a new formation of regional cooperation and on the spot creative political solutions.

He stressed that at a time like this, when the attention of a large part of the world is concentrated on Afghanistan, Greece cannot ignore the importance of these new developments for the Balkans.

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