Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 05-06-16

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

CONTENTS

[01] BENAKI-HRUSOVSKY MEETING

[02] KARAMANLIS' STATEMENT BEFORE THE EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY SUMMIT

[03] MARK MAZOWER ON THE CO-EXISTENCE OF CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND JEWS IN

[04] NEGOTIATION UNDER THE SHADOW OF THE "NO" VOTE

[05] STRIKE ACTION ON THE ISSUE OF SOCIAL SECURITY

[06] GREEK INTERVENTION IN THE WESTERN EUROPEAN UNION PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

[01] BENAKI-HRUSOVSKY MEETING

The EU enlargement, the European Constitution and bilateral issues concerning the two countries were the main issues discussed in the meeting Parliament President Anna Benaki-Psarouda had with Slovakia's National Council President Pavol Hrusovsky who is on a formal visit to Athens.

Mrs. Benaki stated that both countries are looking forward to the continuation of bilateral cooperation at parliament level to become even more productive, adding that they shared the same views on how to deal with the existing problems within the framework of international organizations.

The Greek Parliament President also thanked Slovakia for its participation in the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus.

On his part, Mr. Hrusovsky underlined that his country is in favor of a solution to the Cyprus problem based international law and the UN resolutions.

[02] KARAMANLIS' STATEMENT BEFORE THE EUROPEAN PEOPLE'S PARTY SUMMIT

Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis referred to the issues to be discussed in the European People's Party Summit meeting in Brussels today and tomorrow.

Mr. Karamanlis stated that the first major issue is the assessment of the situation formed after the referendums in France and Holland that rejected the European Constitution and the second, is the European budget for the period 2007-2013.

[03] MARK MAZOWER ON THE CO-EXISTENCE OF CHRISTIANS, MUSLIMS AND JEWS IN OTTOMAN THESSALONIKI

The co-existence of Christians, Muslims and Jews in the under Ottoman occupation Thessaloniki was marked by only a few incidents of violence, stressed University of Columbia history professor in a lecture he gave in Thessaloniki yesterday.

Prof. Mazower stated that people of different faiths were business partners while sailors and fishermen were multilingual. The famine that threatened the city united the poor of all faiths who attacked the French warehouses.

However, he stressed that there was no equal treatment for the Muslims and the faithful of other religions.

The center around which each community revolved was the church, the synagogue or the mosque. Society had no specific sense of time and its members used religious feasts to deal with their affairs. According to Prof. Mazower, one could say that there was a kind of popular religion in Thessaloniki as, for example, Christian women used soil from the cemeteries of other religions to drive away bad spirits.

He said that many ancient Greek antiquities ended up in Paris, London or Istanbul while the scholars of those times gave an emphasis on the ancient Greek past and not Byzantium or the Ottoman occupation.

Prof. Mazower gave the lecture on The possibilities of a Past: Thessaloniki 1430-1950 on the occasion of the presentation of his latest book under the title: Salonica, City of Ghosts: Christians, Muslims and Jews, 1430-1950.

Mark Mazower is a professor of history, specializes in modern Greece, 20th century Europe, and international history. The Nazi New Order in Europe and its aftermath (social, cultural, psychological), Nation-states and minorities. He has a BA in classics and philosophy from Oxford (1981), an MA in International Affairs, from Johns Hopkins (1983) and a doctorate in modern history from Oxford (1988).

His books include Inside Hitler's Greece: The Experience of Occupation, 1941-44 (Yale UP, 1993); Dark Continent: Europe's 20th Century (Knopf, 1998); The Balkans (Weidenfeld and Nicolson, 2000); After the War was Over: Reconstructing the Family, Nation and State in Greece, 1943-1960 (Princeton UP, 2000) and The Balkans: A Short History (Random House, 2002). His most recent book is Salonica, City of Ghosts: Christians, Muslims and Jews, 1430-1950 (HarperCollins, 2004).

Current interests include comparative dimensions of the post-Ottoman experience in the Balkans and Middle East, war and population movements, and the history of international norms and institutions. He is the program director of the Center for International History at Columbia University.

[04] NEGOTIATION UNDER THE SHADOW OF THE "NO" VOTE

The confrontation on the bank employees' social security issue reached a climax today as the bank employees' strike continues for an eight day. In support of the strikers the General Confederation of Labor Unions and the public employees unions will hold a three-hour work stoppage.

Problems are expected in many public sectors, while a rally was scheduled to take place at noon today in downtown Athens.

Association of Greek Industries President Odysseas Kyriakopoulos is in favor of the reforms and accused the General Confederation of Labor Unions of operating under a political party hat.

The banks trading in the Athens Stock Exchange recorded big gains yesterday.

[05] STRIKE ACTION ON THE ISSUE OF SOCIAL SECURITY

The confrontation on the bank employees' social security issue reached a climax today as the bank employees' strike continues for an eight day. In support of the strikers the General Confederation of Labor Unions and the public employees unions will hold a three-hour work stoppage.

Problems are expected in many public sectors, while a rally was scheduled to take place at noon today in downtown Athens.

Association of Greek Industries President Odysseas Kyriakopoulos is in favor of the reforms and accused the General Confederation of Labor Unions of operating under a political party hat.

The banks trading in the Athens Stock Exchange recorded big gains yesterday.

[06] GREEK INTERVENTION IN THE WESTERN EUROPEAN UNION PARLIAMENTARY ASSEMBLY

The effort for a common European Policy on defense and security can and should continue regardless of the NO certain EU states said to the European Constitution. That was the main conclusion reached in the talks held in the Western European Union Parliamentary Assembly meeting in Paris.

Head of the Greek parliamentary delegation in the WEU and parliamentary assembly vice-president Elsa Papadimitriou (New Democracy MP) stated in the discussion on the future of the European Constitution that the rejection of the European Constitution by the peoples of France and Holland can launch a major political debate in Europe on direct and indirect democracy.

The WEU Parliamentary Assembly unanimously approved the report drawn up by PASOK deputy and member of the Greek parliamentary delegation Dinos Vrettos on the adoption of a Common European Policy on Defense and Security.

In his report, Mr. Vrettos maintains that by 2012 the funds can be found and the preconditions can be met for the creation of such a policy and a center of operations made up of a 1,500-member force that will be able to intervene in less than 10 days in case of crises in Europe.

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