Cyprus Mail: Press Review in English, 98-11-03

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From: The Cyprus Mail at <http://www.cynews.com/>

Tuesday, November 3, 1998

Greece to solve the water problem

THE WATER problem is to be solved with the timely intervention of the Greek government, Alithia reported in its lead story yesterday.

A tanker is to ship 15 million cubic metres of drinking quality water to Cyprus from Greece every year, the right-wing daily said.

The final details concerning the agreement were to be ironed out when the chief advisor of Greece's water supply department, Dionisios Xenos, who arrives on the island for an official visit today, the report stated.

Alithia quoted Agriculture Minister Costas Themistocleous as saying the water shipment would not take the form of a business deal between the two countries, but was rather something Greece would do as a matter of national necessity. The water would be supplied at cost price, the paper added.

Haravghi, mouthpiece for opposition party Akel, led on a story alleging that government Minister Andreas Moushiouttas was to blame for the "chaos" in the employment sector.

Moushiouttas was guilty of routinely violating the letter and spirit of top- level agreements concerning the employment of foreign workers on the island, the paper claimed. The Minister's favouritism was reserved for certain businesses with whose owners he maintains close links, Haravghi claimed.

The result of this alleged nepotism was that Cypriot workers were being left "on the street without work," the paper said.

The left-wing daily cited the alleged case of a local firm which, having been given the go-ahead to hire foreigners by Moushiouttas, proceeded to sack all its Cypriot employees.

Turning its attention to the police force, the opposition paper claimed the guardians of law and order were admitting defeat in the battle against illegal narcotics.

While the drug use problem was worsening every year,the drug squad remained starved of resources, the paper reported. Justice Minister Nicos Koshis's repeated promises that the squad would get the equipment it needed had not been backed up with any action, Haravghi stated.

Three months ago, the House ad hoc crime committee had urged Koshis to submit to parliament budgets for the purchase of specialised equipment that would allow customs officers to check baggage arriving at ports and airports for narcotics, but the minister had done nothing, the paper claimed.

The last few years had seen a dramatic increase in drug-related offences, the paper added, and the evidence was that more and more Cypriots were involved.

© Copyright Cyprus Mail 1998

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