Subject: A.N.A. Bulletin 7/9/93 From: miltos@nfl2.irc.nrc.ca Athens News Agency Bulletin, September 7, 1993 ============================================= Athens, 7/9/1993 (ANA)--Serbian Prime Minister Nikola Sainovic yesterday pledged that Serbia would "do everything" for the situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina to return to normal and the peace process to resume. Mr. Sainovic was speaking after meeting with this Greek counterpart Constantine Mitsotakis, who told reporters they had discussed the resumption of the peace talks in Geneva. "The temporary halt to these negotiations must not dishearten us and we must deploy efforts for them to resume and reach a happy conclusion, that is peace", Mr. Mitsotakis said. Mr. Sainovic stood in for Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic last weekend at the inauguration of a Serbian war museum on Corfu. On Sunday Mr. Sainovic held talks with Foreign Minister Michalis Papaconstantinou. Mr. Sainovic, who was due to catch a plane back to Belgrade yesterday, also had talks with main opposition PASOK leader Andreas Papandreou, Coalition of the Left and Progress leader Maria Damanaki and Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Secretary General Aleka Paparriga. Ms Damanaki told reporters after the meeting that "Greece has a lot to do to stabilise the situation in the Balkans and in this direction we will make specific proposals to our government". Following the meeting, Ms. Paparriga said she felt the most important aim was to achieve peace. Athens, 7/9/93 (ANA) - A delegation from the Federation of Civil Aviation Trade Unions (OPSA) is visiting Serbia at the invitation of the Serbian Trade Union Federation. The delegation has also delivered humanitarian aid for the Serbian population in Bosnia. According to an official announcement, the delegation will be received by Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, the Serbian Orthodox Patriarch and various government officials. Athens, 7/9/93 (ANA) - Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis last night accused former New Democracy foreign minister and founder of the fledgling opposition party Political Spring Antonis Samaras of betraying the electorate and the political party that created him. "Mr. Samaras tonight took a step towards betraying 47 per cent of the Greek people", the premier said. Mr. Samaras released a statement yesterday saying that "Political Spring and support of the government are two mutually exclusive things". "The gravity of the situation compels us also to shoulder our responsibilities, and the same certainly applies to all members of the Greek parliament, "Mr. Samaras' statement said. "(Mr. Samaras) has become an instrument of (ND's political) opponents and of economic interests of which he is a prisoner. His aim is to stab in the back the party that created him. He chose to do so, at a time when the hard efforts of the past three and a half years - which he totally disregards - are beginning to bear fruit", Mr. Mitsotakis said. "The great democratic party represented by New Democracy and its deputies, stand ready to reply in a spirit of responsibility. No one should forget that, in the end, everything hinges on the decision of the people of Greece", the premier concluded. Mr. Samaras was dismissed as foreign minister by Mr. Mitsotakis in April 1992 and later resigned his seat. He founded Political Spring in July this year. Independent deputy for Athens Andreas Lendakis resigned his parliamentary seat later in July to join Political Spring. Former Minister to the Prime Minister Miltiades Evert declared he as confident that "New Democracy deputies will display a sense of responsibility by avoiding any act that might lead to an early election which, in turn, would be harmful for the nation". Sofia, 7/9/93 (Macedonian Press Agency) - Ecumenical Patriarch Vartholomeos will begin a five-day official visit to Bulgaria tomorrow, the second leg of a tour of Orthodox Churches. The Patriarch visited Serbia and Russia earlier this year and is expected to visit Romania before the end of the year. The Patriarch will confer with the leadership of the Church of Bulgaria on unity among Orthodox Churches and relations of Orthodoxy with non-Orthodox Churches. He will meet with the Bulgarian president, premier, the speaker of parliament and the ambassadors of Turkey and Greece in Bulgaria. He will end his visit by attending a special service at the Church of Alexander Nevsky. Athens, 7/9/93 (ANA) - Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis yesterday officially declared open the 43rd session of the World Health Organisation's Regional Committee for Europe, meeting in Athens at the pnyx, the ancient meeting place of the assembly of the city of Athens. "Life is not just living but living in health, peace and prosperity", the premier said, stressing the role of government in improving health and quality of life. The four-day meeting in Athens has gathered health representatives from 50 European countries, including 21 new states participating for the first time. The goal of the conference is to shape health policy and determine the organisation's future priorities and orientation. Croatia, Slovenia, the Czech Republic and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia are among the newest members. In his address to the opening ceremony, WHO Director General Dr. Hiroshi Nakajima called on the international community to display solidarity in helping alleviate cases of human suffering as in the former Yugoslavia. "Wars, civil strife or economic embargoes, sooner or later hurt neighbouring countries. We have repeatedly alerted the international community to the health needs and emergencies in Yugoslavia", Mr. Nakajima said. "Solidarity should be understood as our best investment in Security. In health, as in peace and development, we are all interdependent", he said. "The constitutional goal of (WHO) 'attainment by all people at the highest level, of health, without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition" - implies that standards of living must be raised. This, however, does not mean the pursuit of health for individual's sake but of health as a path towards and a factor for social welfare and development", Mr. Mitsotakis said. "The time has passed when health was thought of solely from the medical point of view ... Today, while more and more programmes and efforts for regional and international economic development are progressing, it is obvious that none of these can have a hope of success unless they are pursued as a part of an overall development policy. Development implies social progress no less than economic progress because its principal aim is not to improve the performance of economic indexes, but to improve the quality of human life". "The progress so urgently required in the field of health, where needs are so great, can only be achieved through harmony and co-operation among all of us who are gathered here today", he said, adding that WHO had given the world "new hope, a new vision of health and a new understanding of how to reach genuine human development and dignity". "The role of government to all these is critical. It is government policies that determine the quality of our life and ensure that people receive the appropriate health care that they deserve. Those of us who have the responsibilities of government should always remember that: "Life is not just living but living in health, peace and prosperity's he said. Health, Welfare and Social Insurance Minister Dimitris Sioufas said in his address that WHO was forging ahead in promoting a new and wider understanding of targets which health tactics in a modern society should pursue. "The care of health, according to the definition given by the WHO, should not only be identified with the prevention and cure of diseases but also with the promotion of both health and good living for the entire population", he said. Athens, 7/9/93 (ANA) - The Foundation for Hellenic Culture is organising four major exhibitions and a series of artistic events in Venice from September 16-19. The aim of the foundation is to promote Hellenic culture and in particular the relation between Hellenism and the city of the Doges. The programme features an exhibition of 50 paintings of the Cretan-Venetian school, an exhibition of 80 Greek manuscripts from the Marcian Library and an exhibition of early editions of books by Greek writers in Europe. A fourth exhibition", Hellenism in Venice", aims, with a small sample of archival treasures, to sketch the relations between Hellenism and Venice from the time of the first chrysobulles granted to the Venetians by the Byzantine Emperors to the collapse of the Venetian state in the 18th century. The official opening of "Venice-Another Byzantium" will take place on September 16 at the Palazzo Ducale and will be accompanied by theatrical and musical performances. Athens, 7/9/93 (ANA) - Taiwan is seeking Greece's support for its bid to participate in the UN, from which it was forced to withdraw in 1971. The call for Greek support was made by the Director General of Taipei's Economic and Cultural Office in Athens, Ambassador Liu Tah-Jen during a meeting with the press on Friday. "My country, the Republic of China on Taiwan, has strongly expressed its desire for participation in the united Nations", Mr. Tah Jen said. "In order to attain this aim, we are hopping for and relying on the support of all UN member-states. Greece is an important friend for us and a member of the UN. In the past we have relied on Greek support on different issues of concern to us. We are now relying on its support in this matter which is of great importance to us", he added. Taiwan, with a population of 21 million, was one of the founding members of the UN but was forced to withdraw in 1971 when the People's Republic of China joined the world body. An Economic and Cultural Office spokesman said that Taiwan was holding informal talks with Greek government officials on Taipei's bid to participate in the UN. Seven Central American members of the UN - El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras, Panama and Belize delivered a letter to UN Secretary General Boutros Boutros Ghali on August 6 requesting the issue of Taiwan's participation bed discussed at the 48th General Assembly.