Antenna: News in English (AM), 97-03-13

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From: Antenna Radio <http://www.antenna.gr> - email: antenna@compulink.gr

News in English, 13/03/97

TITLES

• As people seize arms in Tirane and northern Albania, hope lies in a political solution.
• New Democracy's leadership candidates agree on changes in the party.
• And, remeembering Cyprus in northern Greece.

ALBANIA

But while there is some hope there, the rebels still say president Berisha must resign before they give up their weapons. And residents in some northern Albanian towns are raising new concerns.

They've started raiding weapons depots and arming themselves - some say, for a war against their southern compatriates.

Speaking in parliament, Theodoros Pangalos repeated that the Greek government wants to see a political solution to the Albanian crisis. He added that Greece hopes not only that fighting, but the dispatch of an international peace- keeping force to Albania can be avoided.

Greece is doing what it can to help ease the difficulties people in the rebel areas are confronting. The first Greek aid ship was loaded with 20 tonnes of food and drugs in Corfu Wednesday and is ready to sail for southern Albania.

Greek defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos says international organisations must do what they can to help Albania, Europe's poorest nation, integrate into the West economically.

New Democracy leader Miltiades Evert believes Albania is heading toward civil war. He wants Pangalos to go to Tirane to meet with the new cabinet.

New Democracy MP Giorgos Souflias criticises the Pasok government for giving what he calls uncritical support to the Berisha government in the past. An estimated 150 thousand guns have been seized by rebels in southern Albania. Souflias says the unchecked circulation of Kalashnikovs could create problems in Greek border areas.

ALBANIA/REACTION

Theodoros Pangalos also says that it is imperative that a peaceful settlement is found in Albania.

Speaking in parliament, Theodoros Pangalos repeated that the Greek government wants to see a political solution to the Albanian crisis. He added that Greece hopes not only that fighting, but the dispatch of an international peace- keeping force to Albania can be avoided.

Greece is doing what it can to help ease the difficulties people in the rebel areas are confronting. The first Greek aid ship was loaded with 20 tonnes of food and drugs in Corfu Wednesday and is ready to sail for southern Albania.

Greek defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos says international organisations must do what they can to help Albania, Europe's poorest nation, integrate into the West economically.

New Democracy leader Miltiades Evert believes Albania is heading toward civil war. He wants Pangalos to go to Tirane to meet with the new cabinet.

New Democracy MP Giorgos Souflias criticises the Pasok government for giving what he calls uncritical support to the Berisha government in the past. An estimated 150 thousand guns have been seized by rebels in southern Albania. Souflias says the unchecked circulation of Kalashnikovs could create problems in Greek border areas.

FYROM

Fyrom's leaders are also beset by a financial scandal that looks like a copy of the one that started the protests in Albania.

The arrest of a ruling party member and director of an investment house on charges of fraud, has investors in the city of Monastiri hoping for high interest payback on their life savings, fearing their bank books aren't worth a cent.

Investors line up daily outside the bank, trying to find out what's happened to their money.

One man told Antenna he's lost everything, 17 thousand German marks.

One opposition party leader says the bank can only cover 20 per cent of the deposits.

And the president of VMRO, the main extra- parliamentary opposition party, says that if the government doesn't resign over the scandal, then Monastiri could become like one of the rebel cities in Albania.

ND

But there are some demands the individual candidates are sticking to.

MP Kostas Karamanlis insists that the leader of the party NOT be elected on the first day of the congress, as programmed so far.

And MP Giorgos Souflias insists that the party leader be given a set term of office.

The four candidates have agreed that there should be a party congress every two years and that the party leader should be elected only by a congress. As things stand now, the party MPs and electors can also elect a leader. The four candidates also agree that a party leader should be made impeachable by a majority of MPs or a third of the delegates at a congress.

The other two candidates are current leader Miltiades Evert and MP Vyron Polydoras.

CYPRUS

A park in their memory was opened in Xanthi, in the northeastern region of Thrace.

As we hear in this report, the park is a symbol of the bonds between the Greek and Cypriot people.

Where there is now an open plain, there will one day be a forest: residents of the Xanthi area and the 4th army planted trees at the park site - 1609 trees, each with a name tag for each missing person.

Michalis Savva, chairman of the Xanthi Cypriot Society, says, "Our message is that we remember, and we must go on remembering; otherwise, we are lost".

The first tree - in memory of missing Greek army major Pavlos Kouroupis - was planted by 4th Army commander, gerneral Dimitris Dimou.

Dimos points out that like Cyprus, Thrace and the Aegeaqn are under threat from Turkey. He says, "Cyprus and Thrace are two parts of a whole. They have been since ancient times. They are the two ends of a scale - in the middle lies the Aegean islands".

Says Sotiris Liasides, the Cypriot consul general in Thessaloniki: "the park symbolises the fact that our Greek brothers haven't forgotten Cypriot Hellenism". He adds that as long as the Turks remain in occupation of northern Cyprus, the Greek people will remain the only hope and ally of the Cypriot people.

BASKETBALL

Pao sweeping its best-of-three first-round playoff series against Limoge, with a 70-55 victory in France.

Greece's OTHER tournament hopeful, Olympiakos has embarked on an adventure.

Olympiakos won the first game of its series against Partizan in Belgrade.

But the defending Greek champions come up short in game two in Piraeus.

Partizan stifles the Olympiakos offence with a three man zone, and two players going man-to- man.

Olympiakos has a miserable shooting night, going just 20 of 54 from the field, is surprisingly outrebounded 39-27, and Partizan wins it 61-60.

© ANT1 Radio 1997

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