Antenna: News in English (AM), 97-12-05

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

Last Updated: Friday, 05-Dec-97 11:43:34

CONTENTS

[01] Patriarchate

[02] Simitis

[03] Council of Hellenes Abroad

[04] Economy

[05] Green Card

[06] Basketball

[01] Patriarchate

A visiting priest, a close associate of ecumenical patriarch Vartholomeos was injured in the explosion, which sent debris through his office window.

The police weren't saying Thursday afternoon how many arrests they'd made in connection with the attack. But they promised to announce the results of their interrogations soon.

The chief of Constantinople police visited the patriarchate bomb site right after the explosion.

The Turkish media have given scant coverage of the attack. None of the TV stations covered it in their newscasts Thursday morning.

And the newspapers gave it limited space. Cumhuriyet ran a single column on page four. Milliyet had it on page 13.

The English-language Turkish daily news ran a page five article highlighting the Turkish government's condemnation of the bombing, and the authorities' commitment to root out the

perpetrators and take steps to prevent future attacks taking place.

No one has taken responsibility for the bombing.

WTN director in Turkey Niatzi Daliantzi told Antenna's Nikolas Vafiades, "I'm not in a position to say who did it. But it comes at a very interesting time. The patriarch has just returned from the United States".

During his recent White House meeting with president Clinton, sources say Vartholomeos received assurances that the US will do what it can to get Turkey to allow the Chalkis orthodox theological school to reopen.

Daliantzi says that last week, the Turkish press mentioned the reopening of the school, and that has been accompanied by negative comments about the patriarchate in the muslim fundamentalist papers.

No one knows how successful the sermons of intolerance against the patriarchate will be at fanning the flames of fundamentalist hatred.

The newspaper Milliyet strongly suspects the organisation Hezbollah in Tuesday's bombing. What is interesting about that is that Hezbollah isn't so much a muslim fundamentalist, as it is a para- state organisation.

The US state department has condemned the bombing at the patriarchate, and hopes that the Turkish authorities will in the future provide it ample protection, so there are no more attacks.

[02] Simitis

The agreement has many in Pasok worried that it's the first step to Turkey sharing the airspace over the Aegean with Greece.

After receving a barrage of in-house criticism over the Nato deal worked out in Brussels this week, prime minister Kostas Simitis went on the offensive.

Arriving in Thessaloniki, he said the agreement that brings Aegean air space under Nato control when it comes to alliance operations, reopens the Nato regional command centre in Larisa under Greek administration, and reduces the number of Turkish regional commands from three to one, is positive.

On Wednesday, education minister Gerasimos Arsenis was one of several MPs who suggested the agreement, which fits into Nato's plans to restructure itself in the post-Cold War era, is bad for Greece.

Simitis said Thursday that defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos had acted correctly in agreeing to the Nato deal, and that the government's national defence council, which includes the top military brass, feels the same way.

Critics argue that the agreement essentially opens the way for Turkey, also a Nato member, to claim joint control over the air space over the Aegean.

But the prime minister says that's an isolationist approach. "They want Greece to stand back from developments, but that would leave Turkey with all the cards in its hands".

"We want a strong Greece", maintains Simitis, "a Greece with a voice in international affairs".

Arsenis's disagreement has sparked a mini crisis in the government. Those around Simitis believe Arsenis is trying to use the issue to score political points.

Wednesday night, Arsenis complained that neither he nor the rest of the party had been informed of Tsochatzopulos's plans to agree to the Nato compromise. He complained that Tsocahatzopolos cancelled a meeting with him before he left for the Nato conference in Brussels.

Tsochatzopoulos responded that it was Arsenis who had cancelled their meeting.

On Thursday, Arsenis, a former defence minister,

urged caution in handling Turkey. "We're walking in a mine field", he warned. "Let us proceed carefully, and in ways that will have different repercussions".

Simitis intends to ask Arsenis for an account of his comments, but the dissent goes further. Two other party MPs, Yiannis Kapsis and Stelios Papathemelis are demanding the parliamentary foreign affairs committee be fully briefed by Tsochatzopoulos on what came to pass in Brussels.

Another MP, Christos Kipouros asks rhetorically, "Does the government know what it's doing in the Aegean? We don't accept it."

Dimitris Pipergias believes, like many, that the Nato issue should have been discussed within the party and government before any agreements were reached.

Other MPs back Simitis. "It's a move in the right direction", argues Dimitris Sotirlis". But he still defends Arsenis's democratic right to freely speak his mind within Pasok.

Lukas Apostolides thinks the Nato compromise defends the national interest. Critics are just seeing the glass half empty rather than half full, he says.

Former New Democracy leader Miltiades Evert is demanding a copy of the agreement be submitted to parliament for discussion.

Commenting on the Nato deal and the rift in Pasok, New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis says, "The Nato policy, intentionally or not, raises big questions about the status quo in the Aegean. That's not a matter that can be easily brushed aside. It's Greece's right, enshrined in international law, to defend its indivisible sovereign rights in the Aegean. That's such an important issue that it can't be dealt with by mere statements as the kind we've been hearing".

[03] Council of Hellenes Abroad

The message from the conference was that expatriate Greeks can and must contribute to the government's efforts to promote the country's national security and foreign policy interests.

Opening the conference, Greek president Kostis Stephanopoulos told the delegates: "I welcome you in the same way the homeland welcomes you every time you come here. I believe most of you come here often, and feel the love we feel for you".

Prime minister Kostas Simitis and New Democracy leader Kostas Simitis sent messages to the conference, in which they mentioned Greek-Turkish relations.

"Disputes in a civilised world", said Simitis, disputes that are preceded by two world wars, are not resolved today in the way they were at the beginning of the century. They are now resolved on the basis of international law, or through arbitration, by the international court, for instance".

Karamanlis talked of "an era when the area around Greece is unstable. We're subjected to provocations and threats", he added. "The time has come to realise that Greece is not in danger, but is being subjected to systematic pressure where its rights and interests are concerned".

The First convention is expected to end Friday with the election of a new governing council.

[04] Economy

The reduction of interest rates will take place gradually, until levels before the drachma crisis occurred are maintained.

The National Bank said the decision also rests in the fact that inflation is expected to drop below 5 percent by the end of the year.

Although data released Thursday by the National Statistics Service reported a rise in inflation. The rate in October was 4.7 percent, rising to 5.1 percent in November.

Other banks are also toying with the idea of decreasing interest rates.

[05] Green Card

Christos Protopapas, deputy labour minister said that the estimated 450 thousand illegal immigrants presently living and working in Greece, will have the same rights, responsibilities and obligations as Greek workers.

Representatives from immigrant organisations within Greece say the new measures will have a positive impact for them as well as for the Greek society.

Lefteris Marta, representative for Albanian Workers says, "Now, Greece has the opportunity to have complete data on those who have a Green Card".

Jo Valentsia, president of the Philippino workers Union says, "The new presidential decrees will essentially free our fellow compatriots, allowing

them to become complete citizens, members of the Greek society".

And Christos Liakopoulos, president of the Labour center in Patra, says, "Thanks to these measures, the problem of illegal immigrants is settled, especially those who are working".

The cost of the program? An estimated 9 million to be covered by the state employment office.

[06] Basketball

Greece bests Bulgaria in Lamia Wednesday night, for its second consecutive win after a disappointing opening loss.

Bulgaria poses no threat to the home team, even though Greece lacks cohesion for long intervals in the first half. Even still, it out-rebounds its guests by a 3 to 1 margin before the break, and coasts to a 92-62 victory.

Greek guard Frankiscos Alvertis leads all scorers on the night with 23 points.

(c) ANT1 Radio 1997

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