Antenna: News in English (AM), 97-12-10

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

Last Updated: Wednesday, 10-Dec-97 11:44:59

CONTENTS

[01] Poll

[02] Pangalos

[03] PASOK

[04] Economy

[05] Âurns

[06] Medical

[07] Zeffirelli

[08] EVEA

[01] Poll

There were 2000 respondents in the nationwide poll conducted in the last week of November.

According to the poll, New Democracy would beat Pasok by a five per cent margin if an election were held now.

Blank ballots would come in third, followed by the two left-wing parties.

5.3 per cent of those asked said they'd vote for none of the big parties - they'd vote for someone else.

And 16 per cent are uncommitted.

When it comes to hanging on to voters who cast ballots for it in the last national elections, New Democracy polls highest.

83 per cent say they'd vote for it again.

Despite the good numbers for New Democracy, more people think Pasok will win the next election.

Analyst Kostas Panagaopoulos says the poll shows a different picture from that presented by previous ones.

"It's not so much the New Democracy lead over Pasok that's important, but the fact that much of the lead isn't due to New Democracy's ability to hang on to its voters from the last election, as it is to the shift of voters from Pasok to New Democracy.

4.8 per cent of Pasok's voters jumped to the main opposition party, while only 1.5 per cent of New Democracy's parties have switched the other way.

As far as the popularity of party leaders goes, the Left Coalition's Nikos Konstantopoulos is first in voters' hearts.

Pasok voters asked how they rate the members of the cabinet put alternate foreign minister Georgos Papandreou first. Defence minister Akis Tsochatzopoulos also gets a high rating, while education minister Gerasimos Arsenis is at 46.8 per cent, and finance minister Iannos Papantoniou finishes in twelfth place, with just a 31 per cent popularity rating.

New Democracy voters like Athens mayor Dimitris Avramopoulos better than any other politician.

He's followed by MP Dora Bakoyianni. Former prime minister Constantinos Mitsotakis finishes with 60 per cent; while former party leader Miltiades Evert has a relatively low 40 per cent popularity rating.

Poll respondents were also asked what they thought of the recent meeting between the Greek and Turkish prime ministers.

A plurality of respondents see it in a favourable light.

[02] Pangalos

Foreign minister Theodoros Pangalos told EU colleagues in Brussels that Turkey doesn't deserve to be treated like it's on track for EU membership.

Theodoros Pangalos reiterated Monday night that if the European Conference for prospective members some EU states are proposing is set up, then Turkey should not be included in it.

Turkey is not on track for EU membership, the Greek foreign miniser reminded his associates, because it has not yet met the EU requirements to take its claim to the Greek isle of Imia to the international court; to more generally respect international law; and improve its human rights record.

Pangalos says the European Conference idea has been mooted only as a way of finding a way for Turkey to at least sit on on the next round of negotiations with the 11 candidate members.

All candidate members have to act like EU members, says Pangalos. That means being democratic,

allowing their citizens political and press freedoms, and respecting human rights.

"EU members need to implement international law, not just pay lip service to it", he added.

Questioned about Greece's veto of Turkey's sitting in at a candidate member's conference, Pangalos said there can be no question of a veto, since Turkey has already refused to attend unless it's considered a candidate member - something no one in the EU is ready for.

One of the candidate members is Cyprus, and negotiations with it will begin in April, over Turkish objections.

Pangalos said in Brussels that the Cyprus talks will go ahead independently of whether or not any progress is made on resolving the Cyprus problem.

And he repeated that the Cypriot government has offered Turkish-Cypriot representatives to attend those talks, but only as part of the legal goverment's delegation.

[03] PASOK

Tension mounted in the ruling party last week. The education minister and other MPs voiced strong opposition to an agreement on Nato's new operational framework, which will bring Aegean air space under unified alliance control where Nato operations are concerned.

Critics say that amounts to giving Turkey, also a Nato member, joint control over the Aegean. The government says Greece will still have the sovereign right to control its air space, and

Turkey will have to clear its non-Nato military flights with Athens.

Prime minister Kostas Simitis told Pasok's executive bureau Monday night that it's time the dissenters made up their mind about whether they're with the government, or against it.

"We came to power to implement our policies", he said.

After the session, party secretary Kostas Skandalides said the prime minister feels public disagreements and friction damage the party's image.

Several Pasok MPs commented on the issue that was sparked by the Nato agreement.

Says Yiannis Diamandides, "Internal party games over major foreign policy issues are unacceptable in politics".

Minas Stavrakakis believes disagreement has become an end in itself.

But Nikos Sifounakis says, "In Pasok, different views have always been respected. I want to believe they will continue to be".

[04] Economy

The bank said on Tuesday that interest on savings accounts will be reduced from 9.5 percent to 9.25 per cent.

The lending rate will drop from a quarter to a half a per cent, depending on the type of loan.

[05] Âurns

"The US is very pleased to support the military modernisation programme of Greece. We're pleased some of our best aircraft, the F-15 and the F-16 together will be in the competition. I think this means the US is a real military ally to Greece".

The issue of a possible US ban has been on Greek minds recently, and Athens has been considering other options.

The new Eurofighter has been added to its list, and Monday, Greek officials flew to Moscow to look at the Russian Sukoi. The French Mirage is also on the list of hopefuls. The Greek government will make its decision on which aircraft to buy by mid-1998.

During a meeting earlier with finance minister Yiannos Papantoniou, Burns would not comment on Greek-Turkish relations. "It's too soon", said the new arrival at the embassy.

However, Burns had glowing words for Papantoniou and Pasok's economic policies.

[06] Medical

Dr Athanassios Benetos and a team of researchers from the the French Medical Institute, INSERM, have found that the difference between systolic and diastolic blood pressure is a vital indication of the possibility of someone suffering a fatal heart attack.

Benetos says normal and high blood pressure are not important to his method of assessment.

Comparing the two levels is what allows doctors to determine the likelihood of someone having a heart attack.

The Benetos team conducted a twenty year study of 19 thousand men between the ages of 40 and 69. Results showed that people with a discrepancy of 65 units between the two blood pressure levels, are three times more likely to die of a heart attack than those whose readings vary by 45 units.

Dr Benetos, who has published his finidings in the American Medical Journal "Hypertension", says that according to his findings, blood pressure of 130 over 85 - with a 45-unit discrepancy - is fine. A reading of 159 over 90 - a 69-point difference - is dangerous.

[07] Zeffirelli

He says he'd like to have a hand in the opening ceremonies for the 2004 Olympics, to be held in the Greek capital.

"Life is creation and love", Zeffirelli said at a press conference Tuesday. And his love knows no bounds: he's worked in theatre, opera, ballet, cinema, and television.

And he's always looking ahead. He's already signed a contract to do work for New York's Metropolitan Opera in 2004.

A perfectionist, Zeffirelli, wouldn't give any sneak previews of his exhibit, which starts

Wednesday, until he put the final touches to the work that's going to be on show.

These pictures are from a catalogue of the exhibition, which will run until the end of February.

Also an Italian senator, Zefirelli came up with the idea of a cultural movement called "Great Greece".

He believes that the Mediterranean should become the cultural centre of the world again. He thinks Greco-Roman culture can help bridge the global gap between the nations of the north and south.

[08] EVEA

Leading opponent Athanassios Athanasoulis by 2 to 1 with 40 per cent of the ballots counted, Papathanasiou said the election sent a message: that businessmen want to keep the chamber free of political party influence, and for it to continue to be the voice of the free market.

New Democracy MP Dora Bakoyianni hailed the election result, calling it a blow to the Pasok government's bring the chamber under its control. The chamber will continue to express the views of its members, she added.

(c) ANT1 Radio 1997

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