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The Hellenic Radio (ERA): News in English, 99-12-09
From: The Hellenic Radio (ERA) <ert.ntua.gr/>
CONTENTS
[01] STATEMENTS ABOUND ON ISSUE OF TURKEY'S EU CANDIDACY
[02] NEW REGULATIONS ON COMPOUND INTEREST
[03] INFLATION NOT TO AFFECT INTEREST RATES
[04] SCHOOLCHILDREN STAGE PROTEST DEMONSTRATIONS
[05] WORLD COUNCIL OF HELLENES ABROAD SESSION ENDS IN THESSALONIKI
[06] CHURCH OF GREECE TO ACCOMMODATE VOLUNTEERS FOR 2004 OLYMPICS
[01] STATEMENTS ABOUND ON ISSUE OF TURKEY'S EU CANDIDACY
At the close of an inner cabinet session yesterday, prime minister
Kostas Simitis said Turkey's EU candidacy would lead to problems and
tension, unless clear positions were formulated at the EU summit in
Helsinki on relations between Turkey and the European Union and between
Turkey and Greece. Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas made it clear
that the Greek reply on the Turkish candidacy would be "yes" or "no"
depending on Greece's European partners and Ankara. Both the president
of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, and German Chancellor Gerhard
Schroeder are in favour of the nomination of Turkey as a candidate
country for accession to the European Union. But chancellor Schroeder
remarked that the Turkish candidacy would be the most difficult problem
to be raised at the summit. European commissioner responsible for EU
enlargement Guenther Verheugen has estimated that Turkey is not ready
to join the EU. For his part, Turkish foreign minister Ismail Cem has
warned that a negative reply to Turkey's application for candidacy
might lead to confrontation with Greece. He also said that Turkey would
not accept special conditions for its candidacy, adding he was against
disconnecting Cyprus' EU entry from a Cyprus settlement. The European
Court of Human Rights yesterday condemned Turkey for dissolving the
Freedom and Democracy party.
[02] NEW REGULATIONS ON COMPOUND INTEREST
A legislative act on compound interest for bank loans will be tabled in
parliament next week, prime minister Kostas Simitis has announced,
clarifying that for new loans compound interest would be calculated on
a 6-monthly basis, while interest on debts from older loans would not
exceed a certain amount. Nine New Democracy party deputies yesterday
tabled an amendment on abolishing the current compound interest
regulations, while leader of the Democratic Social Movement Dimitris
Tsovolas said the government's decisions on the settlement of debts
were pre-election schemes.
[03] INFLATION NOT TO AFFECT INTEREST RATES
The increase of the inflation rate to 2.6 percent in November cannot
possibly affect the necessary de-escalation of interest rates, national
economy minister Yannos Papantoniou has said. He added however that it
was up to the Bank of Greece to decide when interest rates would start
going down.
[04] SCHOOLCHILDREN STAGE PROTEST DEMONSTRATIONS
Thousands of high school students, teachers, parents and party
representatives yesterday staged rallies and marches in Athens,
Thessaloniki, Patras and other major cities in protest at educational
reforms. In parliament, justice minister Evangelos Yannopoulos rejected
a demand by the Greek Communist party and the Coalition of the Left
Wing and Progress to withdraw a controversial legislative act allowing
prosecutors to press charges against pupils occupying school buildings.
The New Democracy party said it was against extreme forms of protest
action in the education sector, but also accused the government of
hypocrisy and called for dialogue on the issue.
[05] WORLD COUNCIL OF HELLENES ABROAD SESSION ENDS IN THESSALONIKI
The third session of the World Council of Hellenes Abroad ended in
Thessaloniki yesterday with the election of a new 11-member presidium.
A press conference will be given today at the offices of the Council in
Thessaloniki on the results of the session and the new presidium's
action plan for the next two years. The new presidium will convene this
afternoon with the participation of foreign undersecretary responsible
for issues of Greeks abroad Grigoris Niotis and the parliamentary
inter-party committee for Greeks abroad.
[06] CHURCH OF GREECE TO ACCOMMODATE VOLUNTEERS FOR 2004 OLYMPICS
The Church of Greece has decided to participate in a programme for the
accommodation of 50 thousand volunteers who will help with the
organization of the Olympic Games of the year 2004 in Athens. The Holy
Synod of the Church of Greece made the decision yesterday in response
to a proposal from the culture ministry. It sent letters to Attica
prefecture metropolitan churches requesting information on the number
of volunteers for which each church would be able to provide
accommodation.
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