Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 2000-06-21
MACEDONIAN PRESS AGENCY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Thessaloniki, June 21, 2000
SECTIONS
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NEWS HEADLINES
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CHURCH RALLY IN ATHENS TO BE UNRIVALED IN SIZE
[02] PARLIAMENT APPROVES CONSTRUCTION OF MOSQUE
[03] ARCHBISHOP ON GREECE-EU: MONKEY SEE, MONKEY DO
[04] EU LEADERS APPLAUD GREECE'S ACCESSION TO EMU
[05] GREEK POSTAL WORKERS CALL OFF STRIKE
[06] SVVE CHAIRMAN: EMU TO BOOST FOREIGN INVESTMENT
[07] G/T FRIENDSHIP CONCERT GIVEN IN ANKARA
[08] GREECE IN UNESCO CULTURAL DIVERSITY COMMITTEE
[09] ARCHIBISHOP DEMANDS MEETING WITH GOVERNMENT AND THREATENS TO
GATHER SIGNATURES AGAINST IT
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[10] US, RUSSIA REFUTE REPORTS OF OFFER TO MILOSEVIC
[11] ALBANIA: ALPHA CREDIT UPS CLIENT CREDIT VOLUME
NEWS IN DETAIL
[A] NATIONAL NEWS
[01] CHURCH RALLY IN ATHENS TO BE UNRIVALED IN SIZE
Over 1,500 buses are to arrive from all parts of the country
in Athens today, flocking thousands of faithful to the mass
protest against the state's decision to remove the listing of
religion from personal identification cards.
The Church of Greece has urged its followers to attend this
evening's rally, set to begin at 7 p.m. in Athens' central
Constitution Square, which is expected to surpass in size the same
protest held in Thessaloniki last week, one that proved to be
massive as it drew over 100,000 protesters.
While the usually verbose Archbishop of Athens and All of
Greece Christodoulos has refrained from making public appearances
as the rally nears, other metropolites continue to lambaste the
state for its decision.
[02] PARLIAMENT APPROVES CONSTRUCTION OF MOSQUE
In a parliamentary summer session last night, the Assembly
approved the establishment of the first Islamic cultural center
and mosque in the Athens area.
Carried with 55 votes in favor, 40 against and three
abstentions, the proposal calls for the creation of an Islamic
cultural center and mosque in Paiania, approximately 15 kilometers
away from downtown Athens.
[03] ARCHBISHOP ON GREECE-EU: MONKEY SEE, MONKEY DO
Archbishop of Athens and All of Greece Christodoulos saluted
Greece's entry to the Economic and Monetary Union last night as a
"significant event that brings Greece to the threshold of
development", adding that the "poor cousin" mentality appears to
be a thing of the past.
Referring to Greece's relations with the West, Mr.
Christodoulos also stated that "we tear our eyes out by ourselves,
thinking that this is how we'll be accepted by the Europeans.
"A monkey-see and monkey-do mentality will always have its
followers and supporters", he added.
[04] EU LEADERS APPLAUD GREECE'S ACCESSION TO EMU
Welcoming Greece into the European Union's "elite", EU
leaders applauded the country's entry to the Economic and Monetary
Union (EMU), commending the Greek people's persistence and
willingness to sacrifice.
European Commission President Romano Prodi congratulated
Prime Minister Costas Simitis, saying that the accession to the
EMU was attained through the Greeks' persistence and consistent
effort and their belief in Mr. Simitis' European vision.
Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Guterres, who presently
presides over the European Council, noted the Greek economy's
impressive turnaround, adding that, much like Spain and Portugal,
Greece has had to overcome the problems of under-development and
the consequences of civil war and dictatorships.
Dutch Prime Minister Wim Kok applauded Greece's efforts,
which he said demonstrated that a small country that did not have
the same rate of growth as developed countries could make great
strides through persistence and consistent effort.
French Prime Minister Lionel Jospin described Monday's
developments as historic for Greece and, referring to a proposal
by his country's finance minister that Greece informally attend
the EU's ECOFIN council as of July 1, stated that this was a
measure of France's trust in Greece, the Greek economy and
"personally to my friend Costas Simitis."
German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder described Greece as a
friendly nation that had in recent years begun to adapt to
European standards, with "admirable economic results". The
Chancellor saluted the Greek Premier's effectiveness and realistic
policy.
Swedish Prime Minister Goran Persson also personally praised
Mr. Simitis who, he said, had "defied political cost" in
implementing his policies.
Britain's premier Tony Blair congratulated Mr. Simitis and
said Greece had won its bet to enter the eurozone.
Italian Premier Juliano Amato hailed the "sacrifices, work
and labor of Greek citizens" in the hard and systematic effort
that led the country to successfully enter EMU.
Spanish premier Jose Maria Aznar, praised the Greek
government for having achieved a truly difficult goal set just a
few years ago.
European Commissioner Pedro Solbes, responsible for economic
and monetary affairs, stated that Greece will now benefit from a
climate of economic and monetary stability.
"For the EU it was a positive event because it shows other
countries that the door to joining the euro-zone was open to those
that want and can pass through it," he added.
[05] GREEK POSTAL WORKERS CALL OFF STRIKE
Greece's postal workers' union has called off a "warning
strike" planned for today.
Calling for the reorganization of ELTA (Hellenic Postal
Services), the workers' union was to strike in demand of the
urgent hiring of more staff to cover shortfalls.
[06] SVVE CHAIRMAN: EMU TO BOOST FOREIGN INVESTMENT
Greece's accession to the Economic and Monetary Union will
boost the country's position in terms of foreign investments,
according to the chairman of Industries Association of Northern
Greece (SVVE) Vasilis Takas.
In an interview with the Macedonian Press Agency, Mr. Takas
stated that the low cost of money, coupled with the long-term
planning capability, will facilitate investments in the region.
However, he added, a critical parameter will be the
modernization steps to be taken by the state throughout its
operational levels, including the sectors of public
administration, education, health and justice.
"The single biggest shortcoming of Northern Greece's
enterprises in terms of taking advantage of the European
unification is the continued lack of transportation infrastructure
and the - resultant- high cost of accessing the European
markets," Mr. Takas said.
[07] G/T FRIENDSHIP CONCERT GIVEN IN ANKARA
Komotene's folk orchestra was joined by the student choir of
Gazi University in a concert given in Ankara last night for the
sake of Greek-Turkish friendship and fraternity.
According to the Turkish news agency Anadolu, the concert was
attended by a host of dignitaries, among them Greece's Ambassador
to Ankara Ioannis Korantis and Komotene officials.
Addressing the concert's opening, Mr. Korantis said that the
reciprocal visits between Greek and Turkish officials are the
result of diplomatic rapprochement between the two countries.
The president of the Komotene municipality's cultural affairs
department Vasilis Tsipriyannides also expressed his satisfaction
over visiting the Turkish capital.
[08] GREECE IN UNESCO CULTURAL DIVERSITY COMMITTEE
Greece has been appointed a member of the 18-member experts
committee of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and
Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the group responsible for forging
next decade's cultural diversity policy.
Greece will be represented by author Vasilis Vasilikos who
will join representatives from France and Spain, also newly
appointed.
[09] ARCHIBISHOP DEMANDS MEETING WITH GOVERNMENT AND THREATENS TO
GATHER SIGNATURES AGAINST IT
The Archibishop of Athens and All of Greece Christodoulos has
once again called upon the Greek government to reconsider its
decision to remove religious affiliation from personal identity
cards, urging the State to make it optional. The Archibishop,
speaking at a huge gathering organized by the Church of Greece at
which tens of thousands of supporters were present, gave a speech
during which he avoided making extreme statements, in contrast to
the speech he made at last week's rally in Thessaloniki.
"Hellas, Europe, Orthodoxy" was the slogan covering the three-
level stage from which the Archibishop spoke to the people. He
made it clear that the Church of Greece, would issue petitions at
every parish in order to gather "thousands of signatures" from all
those in favour of making the removal of religious affiliation on
personal identity cards optional, before handing them over to the
President of the Democracy and to Parliament. Although admitting
that the issue of identity cards has given rise to social rupture,
Archibishop Christodoulos maintained that this rupture was not
provoked by the Church, "which is a place of love and the basic
element of social cohesion".
Archibishop Christodoulos described the rally as being
unrivaled in size, however this time he made no comparisons to the
size of political rallies held in the past, stating that "we are
all here, a peaceful, affable, gentle yet decided nation" and
asking for the walls of prejudice to be broken down "so that peace
may come". The Archibishop firmly denied accusations that he has
made the issue of identity cards political and that he is
attempting to replace the work being done by the government.
During the rally, which was echoed by chants of "the youth does
not want the new identity cards" and "we want dialogue here and
now" amongst others, the Archibishop assured his followers that
the Church of Greece will demand a meeting with the government.
Speaking of the Greek Prime Minister, Archibishop Christodoulos
complained that "he should not hold the Church in contempt or
refuse to meet its members personally."
Shortly before bringing his speech to a close, the
Archibishop described the rally as "impressive" and mentioned that
distance had been no object for the masses of people, who arrived
in over 2000 coaches from all over Greece, "from Corfu to Chios,
Thrace to Crete and from Rhodes to Karpenisi."
[B] INTERNATIONAL NEWS
[10] US, RUSSIA REFUTE REPORTS OF OFFER TO MILOSEVIC
Both the U.S. State Department and the Russian Foreign
Ministry have officially refuted a "The New York Times" report
which claimed that Washington and Moscow (along with other NATO
allies, including Greece) are exploring the possibility that
Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic be permitted to leave office
with guarantees for his safety and savings.
U.S. officials emphasized that the Clinton administration is
not preparing any offer to Milosevic and will not make one.
Another senior official was quoted as saying the United States
would condemn any proposal that would allow Milosevic to go
anywhere but to the war crimes tribunal in The Hague.
Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said the report was the
result of a "fertile imagination."
Greece's undersecretary of Press Telemachus Hitiris also
categorically refuted the report's claims of Greek involvement.
[11] ALBANIA: ALPHA CREDIT UPS CLIENT CREDIT VOLUME
Tirana's Alpha Credit Bank has tripled the average volume of
the credits for every client, according to the Albanian news
agency ATA, which quotes bank sources.
The increase was facilitated after the Bank of Albania
removed the limit of bank credit and thus allowed the Greece-based
led Alpha Credit Bank to grant credits in accordance to its
capital.
According to the report, the said bank's capital increased
during the first half of this year and credits up to 1 million
dollars have been delivered.
|
