Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 01-09-11

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From: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.

CONTENTS

[01] THE GREEK PRIME MINISTER'S STATEMENT

[02] STOCK MARKET WARMS POLITICS

[03] BIG BROTHER IN THE COURT

[04] EXCEPTION OF THE SUPREME COURT PRESIDENT ASKED

[05] THE GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER'S STATEMENTS

[06] THE NEW DEMOCRACY LEADER CONDEMNS THE TERRORIST ATTACKS IN THE US

[07] THE US DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS IN GREECE ARE UNDER POLICE PROTECTION

[08] TERRORISM IN THE UNITED STATES

[09] SEA ACCIDENT INVOLVING CZECH TOURISTS

[10] SEPTEMBER 22: CAR FREE DAY

[11] ANCIENT ARTIFACTS STOLEN FROM VERGINA

[12] GAINS OF +0.75% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

[13] KAZANTZIDIS' HEALTH HAS DETERIORATED

[14] NEW TURKISH PROVOCATION IN CYPRUS

[15] MEDAL TO CHRISTODOULOS FROM KOSTOUNITSA

[16] KARAMANLIS SPEECH AT BOSTON

[01] THE GREEK PRIME MINISTER'S STATEMENT

Prime minister Kostas Simitis sent a message of condolences to US president George Bush stressing that he is deeply shocked by the terrorist hit on the United States and expressed his personal condolences as well as the condolences of the Greek government and the Greek people to the families of the victims.

Mr. Simitis stated that Greece categorically condemns these horrible acts and expressed the wish that those responsible will be arrested and brought to justice.

[02] STOCK MARKET WARMS POLITICS

"The only thing proven in these supposed exposures, is the legality of the functioning of DEKA (Public Operation for Tangible Assets) and the services of the General Accounting Department of the State", mentioned the Minister of Development, Nikos Christodoulakis, in a written statement answering the references made by the former President of New Democracy, Miltiades Evert, in connection to the activities of DEKA in the Stock Market.

The Minister supported that they also prove "the pleasure that Mr. Evert seems to exert from his efforts not only to harm institutions, but even markets, and, in fact, he is attempting to do so at a very critical juncture for international monetary markets". He also stresses that the MP of New Democracy tried to involve his name in the affair twice, avoiding the question of how he was informed about the District Attorney's documents.

The distribution of these public documents which have the signature of the then Deputy Minister of Economy for the billing and credit of accounts belonging to DEKA and the public sector he mentioned that they have already been turned in, in mass, last November, after a question from an MP of New Democracy, and this is a known fact to the MPs, press and anyone else interested.

Meanwhile, New Democracy, according to statements made by its President, asked for the immediate publication of the documents in question, and them being brought before the Section for stopping Parliamentary Procedures. This position was expressed by the Secretary General of the Party, representing them and Mr. Karamanlis, in a telephone discussion they had yesterday with the President of the Parliament, Apostolos Kaklamanis, assuring him that New Democracy will support the relative adjustment of the Parliament's Regulation.

"New Democracy believes that the information of the people comes first and the taking of all actions ensuring legality", stressed Mr. Sioufas in an announcement of his and added that his party "is interested in the essence of the matter, for the full solving of the crime committed against public interest, 1,5 million investors and the prestige of the Stock Market.

According to Mr. Sioufas, the cover-up of this "crime" is nobody's right, while "the criminally responsible must pay, and the politically responsible must leave".

In answer to the earlier statements of PASOK, made by Mr. Christodoulakis, the parliamentary representative of New Democracy, Prokopis Pavlopoulos, accused the Prime Minister and the government of mud slinging and misinformation.

Mr. Pavlopoulos asked the government to take up their responsibilities, to let Justice do its duty for the revealing of the guilty parties and to stop presuming the decisions of justice or threatening judicial employees, as well as the Prime Minister to apologize to Mr. Evert for the provocative statements he made about, so called, misappropriation of judicial documents.

When New Democracy is informed of the content of the documents it will do its duty, in the framework of the Constitution and Parliamentary Regulations. The question is whether the government and the governing majority will do its duty or try, once more, to cover up the responsible parties, invoking, supposed, incrimination of political life", stressed Mr. Pavlopoulos.

[03] BIG BROTHER IN THE COURT

Reactions to the Big Brother show have begun from the very first day of the show on ANT-1 television, when Konstantinos Samartzis and his wife went to the court of the first instance asking for the canceling of the show, supporting that it abolishes human dignity and liberty and cultivates the voyeuristic curiosity of the viewers. The case will be discussed on September 17.

The same view is shared by the President of DIKKI, who in statements in Thessaloniki stressed, "I can't imagine how the independent administrative authorities and the state do not undertake any essential and effective action, to stop the showing of such shows", he underlined.

There were even rallies outside the offices of ANT-1 in Maroussi, protesting the showing of Big Brother, which began at 9. The protesters, members of the Communist Youth and the Organization for Greek Women, threw black plastic bags into the television station and a police force was in the area to stop any riots from developing.

[04] EXCEPTION OF THE SUPREME COURT PRESIDENT ASKED

The members of the national Council for the Claim of German Debts to Greece, requested the exception of the President of the Supreme Court, Stefanos Matthias, from the case of the reimbursements from the German public sector towards victims of the nazi occupation in Greece.

Their decision was announced yesterday in a press conference, who judged that Mr. Matthias is supporting the German side in a n unprecedented way, because, as they support, he has moved to the creation of a special court that will vote against decision 11/2000 of the Plenary Session of the Supreme Court. The request will be examines on September 17, by the 1st Section of the Supreme Court.

The German Press is watching the procedure of the auctioning o German public property in Athens, after the rejection of the relative appeal of Germany from the Greek judicial authorities, on occasion of the fact that indemnities were paid for the slaughter of Distomos by the nazi troops. At the same time there is a barrage of reactions from well known MPs and legal experts, who point out the excellent until now relationships of the two countries, in case of a foreclosure.

Welt am Sonntag, a Sunday newspaper reports:

Political figures of Germany all find the demands illogical and are afraid of the consequences a settlement could have on their country's economy. The Christian-democrat MP, Friedbert Pfluger, stated: It defies all logic. It is like returning to the Hitler regime. But at the same time he is the one that recognizes oversights on the side of Germany. As he said he had warned the government about the danger of escalating demands, but the consequences of the problem were obviously underestimated.

Understanding towards the Greek side does not even come from the MP of the Social-democrat party, and President of the Greek-German group of MPs, Sigrid Skarpelis-Sperk. The MP expects Germany, however, to make a symbolic gesture and proposes the founding of a scholarship fund, or some work of public benefit as was done in the Czech Republic.

Along these lines were the messages that came from members of the European Parliament, such as the President of the Group of Christian-democrats Hartmu Nassauer, who fears that Greek-German relationships will be dramatically upset.

The newspaper also added the opinions of German experts on international issues, such as Karl Doehring, expert in international affairs, Professor of International Law at the Max Planck Institute of Haidelberg, who makes mention of a crime of the Greek state on International Laws. Now Germany is covered by International Law to answer with retaliations, said Mr. Doehring, who also said that if the auction of Goethe takes place, then Greek public property can be auctioned, diplomatic relations may be cut off and bilateral trade agreements may be frozen. In any case, Mr. Doehring does not believe it will come to that, instead he believes that if both countries work out the matter.

The danger of a bad precedent is seen by the International Law Expert, Ingo von Munh and he warned the German side not to give in. If they do, then they will find themselves before an avalanche of demands, he supported.

As the same newspaper reports, the Prime Minister of Greece, Kostas Simitis, is interested in keeping Greece at good terms with NATO and the EU, and is of the opinion that a forced auction cannot take place without the approval of the Minister of Justice. The belated worries of Berlin are justified. The danger of precedent is visible not only in Greece, where dozens such cases are waiting to find justice, but in other countries also, such as Italy, Ukraine and the Czech Republic, where similar demands translate into billions of Deutchmarks.

It is noted that the Prime Minister, in a speech given at the 66th TIF when asked questions on the German reimbursement issue, stated that first the matter has to close legally and then the Greek government will examine how it should promote the issues which are still open, such as the occupational loan.

[05] THE GREEK FOREIGN MINISTER'S STATEMENTS

Greek foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou in statements he made on the multiple terrorist attacks in the United States, pointed out that the international community is strongly concerned about the issue of security and the wider political consequences of those unprecedented acts.

He stressed that those actions did not have as a goal just to cause human loss but their main goal was to undermine the democratic institutions, the open and free societies. He said that all necessary measures have been taken and there is no concern about Greece, adding that the issue is dealt with in a calm and responsible manner.

Mr. Papandreou stated that the EU foreign ministers will have an emergency meeting in Brussels tomorrow morning to discuss the actions they will take within the framework of the European Union.

The Greek foreign minister stated that for the moment there is no information on whether there were Greeks among the victims, while there is also no information on the names of the passengers on board the planes that were used in the terrorist attacks.

He said that the political consequences of those actions will be wide and the international community will have to deal with state security issues and issues concerning the safety of the people, adding that the democratic operation of societies must be safeguarded.

Mr. Papandreou stated that there is no official or unofficial information concerning those responsible for the terrorist attacks.

He confirmed that companies of Greek interests were housed in the Twin Towers in New York, hit by two planes, but there is no information on whether their employees were in the buildings at the time of the attack.

[06] THE NEW DEMOCRACY LEADER CONDEMNS THE TERRORIST ATTACKS IN THE US

Right-wing main opposition party of New Democracy leader Kostas Karamanlis from Boston, where he inaugurated a Greek Studies Department in Tufts University, expressed his regret and indignation over the multiple terrorist hits on the United States today.

Mr. Karamanlis stressed that those unprecedented acts brought horror and indignation to the world public opinion and are condemned by every sensible citizen of the world.

The New Democracy leader sent a telegram of condolences to US president George Bush expressing his sympathy to the families of the victims and his solidarity to the American people, who are going through this tragic ordeal.

[07] THE US DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS IN GREECE ARE UNDER POLICE PROTECTION

The US diplomatic missions and the buildings housing US targets in Greece have been placed under police protection after the wave of terrorist attacks launched against the United States.

The US pavilion in Thessaloniki's 66th International Trade Fair is open but the visitors are being searched.

[08] TERRORISM IN THE UNITED STATES

America is in a state of shock. An unbelievable tragedy has struck the United States that became the target of a number of terrorist attacks. Probably hijacked passenger planes crashed into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center in New York, while another plane crashed into the Pentagon in Washington. Other information, mention terrorist attacks on major US cities, the State Department building and the Capitol building in Washington.

Greek foreign ministry spokesman Panos Beglitis strongly condemned the terrorist attacks on the United States.

Mr. Beglitis underlined that for the moment there is no information on whether there are Greeks among the victims, pointing out that the Greek government has taken all necessary measures for the protection of foreigners in Greece.

He said that Greece is deeply shocked by the tragic events taking place in the United States after the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and prime minister Kostas Simitis sent a telegram of condolences to US president George Bush, while a telegram of condolences was sent by foreign minister Giorgos Papandreou to his American counterpart Colin Powell.

Mr. Beglitis also said that Mr. Papandreou is in continuous contact with the prime minister and the responsible ministers, while he is also in contact with his counterparts in the EU to form a common EU position.

Mr. Beglitis stated that these actions create the conditions for an effective international coordination to combat terrorism.

[09] SEA ACCIDENT INVOLVING CZECH TOURISTS

A sea accident involving 20 Czech tourists happened yesterday in the small Volimon cave in Rio, near the city of Patras in south Greece, when their small boat "Lakrota 3" struck on a rock and as a result two of its passengers were seriously injured.

The injured are Milan Butler, 52, with multiple chest injuries and internal bleeding, while his wife suffered a neck injury and both were taken to Rio Hospital.

According to initial estimates, the accident happened when a wave hit the boat as it was about to enter the cave. The boat's captain was arrested and an investigation is underway to determine the exact causes of the accident.

[10] SEPTEMBER 22: CAR FREE DAY

The city of Athens, 21 municipalities in the wider Athens region and tens of others across Greece will enjoy a Car Free Day on September 22, as Greece will participate in the European "No Car in the City Day".

On that day, people will be able to use mass transportation for free, while traffic and municipal police will stop the cars from entering the cities.

In the event participate a total of 620 European cities, while in Greece the initiative is supported by the ministry of environment, land planning and public works, and the transportation ministry as well as by the local administration, the Athens City Bus Service and the Attiko Metro company.

[11] ANCIENT ARTIFACTS STOLEN FROM VERGINA

Priceless ancient artifacts were stolen from the royal tomb of Euridiki, mother of King Philippos B' the Macedon, situated at the archaeological site of Vergina in northern Greece.

Police are investigating the theft and are in a state of alert for the past two days. Archeologists found out that half of the statuettes (three depicting women and three Sphinxes) as well as two more small statues have disappeared from the ancient tomb.

Archaeologists and police are puzzled regarding the way in which the artifacts were stolen, as the archaeological site is guarded on a 24hour basis and it is hard for anyone to get in without being spotted.

The royal tomb of the mother of King Philippos B' was unearthed by professor Manolis Andronikos after years of excavations in the area, while the value of the stolen artifacts cannot be calculated.

Minister of culture Evangelos Venizelos stated that the case will be solved soon, as the stolen statuettes have been photographed, and identified and are internationally known, therefore they cannot be sold in the stolen artifacts market.

Mr. Venizelos stated that the whole incident is curious as the specific tomb is visited only by dignitaries who are always accompanied by archaeologists. The last such visit was made on August 16, while those responsible for the maintenance of the equipment that keep the micro-climate inside the tomb stable are allowed to enter only once a month.

[12] GAINS OF +0.75% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

Gains of +0.75% were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index rose to 2.555,94 points, while the volume of transactions was 143.7 million Euro or 48.9 billion drachmas.

Of the stocks trading today, the majority, 247, recorded gains, and 72 had losses, while the value of 57 stocks remained stable.

[13] KAZANTZIDIS' HEALTH HAS DETERIORATED

The health of popular Greek singer Stelios Kazantzidis deteriorated further today. According to the medical report that was given to publicity by the Medical Center, where he is hospitalized for 73 days now, the deterioration concerns the operation of his brain as one of his tumors could bleed at any moment.

Stelios Kazantzidis is in a coma since this morning and the next hours are regarded as critical.

[14] NEW TURKISH PROVOCATION IN CYPRUS

The Turks made a new provocation in the early morning hours yesterday when they started throwing stones against a soldier who was guarding the National Guard outpost at Tempi Street in Nicosia, Cyprus.

According to a ministry of defense spokesman, the Cypriot Republic has protested to the United Nations on the incident and the international organization launched an investigation.

[15] MEDAL TO CHRISTODOULOS FROM KOSTOUNITSA

Archbishop Christodoulos met in Belgrade with the President of Yugoslavia, Voislav Kostunica, who awarded him a medal for the help of the Greek Church towards the Serbian people, during the last decade.

The highest medal of the Yugoslav Federation will be awarded to Mr. Christodoulos from the office of Mr. Kostunica.

The Patriarch of the Serbian Church, Paul, was at the meeting.

Archbishop Christodoulos will also meet with the Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Jijic and will arrive in Montenegro tomorrow.

It is the first official visit of the Archbishop to Yugoslavia since 1998.

[16] KARAMANLIS SPEECH AT BOSTON

The Konstantinos Karamanlis Chair, for subjects concerning Greece and Southeast Europe, is the beginning of an ambitious attempt. We want to honor the memory of a great leader, who, through difficult times, against the sirens of demagogy, systematically worked for the upgrading of Greek-American relationships, the European orientation of Greece and the tracing of a multidimensional foreign policy, with special attention to Balkan affairs.

Our goal is to further strengthen the mental ties between Greece and the Balkans, but also to help the American academic community, on which TUFTS University has a positive influence, to better understand the deeper historical and cultural basis and complexities of the Balkans.

The above was underlined by the President of New Democracy, Kostas Karamanlis, in his speech at the inauguration ceremony of the Kostantinos Karamanlis Chair for Greek and Southeastern European Studies at TUFTS University in Boston. The President of N.D. referred to the developments in the Balkans, the continual unrest in FYROM and criticized the international community for its failures and miscalculations which endanger the attempts for stability in the region. He pointed out that the key for long term stability in the region is political and social reform.

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