Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation: News in English, 99-06-08

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From: The Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation at <http://www.cybc.com.cy/>

CONTENTS

[01] HEADLINES

[02] DIOXIN

[03] CLERIDES CHINA

[04] LYSSARIDES

[05] YUGOSLAVIA

[06] ANASTASIADES

[07] OCALAN

[08] PORT STRIKE

[09] BUILDERS MARCH

[10] WEATHER

[01] HEADLINES

--- President Glafcos Clerides, who is on an official visit to China, met today with Prime Minister Ju Rong Tsi.

--- Turkish prosecutors today demanded that Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan be hanged.

--- The West and Russia reached a landmark agreement today that could bring peace to the Balkans.

AND

--- Gunmen killed four Lebanese judges today in a grisly machinegun attack on a courtroom in the southern city of Sidon.

[02] DIOXIN

For the time being, the authorities advise people to avoid consuming meat and dairy products.

The fuss around the dioxin scandal is approaching panic levels internationally.

The Cyprus authorities are trying to calm down consumers.

The Government has received a Directive from the European Commission, with which Belgium must issue certificates for products not containing the carcinogen dioxin.

The authorities have issued restrain order regarding four tons of Belgian Mozzarella cheese, 53 barrels of butter, and certain milks.

Meanwhile, 70 tons of stock feed have been examined and do not contain dioxin. In Luxembourg, the Council of Health Ministers is evaluating the effectiveness of control measures on Belgian products.

The European Union has been places in quarantine by its major trade competitors, due to the dioxin scandal.

The United States and Japan have closed their borders to many European foods, not only those from Belgium.

[03] CLERIDES CHINA

During the meeting, both sides stressed the need to reform the UN Security Council, so that it is more effective in implementing international law.

The Chinese Premier reiterated his country's support for a peaceful, just and reasonable solution to the Cyprus problem, in the context of UN resolutions.

He also thanked President Clerides for condemning the NATO bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Yugoslavia.

President Clerides thanked China for its stable and consistent position on the Cyprus problem.

[04] LYSSARIDES

He said that the G8 will just call on the UN Secretary-General to bring both sides to the negotiating table.

Mr Lyssarides was speaking during a visit to the Nicosia Municipality.

He said that there are indications that the G8 will not undertake any initiative on the Cyprus problem, nor would it make any proposals.

Asked about prospects for a solution to the Cyprus problem, Mr Lyssarides said that this depends on developments in Yugoslavia.

[05] YUGOSLAVIA

After two days of talks between foreign ministers of the Group of Seven industrial powers and Russia, German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer that a breakthrough had finally been achieved by agreeing on a Security Council resolution.

The draft resolution will be passed to the UN Security Council for approval.

Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov said in Cologne that further discussions would be needed in the Security Council on the make-up of an international peacekeeping force for Kosovo.

If the resolution is passed by the Security Council, pressure will mount on Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic to start pulling his troops out of Kosovo.

The five permanent members of the Security Council are the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China. The Chinese, bitterly opposed to NATO's actions in Yugoslavia, have yet to say whether they will back the new deal.

[06] ANASTASIADES

Speaking at a press conference, Mr Anastasiades said that his party had repeatedly condemned the bombings against Yugoslavia, but had disagreed on the tactics of some political parties.

[07] OCALAN

Ocalan stands accused of treason and responsibility for the deaths of more than 29,000 Kurdish rebels, Turkish troops and civilians killed since his Kurdistan Workers' Party took up arms in 1984.

Judges adjourned the case for 15 days to allow Ocalan's lawyers to prepare their summing-up, and a verdict is expected towards the end of this month. Turkey has not carried out an execution since 1984.

The court on the top security prison island of Imrali had reconvened today after a three-day break to allow prosecutors time to prepare their final statement.

Ocalan has offered to help negotiate an end to the fighting and bring the guerrillas down from the mountains of the mainly Kurdish southeast in return for his life being spared.

[08] PORT STRIKE

The decision was taken this morning, after a proposal put forward by their trade unions, SEK and PEO.

On June 17, the Council of Ministers will examine a proposal drawn up by a Ministerial Committee, on the issue of compensating 51 workers who will be out of work.

At their meeting today, the workers stressed the need for full co-operation between the trade union movement and the Government, in order to find a solution to the problem.

[09] BUILDERS MARCH

They also demanded that employers breaking the law and foreign workers be taken to court.

The workers met this morning to condemn the employment of aliens, stressing that 10 per cent of builders are unemployed.

They also said that despite specific complaints about the illegal employment of foreign workers, no-one has yet been taken to court.

The demonstrators then marched to the Ministries of the Interior, Justice and Commerce, where they submitted a resolution.

FIRE fire broke out today in a metal works factory in the village of Tersefanou, causing damage of 40,000 pounds.

The fire broke out at around 11:30 this morning at the factory of Keti Hajipanayiotou, on the Kiti-Tersefanou road.

The Director of the Larnaca Fire Brigade, Kakoulis Mountoukos, said that the fire was probably started by flammable liquids stored in the factory.

Five persons working at the factory tried to put the blaze out with fire extinguishers, but had to abandon the building due to high temperatures.

[10] WEATHER

Winds in the morning will be northwesterly, two to three beaufort, and in the afternoon southwesterly, moderate, four beaufort.

The sea will be slight, and in the afternoon moderate in windward areas.

The temperature will reach 33 degrees inland, 29 on the south coast, 27 on the west coast, and 22 over the mountains.

The fire hazard is high in all forest areas.

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