Subject: A.N.A. Bulletin 22/3/95 Topic: ana From: "Greek Press Office BBS, Ottawa" ATHENS NEWS AGENCY BULLETIN, March 22, 1995 =========================================== Ellnviko Grafeio Tupou kai Plnroforiwv Ottawa, Canada E-Mail Address: grnewsca@sympatico.ca) CONTENTS ======== [1] Gov't stands firm on 'objective criteria', says committed to fiscal justice, broadening tax base [2] Delvinaki seven to appear before magistrate today [3] Anastasios arrives in Athens for medical treatment [4] French EU presidency positive on possibility of Athens-Skopje direct talks [5] Greece wants to buy Raytheon missile kits [6] PASOK Ethics Committee still out on issue of dissenters [7] Lymberis to visit Egypt [8] Venizelos confers with Evert on media bill [9] Lianis denies charges of poisoning in basketball match [10] Athens hopes to host '97 world athletics meet [11] Senior police officers suspended, fined for violence at pensioners' march [12] Nistikakis to answer queries on further charges ================================================================ [1] Gov't stands firm on 'objective criteria', says committed to fiscal justice, broadening tax base ---------------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou said yesterday the government would not abolish the tax law, terming it a "bold and courageous step towards restoring fiscal justice." Mr. Papantoniou was speaking to reporters after a meeting attended by government officials and chaired by Under-Secretary to the Prime Minister Antonis Livanis focusing on the problems caused by wide-ranging protests by farmers and merchants against the government's "objective criteria" to estimate taxable income. Mr. Papantoniou said the government was not prepared to make any changes to the new tax law. The government, he added, is determined to implement the law so as to put an end to the situation in which salaried workers and pensioners shoulder 73 per cent of the tax burden. Also taking part in the meeting, in addition to Mr. Livanis and Mr. Papantoniou, were Finance Minister Alexandros Papadopoulos, Transport Minister Athanasios Tsouras, Press Minister Evangelos Venizelos, Finance Under-Secretary Dimitris Georgakopoulos and Transport Under-Secretary Christos Kokkinovassilis. Mr. Papadopoulos later yesterday released the tables of "objective criteria" on the basis of which the income tax of farmers would be calculated. The meeting also focused on difficulties created for traffic to northern Greece by the farmers' roadblocks. Protests by farmers, trades-people and craft industry owners in the prefectures of Thessaloniki and Alexandroupolis continued and spread to the prefecture of Florina yesterday. The protesters are demanding the abolition of a new law which calculates the income tax of non-salaried workers on the basis of "objective criteria", in effect establishing a minimum income tax regardless of the amount of income declared. The farmers are also protesting low crop prices following the revision of the European Union's Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the GATT agreement. During the past week, protests have been held in many parts of the country, including Corfu, Patras and Thessaly. Agriculture Minister George Moraitis had a long meeting with farmers' representatives who stressed that although they considered the new system of taxation to be unjust, the abolition of the "objective criteria" was not one of their main demands. They said that the nation-wide mobilisations had been organised in support of a number of other demands which were much more serious. Mr. Moraitis replied that only affluent farmers would be taxed on the basis of the objective criteria. The vast majority of farmers, he said, was not being taxed. Those who will be called on to pay tax, Mr. Moraitis added, are the affluent farmers and big landowners, as well as city dwellers who own and rent out extensive areas of farm land. Mr. Moraitis said that other demands of the farmers concerning tobacco, cotton, oil, subsidies and compensation were currently being examined by the government. "I have put all the farmers' demands to the government and the European Union. In the next few days with the package of prices being discussed in Brussels, I hope to have good news with regard to many of their demands," Mr. Moraitis said. The farmers' representatives, however, did not consider Mr. Moraitis' assurances as satisfactory and said that they would continue their protests. The General Confederation of Agricultural Associations (GESASE) issued an announcement yesterday saying the new tax law affects a small group of big landowners and various "spivs" who keep two jobs. According to the announcement, the landowners are no more than 10 per cent of the total number of farmers in Greece, yet they control more than 70 per cent of the value of agricultural produce, enjoy an overwhelming majority of Community subsidies and individual quotas and are also responsible to a great extent for surplus production for which all farmers are fined. [2] Delvinaki seven to appear before magistrate today ----------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): The seven armed men arrested near the Greek-Albanian border Sunday will appear before an investigating magistrate in Ioannina today to answer charges of possession of illegal weapons. The seven, who are currently being held at Ioannina police headquarters after being charged Monday, were arrested by a Greek police patrol near the village of Delvinaki in Northwest Greece and found to be carrying nine assault rifles and 897 rounds of ammunition. In a related development in the case, the government said yesterday it had recalled a member of its Tirana embassy staff. Government spokesman Evangelos Venizelos said that the recall concerned Panagiotis Moulieris, who was reportedly arrested previously by Albanian police for distributing leaflets of the Liberation Front of Northern Epirus (MAVI). Mr. Moulieris was later released because of his diplomatic immunity. Saying he had ordered a thorough inquiry, Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou expressed his concern Monday over possible efforts to destabilise a freshly inaugurated period of rapprochement between Greece and Albania. "There is a very dark side to the issue. It is a clear act of provocation," Mr. Papandreou said. "The decision and strict instructions of the prime minister is that the affair involving the arrest of seven Greeks and Albanians... be thoroughly investigated," Mr. Venizelos said yesterday. "If there is a network," he added, "it will be fully exposed. The government will not allow the country to suffer an affront internationally nor will it tolerate jingoism." Replying to questions, Mr. Venizelos said that relations with Albania had "entered a particularly positive phase" and said that Tirana's reaction to the incident, after being officially briefed by the Greek government, had been "fair and positive". The seven have been identified as Marios Koutoulas, 26, who is from Northern Epirus (southern Albania) and has a residence permit, Fotios Beleris, 23, from Northern Epirus, George Anastasoulis, 34, an army reserve officer and reportedly the leader of the group, Apostolos Karvelas, 36, a former policeman, George Pappas, 30, George Christou, 26 and Haralambos Pappas, 21. Police are continuing their investigations throughout Greece but focusing mainly on Athens and north-west Greece. Although Mr. Anastasoulis and perhaps Mr. Karvelas are believed to be the leaders of the armed group, the police consider that at least five other people currently wanted for questioning are leading members of MAVI. According to an ANA report from Ioannina, the Albanian police are also conducting "discreet inquiries", mainly in the area of Chimarra and Deropolis, where the three arrested ethnic Greek Albanians live, without any arrests being made. In Ioannina, the report said, the local press, organisations and citizens have strongly condemned the actions of the seven, underlining that it would have led to a worsening of relations between Greece and Albania which in turn would have adverse repercussions for the ethnic Greek minority in southern Albania. In Tirana, the Albanian government congratulated Greece yesterday on the Delvinaki arrests. "The action taken by Athens marks an important and tangible step in reinforcing relations between Greece and Albania," said Interior Minister Agron Musaraj. The Albanian daily Koha Yona newspaper quoted Foreign Minister Alfred Serreqi as condemning the plot which, he said, "comes at a time when both countries are stepping up efforts to make up for lost time." The Co-ordinating Committee of the North Epirus Struggle (SFEVA) issued an announcement yesterday condemning the action by the "seven." "It is now more necessary than ever for all forces of Hellenism to join in for the protection of the rights of Northern Epirots but in doing so should follow totally transparent, peaceful and democratic procedures," SFEVA said. Coalition of the Left and Progress Nikos Constantopoulos yesterday said that all extremist organisations undermining Greece's foreign policy should be eliminated and their instigators exposed. Mr. Constantopoulos said the Delvinaki arrests was a very serious and dangerous incident for peace and stability in the region. [3] Anastasios arrives in Athens for medical treatment ------------------------------------------------------ Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): Orthodox Archbishop of Albania Anastasios arrived in Athens for medical treatment yesterday afternoon, after finally obtaining a six-month exit visa from Albanian authorities. The archbishop, who is suffering an eye complaint requiring medical treatment available outside Albania, had been denied a visa for some time now, and the development is seen as the first benefit of the recent thaw in Greek-Albanian relations. Anastasios said the regime governing the granting of visas ought to be liberalised, because it was only this free communication that would help relations between the two countries to improve. He welcomed Sunday's arrest of seven armed extremists suspected of trying to mount an attack inside Albania, saying that the truth behind bloody incidents in the past, which undermined relations, seemed to be on the way to being revealed. "There could be no rapprochement between the two peoples without truth and mutual respect... I think the fact that these things have come to light is the great hope for the next steps... A greater effort and systematic work will be needed by all for mutual respect and understanding between peoples, the true co-operation... There are circles which would not want this rapprochement," he said. He added that the Orthodox Church and the Greek community of Albania had been sorely tried in the past year, but had had the support of sister churches and the Ecumenical Patriarchate. [4] French EU presidency positive on possibility of Athens-Skopje direct talks ----------------------------------------------------------------- Paris, 22/03/1995 (ANA - G. Zitouniati): French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe and European Affairs Minister Alain Lamassoure yesterday underlined the European Union French Presidency's disposition to contribute to a dialogue between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). The statements were made on the sidelines of the final conference on the Stability Pact in Europe which was concluded in Paris yesterday. Replying to questioners, Mr. Juppe said the EU showed great interest in whatever was happening in FYROM and contributed to facilitating a solution. Efforts had led to no breakthrough so far. He said Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias had informed them that new contacts were anticipated in New York in the next few days, adding that he hoped the two or three points left in the dispute would be resolved as soon as possible. Mr. Lamassoure said he hoped the two countries would break free of the existing deadlock. "We have ascertained that over the past few weeks we have managed to resume dialogue on many important issues concerning our Greek friends. There was a disengagement in Greece's relations with Albania, there was an agreement for customs union with Turkey which is something bringing a new form of relations between Greece and Turkey," he said. Mr. Lamassoure said a contribution should be made towards facilitating dialogue resuming between Greece and FYROM, adding that he was convinced the conference on security would contribute in this context. Replying to a questioner from FYROM on whether France would launch an initiative to help resolve the problem between the two countries, Mr. Lamassoure said: "Our concern is to act only when we are useful. The best solution for us is for the countries involved to settle their problems by themselves." In Skopje, an ANA dispatch reported a government spokesman saying that direct dialogue under the "shade of the (Greek trade) embargo) was unacceptable to the government of FYROM". Government spokesman Giounar Ismail told journalists that "the embargo will have to be lifted in order for it to be possible for dialogue to begin" and added that "FYROM's positions are not new, we always insisted on immediate negotiations with Greece and of course within the framework of the UN." [5] Greece wants to buy Raytheon missile kits --------------------------------------------- Washington, 22/03/1995 (Reuter): The US Defence Department informed Congress on Monday that Greece wants to buy Raytheon-made improvement kits for its Hawk missile battery ground support systems for $150 million. It said Greece would use the modification kits to improve its air defences and said the sale would not upset the military balance in the region. Such weapons sales must be made through the governments involved, not directly with the manufacturer, and the Defence Department must notify Congress in advance to give it a chance to block a sale if opposition is strong enough. [6] PASOK Ethics Committee still out on issue of dissenters ----------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): The ruling party PASOK convened its Ethics Committee yesterday evening to hear the cases of four high-profile dissenters, summoned to provide explanations of recent statements considered to be deviating from party line. Uncertainty prevailed until late last night over the outcome of the session, after only one of the four summoned, former alternate foreign minister Theodoros Pangalos, stayed long enough to meet with the committee, saying he did not wish to undermine the party with his absence. He expressed the hope that the session would open the way to substantive dialogue on the problems of the country and the party. Ex-minister and former European Union commissioner Vasso Papandreou walked out of the session five minutes after appearing, and made a sharp statement, saying she had appeared simply to divest the committee of any excuse of charging her with disrespect towards the party's elected organs. Instead, she charged the committee of a lack of ethics in its operation. She said it was regrettable that at a time of such acute problems, certain people had opted for penalising political positions and proposals, which she rejected, and she submitted a memorandum asking that political issues posed be discussed in the competent party organs. Former finance minister Dimitris Tsovolas did not appear, but sent a memorandum stressing that the foremost responsibility of a party member was the defence of its ideology, and that the deviation of ideology from feasibility in politics ought not to cause a crisis of identity. He asserted the functioning of party organs was inadequate, rendering its organisation ineffective. Sources said that the fourth of the summoned cadres, former mayor of Piraeus Yiannis Papaspyrou, would not appear. [7] Lymberis to visit Egypt --------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): National Defence General Staff Chief Admiral Christos Lymberis will pay an official visit to Egypt March 25-29, returning a visit to Athens by his Egyptian counterpart Salah Mohamed Atia Halabi. Talks between the two National Defence General Staff chiefs will focus on issues of mutual military concern. Mr. Lymberis will also visit Mount Sinai and the Patriarch of Alexandria and meet Greek community leaders in Alexandria. [8] Venizelos confers with Evert on media bill ---------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/033/1995 (ANA): Press and Media Minister Evangelos Venizelos held talks with main opposition New Democracy party leader Miltiades Evert on a mass media bill yesterday, saying afterwards he felt optimistic over a coincidence of views on crucial points contained in the bill. Mr. Venizelos, who met Mr. Evert at ND's offices, outlined main points but did not deliver the texts of the bill initially planned to be tabled in Parliament on Friday but shifted to next week. [9] Lianis denies charges of poisoning in basketball match ---------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): Sports Under-Secretary George Lianis yesterday rejected allegations by the chairman of CSKA Moscow basketball club that five of the Russian team's top players were poisoned before a European Cup match in Piraeus last week. Mr. Lianis presented the findings of the University of Athens, according to which no toxic substance was present in the urine or blood of the CSKA players, five of whom were taken to hospital shortly before the European Champion Clubs' Cup quarter-final against Olympiakos. Olympiakos won the game 79-54 to go through to the Final Four competition in Zaragoza, Spain next month. A Reuters despatch from Moscow yesterday quoted CSKA chairman Mikhail Reznikov as saying "it was a case of premeditated poisoning" while declining to specify who might have been responsible. [10] Athens hopes to host '97 world athletics meet -------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): Athens has applied to host the 1997 World Athletics Championship, following Mexico's pullout due to domestic economic turmoil, according to an announcement on Monday by President of the Amateur Athletics Association (SEGAS) Stratos Molivas. Athens, also bidding for the 1999 championships, is the second city with Helsinki, Finland to submit the application to the International Amateur Athletics Federation (IAAF). [11] Senior police officers suspended, fined for violence at pensioners' march ------------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): Two high-ranking police officers were suspended from duty yesterday and a third fined after being found responsible for excessive force used by riot police against protesting old-age pensioners earlier this month. Attica Police Chief Nikos Rellakis was suspended for three months and Athens Police Chief Pantelis Giorgas for two months. Deputy Police Chief Charalambos Christofareizis was fined one month's salary. The penalties were decided at a meeting of the Supreme Police Council chaired by the head of the Greek police, Manolis Hourdakis. Riot police used tear-gas and truncheons to disperse elderly pensioners who tried to break through police cordons outside Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou's official residence. The pensioners had wanted to meet with Mr. Papandreou to discuss demands for higher pensions. [12] Nistikakis to answer queries on further charges ---------------------------------------------------- Athens, 22/03/1995 (ANA): Former deputy police chief Michalis Nistikakis, currently on trial on antiquities smuggling charges, was due to appear before an investigating magistrate after the hearing yesterday to answer a number of further charges. Mr. Nistikakis and eight co-defendants are on trial for acquiring antiquities from illegal excavations and trying to sell 68 artefacts dating from the fifth to the first century B.C. He was due to appear yesterday evening before investigating magistrate Maria Papaspyrou to answer charges of complicity in arms trafficking, attempting to abuse a position of authority, making false declarations and committing fraud against the Greek state. The last charge is connected with the waste of approximately 700 million drachmas allocated for the fight against terrorism, including payments to informers. Mr. Nistikakis was implicated in arms trafficking by the main accused in an ongoing trial, George Alexakis, who has also been detained for his alleged participation in the April 1991 Patras bomb blast. The Palestinians already convicted of the blast have told police that it was Mr. Alexakis who supplied them with the explosives.