Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-03-18
NEWS IN ENGLISH
Athens, Greece, 18/03/1998 (ANA)
MAIN HEADLINES
- Polish president in Athens in April
- Dockworkers in Piraeus, Thessaloniki strike
- Students march in downtown Athens
- New changes to social welfare
- Gem appraiser arrested with counterfeit notes
- Robber caught by passers-by
- Weather
- Foreign Exchange
NEWS IN DETAIL
Polish president in Athens in April
Polish President Aleksander Kwasniewski arrives in Athens on April 6 for a
three-day official visit and talks with the Greek state and government
leadership.
During his stay, Mr. Kwasniewski will attend a Greek-Polish Business
Conference on ways of expanding economic relations between the two
countries to be held in Athens between April 5 and 7.
The conference is sponsored by the Hellenic Organisation for Small and
Medium Size Enterprises and Handicrafts (EOMMEH) and prominent Greek and
Polish companies, and not the commercial section of the Polish embassy as
incorrectly reported in the March 13 ANA Daily Bulletin.
National economy minister Yannos Papantoniou and his Polish counterpart
Janus Steinhof will also attend.
Discussions at the conference will focus on possible cooperation in the
sectors of energy, telecommunications, defence, agriculture and foodstuffs,
metals, clothing, tourism etc.
Dockworkers in Piraeus, Thessaloniki strike
Chanting slogans such as "Hands off the ports", about 800 dockworkers of
the Piraeus Port Authority marched through the streets of Piraeus as part
of a 24-hour warning strike to protest the government's decision to
privatize the country's two biggest ports of Piraeus and Thessaloniki.
All the other ports of the country fall within the jurisdiction of the
local government organisations.
The dockworkers' colleagues in Thessaloniki also held a 24-hour strike and
protest rally today, in effect closing down the northern Greek city's
commercial port.
Dockworkers' representatives in Piraeus told a rally which preceded the
protest march that although the port authority organisations of Piraeus and
Thessaloniki were in need of modernisation, measures should only be taken
within the existing institutional framework now governing them.
Speakers called on the government to revoke its decision for the privatisation
of the two ports.
A delegation of dockworkers later met with Merchant Marine Minister Stavros
Soumakis who restated the government's privatisation plans, stressing that
both port organisations were heavily in debt and for the first time last
year had asked to be included in the State budget.
The minister called on the dockworkers to engage in continuous dialogue to
avoid the possibility of some of them losing their jobs.
In statements to the ANA, the president of the "Kitous" union of stevedores
in Thessaloniki warned that if the government insisted on changing the
port's legislative framework, the dockworkers would go on a long-term
strike.
Students march in downtown Athens
Technical college and university students staged a protest march to an
education ministry building in central Athens today, demonstrating against
the introduction of tertiary study programmes that will be open to
all.
The students' fear the move will lead to a downgrading of their own degrees
and accuse the education ministry of trying to "cut the connection between
a degree and the right to a profession".
They are also asking for more funds for education.
New changes to social welfare
A new social welfare bill based on making use of both the public and
private sectors in order to help "those who are truly in need" has been
drawn up by Social Welfare Undersecretary Theodoros Kotsonis.
To be discussed tomorrow by the ruling PASOK's relevant parliamentary
committee, the bill is aimed at replacing current programmes which Kotsonis
himself admits are outdated.
The new system will include volunteers and non-governmental organisations,
while private sector services will be made use of within a "strict
framework".
All activities will be coordinated by a special committee.
The existing National Welfare Organisation (EOP) and the Patriotic
Foundation for Social Welfare (PIKPA) are to be merged into an organisation
to plan programmes on a national level, organise research and implement
pilot programmes.
Social workers are to play a greater role, through a network of primary
care services.
The bill is expected to be tabled in parliament after Easter.
Gem appraiser arrested with counterfeit notes
An appraiser of precious stones has been arrested after a search of his
office in Athens revealed high-tech equipment which has allegedly been used
to forge Greek and foreign banknotes with a face value of over 180 million
drachmas.
The police believe that the arrested man, Dionysis Valen, 45, is the leader
of a gang of counterfeiters which has been forging money for at least three
years.
The face value of the forged notes produced is over 180 million drachmas,
of which 33 million drachmas has already been placed in circulation.
According to the police, the counterfeit money circulating in Greece is
mainly in denominations of five and ten thousand drachmas which has been
used to pay bills in nightclubs and at retail stores for the purchase of
various goods.
They also believe that forged dollar bills of a high face value have been
distributed throughout the Balkans, making it very difficult for them to be
traced.
Valen was apprehended after information gleaned by the police from the
arrest of an unnamed man in Terpsithea, Athens on February 23 who was found
in possession of ten forged ten-thousand drachma notes.
The gang is alleged to have used a state-of-the-art computer system
comprising a screen, two keyboards, two CPUs and a colour laser printer, as
well as a machine for making plastic cards, two high precision paper-
cutting machines and an automatic money counting machine.
From Valen's flat police also seized 32 forged five-thousand drachma notes,
2,376 forged ten-thousand drachma notes, 2,126 forged 100 dollar bills, a
forged police identity card, four one-million drachma treasury bills, 410
sheets of paper on each of which four single dollar bills were printed and
42 sheets on each of which three one-thousand drachma notes were printed.
The Greek police are continuing their investigation in cooperation with
Interpol, since they believe that Valen maintained connections with
international counterfeiting gangs.
Robber caught by passers-by
One of three men who robbed a taxi driver at knife-point late last night in
the Piraeus suburub of Nikaia was caught by passers-by and handed over to
police.
The three men hailed a taxi driven by Mihalis Marinopoulos, 35, on Thivon
Avenue and robbed him of his takings of 8,000 drachmas after telling him to
stop on Thivon Avenue, threatening him with a knife.
As they fled, several bystanders gave chase after hearing Marinopoulos'
shouts and caught Ioannis Kirtsian, 31, one of the three.
WEATHER
Cloudy skies and sleet is forecast for today in Evia, Thessaly, the
Cycladic islands and parts of southern Greece. Snow in rest of the country.
The phenomena will abate later. Winds northerly strong to very strong in
the east, and gale force in the Aegean Sea. Light snowfall in the northern
suburbs of Athens with temperatures from 2-9C. Strong northerly winds and
light snowfall in Thessaloniki with temperatures from 0-9C.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Tuesday's closing rates (buying) are as follows: U.S. dollar 319.226
British pound 535.660 Japanese Yen(100) 247.048
French franc 52.556 German mark 176.229
Italian lira (100) 17.863 Irish Punt 441.936
Belgian franc 8.537 Finnish mark 57.913
Dutch guilder 156.220 Danish kr. 46.130
Austrian sch. 25.017 Spanish peseta 2.073
Swedish kr. 40.243 Norwegian kr. 42.097
Swiss franc 216.072 Port. Escudo 1.706
AUS dollar 214.163 Can. dollar 226.474
Cyprus pound 601.866
(M.P.)
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