|
|
|
Athens News Agency: News in English (PM), 98-12-16
NEWS IN ENGLISH
Athens, Greece, 16/12/1998 (ANA)
MAIN HEADLINES
- Youths rampage through occupied school
- Government will go ahead with reforms
- Popular actor in intensive care
- Strong winds tear off school roof
- School leavers, unemployed tend to drugs
- Flight delays expected over Christmas
- Greenpeace Santas protest PVC in toys
- Weather
- Foreign Exchange
NEWS IN DETAIL
Youths rampage through occupied school
A gang of about 40 youths rampaged through a Thessaloniki high school under
occupation on Tuesday night, breaking desks and chairs and setting fire to
the school's records. Students of the school who are occupying the premises
in protest at education ministry reforms said that some of the youths, who
were not students, approached them and offered them narcotics. About 50
junior and senior high schools are under occupation in the northern Greek
city. On Tuesday, a local teacher and father chained himself to the gate of
a school under occupation, to protest the state's inaction to the
continuing protests.
Government will go ahead with reforms
Government spokesman Dimitris Reppas reiterated the government's commitment
to implementing the ministry's reforms "in their entirety". He expressed
optimism that the spate of school occupations around the country, thought
to number about 1,500, were decreasing in number. Students, teachers and
parents are protesting on a number of issues, including teacher shortages,
education ministry changes to grading and examinations at the primary,
secondary and tertiary levels, the introduction of open university type
programmes, and changes to procedures for appointing new teachers. Also
sparking discontent are budget allocations for education, private schooling,
and the prosecution of those occupying or vandalising school property.
Popular actor in intensive care
One of Greece's best-loved comic actors, Dinos Iliopoulos, was admitted to
intensive care on Wednesday suffering from a severe respiratory infection.
Doctors at the KAT Hospital said Iliopoulos was on a respirator to aid his
breathing. They called his condition "serious but not irreversible" but
expressed concern about the actor's advanced age. Iliopoulos, one of the
leading figures of Greece's cinema "Golden Age" of the 50s and 60s, spent
six days in hospital last month after complaining of feeling poorly at the
end of a theatrical performance. His illness prevented him from receiving
an honorary "Golden Alexander" award at this year's Thessaloniki Film
Festival. The award was bestowed for his contribution to Greek cinema and
theatre.
Strong winds tear off school roof
Gale force winds tore off part of the roof of a primary school in Hania,
Crete, on Wednesday but there were no injuries, school authorities said.
The school's headmaster said the classroom in which most of the debris fell
was empty at the time. The prefecture of Hania has borne the brunt of the
recent cold snap, with torrential rain, strong winds and low temperatures
hitting the region for the second consecutive day. Part of a wall on the
old port of Hania was brought down by the rough seas on Tuesday, and strong
winds uprooted a number of trees in the area.
School leavers, unemployed tend to drugs
Early school leavers and the unemployed are more likely to find themselves
with a drug dependency problem, indicating that information campaigns on
drug abuse must begin from the end of primary school, experts said on
Wednesday, "Most users experiment with cannabis or pills at around 16. This
age coincides with the age they left school," Gerasimos Notaras, the
president of the Centre for Drug Dependency (KETHEA), told a news
conference. Notaras was presenting the centre's annual survey of the
details of those who sought help from KETHEA's nine centres in 1997.
Flight delays expected over Christmas
Flight delays and cancellations are expected to mark the Christmas week in
Greece again this year, following the announcement of labour action by
civil aviation employees. The Federation of Civil Aviation Authority Unions
(OSYPA) said its members would hold two four-hour walkouts from December 21
through to December 23. The work stoppages begin at 6 a.m. and 2 p.m. each
day. OSYPA said it was taking the action to press for the immediate hiring
of personnel to cover needs at regional airports around the country. Also
striking are the union of telecommunications employees, who will stage a
four-hour walkout from 12 noon on December 18 and from 9 a.m. on December
19. They are calling for the immediate appointment of 95 people.
Greenpeace Santas protest PVC in toys
Fifteen members of Greenpeace dressed as Santa Clauses and accompanied by a
saxophone sang carols against the use of PVC in toys outside the commerce
ministry on Wednesday, drawing applause from passersby. The protestors
later met with the secretary general for consumerr protection Christina
Papanikolaou to express their concerns. Papanikolaou said that the
government was working on legislation that would outlaw the use of PVC in
toys. Greenpeace says the manufacture and incineration of plastic polyvinyl
chloride (PVC) causes health and environmental problems.
WEATHER
Western and northern Greece is expected to be partly cloudy on Wednesday.
The rest of the country cloudy with rainfall, scattered snowfall mainly on
the highlands and storms in southern sea areas. Winds northerly, strong to
very strong. Athens is forecast cloudy with light rainfall in the morning
and temperatures ranging from 5C to 11C. Thessaloniki is expected to be
partly cloudy with temperatures ranging from 2C to 9C.
FOREIGN EXCHANGE
Wednesday's rates (buying) U.S. dollar 275.439
British pound 465.030 Japanese yen (100) 236.165
French franc 49.671 German mark 166.512
Italian lira (100) 16.821 Irish Punt 413.466
Belgian franc 8.075 Finnish mark 54.778
Dutch guilder 147.778 Danish kr. 43.815
Austrian sch. 23.645 Spanish peseta 1.958
Swedish kr. 34.262 Norwegian kr. 35.216
Swiss franc 206.177 Port. Escudo 1.636
Aus. dollar 172.057 Can. dollar 178.897
(M.P.)
|
