Athens News Agency: News in English, 06-03-21

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From: The Athens News Agency at <http://www.ana.gr/>

CONTENTS

[01] First exhibition halls at new Acropolis musuem to open in 2007

[02] Poll gives ND a 1-point lead over PASOK

[01] First exhibition halls at new Acropolis musuem to open in 2007

In comments to reporters, the minister said he was satisfied with the rate of progress at the previously delayed project, with a massive skeleton expected to be in place by next month, whereas a glass dome topping the new museum is expected to be ready by August. A tentative completion date for the first exhibition halls at the 23,000-square-metre facility is spring 2007.

Artifacts discovered during excavation work at the site will also go on display at another museum beginning in May.

Additionally, both museum and construction officials left open the possibility that one day a month be reserved for visitors to tour the construction site.

The total cost for the project, including the purchasing of surrounding real estate, is 129 million euros.

Finally, Voulgarakis reiterated that Greece has at no time backed off from its demand that the British Museum in London return the Parthenon Marbles, "we're intensifying our efforts with a friendlier approach, as the international community now appears more receptive to such a request".

Caption: Workmen at the construction site for a new Acropolis Museum in central Athens are shown on Tuesday, March 21, 2006. The south side of the 5th century B.C. Parthenon Temple features prominently in the background atop the actual Acropolis, ancient Athens' fortified and venerated hilltop. ANA-MPA photo / O. Panayiotou.

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[02] Poll gives ND a 1-point lead over PASOK

In terms of smaller parties, the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) earned 6.5 percent of respondents' preferences, followed by the out-of-Parliament Popular Orthodox Rally (LA.OS) party with 5.2 percent and the Coalition of the Left (Synaspismos) party with 3.2 percent. Two percent of respondents said they would vote for another party; 3.7 percent cast a blank or invalid choice while, more importantly, 10.5 percent of respondents declared themselves undecided.

In the ubiquitous for Greek opinion polls question, namely, of who is more qualified for the post of prime minister, Premier Costas Karamanlis was picked by 47.8 percent of respondents to PASOK leader George Papandreou's 35.7 percent.

Specifically, 55.5 percent of respondents expressed a positive opinion of Karamanlis, with Papandreou garnering 46 percent. In terms of respondents that identified themselves as PASOK supporters, Karamanlis earned a 26.35-percent positive rating; 44.1 percent of KKE supporters, and roughly one-third of those identified as Synaspismos supporters.

The opinion poll was conducted by the firm GPO and presented on a private Athens TV station Monday evening.

Government reaction

In a later comment regarding the opinion poll results, both the one commissioned by the television station and one by the General Confederation of Greek Workers (GSEE), government spokesman Theodoros Roussopoulos emphasised that numerous problems plague citizens on a day-to-day basis, "one that we are called on to solve...

"We inherited numerous problems, primarily because of the economic conditions left behind by PASOK, and our efforts are constant..." Roussopoulos said in answer to a relevant press question during his regular briefing.

Photo: Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis. ANA-MPA / P. Saitas.

ANA-MPA Copyright © 2004-2005 All rights reserved.

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