Macedonian Press Agency: News in English, 00-08-31

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From: The Macedonian Press Agency at http://www.mpa.gr and http://www.hri.org/MPA.

CONTENTS

[01] SAE INAUGURATES NEW OFFICES IN THESSALONIKI

[02] PRIME MINISTER SIMITIS WILL BE IN NEW YORK ON SEPTEMBER 5

[03] THREATS AGAINST MACEDONIA UNIVERSITY THROUGH THE INTERNET

[04] COUNTERFEITERS' RINGS ACROSS GREECE

[05] GREEK SOLDIERS DEPART FOR UROSEVAC

[06] ASSISTANCE TO THE BELGRADE ZOO

[07] IMPRESSIVE GAINS OF 3.72% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

[08] ITALIAN BANK PARTICIPATION IN ALPHA BANK ROMANIA

[09] BLOODY CLASH BETWEEN COAST GUARD OFFICERS AND KURDS IN PATRAS

[10] TWO FRENCH TOURISTS WERE KILLED IN A TRAFFIC ACCIDENT IN PATRAS

[11] OA TO BE SPLIT IN 2 FIRMS: ONE PAYS, OTHER MANAGES

[12] THE GREEK AMBASSADOR TO TIRANA MET WITH THE HUMAN RIGHTS UNION PARTY

[13] SAMARANCH EXPRESSES SATISFACTION OVER THE PROGRESS IN THE PREPARATIONS

[01] SAE INAUGURATES NEW OFFICES IN THESSALONIKI

The presidium of the Council of Greeks Abroad (SAE) will convene in Thessaloniki today, until September 3, while SAE will inaugurate its new and spacious facilities in Thessaloniki on September 2.

The inauguration ceremony will be attended by the Minister of Macedonia-Thrace George Paschalides and other dignitaries and officials, with distinguished guests being the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Aggeliki Laiou and Thessaloniki Mayor Vasilis Papageorgopoulos.

SAE President Andrew Athens will present the Council's Medical Relief Program in the newly independent states of the Former Soviet Union, Albania and Africa. The said program has been recommended for the American Medical Association's "Outstanding World Initiative for Health".

The Medical Relief Program is a $100 million, three-year project to establish medical clinics in the Independent States. Three such clinics have been opened and are operating in Tbilisi, Tsalka and Tsitsihisvari in the Republic of Georgia. Plans for a major clinic have been approved for Mariupole, in Ukraine and similar programs will be established in Southern Russia, Armenia, Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

When completed, the SAE Primary Medical Care network will service 750,000 Greeks and a similar number of their neighbors.

As for tomorrow's program, the presidium will discuss issues related to women, culture, entrepreneurs, academics and scientists, and the Youth Council.

Saturday's and Sunday's session will result in an action plan pertaining to all of the above issues, as well as matters pertaining to repatriates and to the expatriates' right to vote in Greece.

Saturday's formal reception will honor benefactor Thomas Makrides for having donated the office premises to SAE. Covering an area of approximately 500 sq. m., the new offices are located near the city's Music Mansion and take up two levels of the building formerly housing the Makrides Cultural Center. In addition to offices, SAE's brand new premises feature a vast exhibition center and a conference hall.

A.F.

[02] PRIME MINISTER SIMITIS WILL BE IN NEW YORK ON SEPTEMBER 5

Prime minister Kostas Simitis will depart for New York on September 5 at the invitation of US president Bill Clinton who honors the 14 center-left leaders in last year's Berlin summit meeting.

The prime minister will address the UN General Assembly, while he will meet with Archbishop Dimitrios of America and Cypriot Republic president Glafkos Clerides. He will also attend the formal reception that will be given by the Greek ambassador in the United States.

Also, Mr. Simitis is scheduled to meet on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly with Jordan's King Abdullah and the presidents of FYROM, Iran and Albania.

[03] THREATS AGAINST MACEDONIA UNIVERSITY THROUGH THE INTERNET

An e-mail that arrived at Macedonia University in Thessaloniki this morning was a clear threat. It wrote "We are from the terrorist organization "Makedonsko Sonce" (Macedonian Sun) and we inform you that very soon we will undertake bomb attacks aimed at destroying the university building as you have no right to use the name Macedonia".

The University of Macedonia Computer Network Management Center that received the e-mail threat informed deputy dean Mr. Michalis Xatziprokopiou and the police.

The university computer department found out that the e-mail had been sent through the "Macedonia On-Line" FYROM site, which is an Internet provider and it is based at 16 Vasil Glavinov St. in Skopje.

The University of Macedonia authorities contacted the company's general director Mr. Alexander Popovski, who condemned the fact and stated that his site has nothing to do with the threat. However, he revealed that the e-mail had been sent from an Internet Cafe in the city of Ochrid but the individual who sent it can not be located.

It should be noted that a Slavmacedonian-speaking weekly newspaper was being published for many years in Australia under the name "Macedonsko Sonce" expressing the views of extreme ultra-nationalist circles which were promoting a "United Macedonia" with its borders in Mount Olympus and the city of Kavala in Greece. A newspaper under the same name has appeared lately in the city of Skopje expressing similar positions.

[04] COUNTERFEITERS' RINGS ACROSS GREECE

Based on a news report published on the Athens daily "TO VIMA", a report drawn up by the ministry of public order reveals that the issuing of counterfeit documents of all kinds like, identity cards, passports, university diplomas etc, is a widespread phenomenon in Greece.

According to the data provided by the report, in a 3year period there have been recorded 79.535 cases of counterfeit invoices that correspond to tax revenue losses of hundreds of billion drachmas for the Greek state.

Based on figures provided by the ministry of transportation, there are 2.000 taxi cabs and at least 1.000 trucks with counterfeit papers in the region of Athens alone, while in the past 5 years there has been a 700% increase in the issuing of counterfeit residence permits, passports and "white" and "green" cards for foreigners.

[05] GREEK SOLDIERS DEPART FOR UROSEVAC

New Greek forces will depart for Kosovo and the ceremony will be attended by minister of defense Akis Tsochatzopoulos.

The Greek battalion will be based in the new installations of the Rigas Fereos army camp near Urosevac and it will replace army units that have completed their mission in the region.

[06] ASSISTANCE TO THE BELGRADE ZOO

A truck carrying animal feed, medicine and an electricity power generator left for Belgrade yesterday within the framework of the municipality of Thessaloniki assistance to the Belgrade Zoo.

In a letter to Belgrade Zoo director Mr. Bojovic, Thessaloniki's mayor Vasilis Papageorgopoulos pledged the city's full support to the Yugoslav capital zoo that suffered serious damages during last year's bombings.

[07] IMPRESSIVE GAINS OF 3.72% IN THE ATHENS STOCK EXCHANGE

Impressive gains of 3.72% were recorded in the Athens Stock Exchange today. The general index was at 3.557,15 points, while the volume of transactions was at 101.8 billion drachmas.

The overwhelming majority of the stocks trading today namely, 341, had gains and only 12 had losses, while 17 remained unchanged.

[08] ITALIAN BANK PARTICIPATION IN ALPHA BANK ROMANIA

Italian bank Banca Monte Dei Paschi di Siena will participate with a 5% share in the share capital of the Greek Alpha Credit Bank affiliate in Romania.

The deal is expected to benefit significantly both parties. Especially, the Italian bank participation in the Alpha Bank Romania is expected to widen the Greek Alpha Credit Bank field of action as the Italian group has strong ties with distinguished members of the Italian business community.

From its side, the Italian bank will use its participation in the Alpha Bank Romania in order to strengthen its presence in the developing market of Romania. It should be noted that the Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena was founded in 1472 and is the oldest bank in the world as well as, one of the strongest players in the Italian banking sector.

[09] BLOODY CLASH BETWEEN COAST GUARD OFFICERS AND KURDS IN PATRAS

A bloody clash between Coast Guard officers and Kurdish illegal immigrants took place in the city of Patras in the Peloponnese southern Greece at dawn today. According to the Coast Guard, a group of Kurds attacked them with stones and knives defending a fellow Kurd, who had been arrested, accused of a robbery attempt.

During the clash, the Coast Guard officers opened fire and a bullet wounded the young Kurd, in the arm.

[10] TWO FRENCH TOURISTS WERE KILLED IN A TRAFFIC ACCIDENT IN PATRAS

Two French tourists were killed and two others were injured in a traffic accident in Patras when their jeep fell off a 40meter high cliff in Santameri, Achaia in the Peloponnese southern Greece.

The four were on vacation in Greece and they were returning to their hotel after a visit to the St. Maritsa monastery.

[11] OA TO BE SPLIT IN 2 FIRMS: ONE PAYS, OTHER MANAGES

Greece's beleaguered air carrier Olympic Airways is to be split into two separate companies, one of which will undertake all of OA's debt and the other will operate the company, according to a plan presented by the Minister of Transportation and Communications Christos Verelis during his meeting with the Prime Minister Costas Simitis yesterday.

According to the said plan, the economically sound company is to collaborate with financial advisor Price Waterhouse Coopers which is promoting the air carrier's privatization process.

The profits to arise from the privatization are to be funneled into the second company, the financially-ailing one, while a portion of the profits will be allocated to increasing the company's share capital.

Olympic Airways, which has over the past twenty years accumulated debt worth 40 billion drachmas, has been seeking an international airline partner since last June, when British Airways abandoned plans to purchase a stake in the Greek carrier. The state now intends to sell up to 65% of Olympic.

As for the privatization of the state-owned Hellenic Telecommunications Organization (OTE), the Premier reviewed two submitted proposals, one by the Ministry of Transportation and the other by the Ministry of National Economy, and opted for the first which calls for a strategic partner who will acquire a 15-20% stake, but refrain from management. The National Economy Ministry's plan envisioned OTE's management in the strategic partner's hands as well.

According to OTE's financial advisors, Credit Suisse First Boston and UBS Warbourg, strongest among the firms vying for OTE's acquisition are Spain's Telefonica, Germany's Deutsche Telecom, Italy's Telecom Italia, Dutch KPN and the French France Telecom.

A.F.

[12] THE GREEK AMBASSADOR TO TIRANA MET WITH THE HUMAN RIGHTS UNION PARTY LEADER

Greek ambassador to Tirana Alexandros Mallias met with the Greek minority Human Rights Union Party leader Basili Melo.

The Greek ambassador expressed interest over the pre-election situation in Albania as well as over the party's preparations for the elections, according to the newspaper "Demokracia". Mr. Mallias expressed satisfaction for the agreement reached by the Human Rights Union Party and OMONIA which will allow them to present common candidates in the elections especially in southern Albania.

In the meeting were also discussed issues concerning the Greek-Albanian relations and the two men stressed that they are at a very high level. However, both agreed that relations must be promoted because this will be to the interest of the two peoples.

[13] SAMARANCH EXPRESSES SATISFACTION OVER THE PROGRESS IN THE PREPARATIONS FOR THE 2004 OLYMPIC GAMES

International Olympic Committee, IOC, president Juan Antonio Samaranch expressed satisfaction over the progress made in the preparations for the 2004 Olympic Games during his visit to the Athens 2004 pavilion in the International Exhibition EXPO 2000 in Hanover, Germany.

Mr. Samaranch stated that the IOC has read its coordinating committee president report drawn up after his recent visit to Athens and it is satisfied with it. He also stressed the need to meet the timetables set in order for the organizing committee of the games to have the time to check the functioning of the projects.

The IOC president expressed his satisfaction over the Greek prime minister's contribution to the whole undertaking and stressed that the IOC backs and trusts totally the group that manages the "Athens 2004" Organization.

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