From: "Greek Press Office BBS, Ottawa" Subject: A.N.A. Bulletin 17/1/95 Athens News Agency Bulletin --------------------------- (Apo to Ellnviko Grafeio Tupou kai Plnroforiwv, Ottaba, Kavadas E-Mail Address: grnewsca@sympatico.ca) * Parliament votes to drop charges against Mitsotakis, in move that signals 'clear break with the past' * Vote 'crucial' for future of nation's political life, premier says * Alevras, others dissent * OECD says performance of Greek economy last year 'positive', * optimistic on course of economic indicators * Turkey comments on premier's interview * Military helps out in snow-struck areas * Russian pledge all assistance in evacuating ethnic Greeks from Chechnya * Tremor recorded * Education ministry looks into promoting Greek in Balkans, wider region * Greece, Georgia sign economic, technological co-operation agreements * Papantoniou says Greece broadly supportive of French economic priorities * Russian committee approves alumina agreement * Bank employees strike to protest lax security Parliament votes to drop charges against Mitsotakis, in move that signals 'clear break with the past' ------------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): Greece's parliament voted early this morning to drop criminal charges against former conservative prime minister Constantine Mitsotakis and two of his former ministers. Following a heated debate in the 300-seat House, 154 deputies voted in favour of dropping the phone-tapping charges against Mr. Mitsotakis and 102 against the motion and 155 deputies in favour and 98 against for dropping charges related to the sale of t he AGET cement company. A simple majority was needed to overturn the charges. A total of 274 deputies voted in the two secret ballots. In the AGET ballot, seven deputies abstained and 14 cast a blank ballot. In the phone-tapping charges, seven deputies abstained with 11 casting blank. The eleven deputies of the Political Spring party walked out of the debate to distance themselves from what leader Antonis Samaras called "a theatrical charade". The nine Communist deputies also walked out, waiting until just before the vote was called. Three New Democracy and two ruling party PASOK deputies were absent. The opposition conservative New Democracy party had said it would vote against the motion introduced by the ruling socialist party, demanding the trials proceed, but ND deputies were allowed to vote according to their conscience. ND argued scrapping charges against Mr. Mitsotakis would leave the former premier's reputation tarnished. Last night's debate was held a week before a tribunal of 13 Supreme Court judges convenes to hear the phone-tapping case against Mr. Mitsotakis. Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou announced his intention to waive charges against his long-standing political rival in his New Year's Eve message to the Greek people. He told parliament his move opted to make a clear break with the past and draw the nation's attention to more pressing domestic and foreign issues. Parliament decided in June last year that Mr. Mitsotakis, prime minister from 1990 to 1993, should stand trial before a special supreme court on charges of morally instigating a scheme to tap the phones of his political rivals between 1988 and 1991, using information obtained by unlawful means, breach of faith and concealment of a crime. In September, Parliament again indicted him, along with two of his former ministers -- finance minister Ioannis Paleokrassas and commerce minister Andreas Andrianopoulos -- on charges of corruption in the 1992 sale of the state-owned AGET-Heracles cement company. Mr. Mitsotakis is charged with receiving over 22 million dollars in kickbacks to expedite the sale, dereliction of duty and violating the law on ministerial accountability. Vote 'crucial' for future of nation's political life, premier says -------------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): Addressing the House, Mr. Papandreou said the charges should be dropped since the issue was "an obstacle to the settlement of pressing national and domestic issues". He described the vote as being of "crucial importance for the future course of political life in Greece". "We can shape a consciousness for a different tomorrow," Mr. Papandreou said, stressing that his ruling PASOK party had chosen "the courageous path" in seeking a clear break with the past. The premier called on deputies to see things in the long-term, noting that in this respect he, too, had an "historic responsibility". There were some, Mr. Papandreou said, who wanted the legal proceedings to go ahead "as a television super-spectacle, irrespective of the repercussions which this may have". "Politicians, however, have the obligation to support the policy which they believe is correct. This is my great responsibility," he said. But the man at the centre of the storm, Constantine Mitsotakis, lashed out at the ruling party, saying its move to drop the charges against him was "an insult to the Greek people's intelligence and the institution of parliament." "How will the Greek people judge a parliament that is called on today (yesterday) to vote against what it voted for three months ago?" Mr. Mitsotakis said. "This proposal insults the intelligence of the people." He called on the chamber to vote down the proposal, saying that he and his former ministers had the right to prove their innocence. "An honest politician does not fear justice. You (PASOK) are shaking at the thought of the trial, not me. I am asking to be tried," he said. The government "lacked the courage to admit there is no incriminating evidence against us," he said. Opposition leader Miltiades Evert told the House that "the real accused" was Mr. Papandreou himself. He said that yesterday's debate was one of the worst moments for the Greek Parliament in the last twenty years and that, instead of occupying itself with the enormous problems facing the country, the government was "trampling on institutions and dishonouring moral values". Mr. Evert criticised Mr. Papandreou for not being present during the parliamentary debates last year at which the House decided to refer Mr. Mitsotakis to trial. "You came here today (yesterday) wearing a new mantle, but we shall remove it," Mr. Evert told Mr. Papandreou. The ND leader accused the prime minister of "political cowardice", charging that Mr. Papandreou "does not have the courage to admit that his intention had been to sling mud at his political opponents". "Everyone knows who the real accused are. They are sitting in the ministerial benches with the prime minister at their head. Some are accessories before the fact, others are just accomplices. The real instigator is the prime minister," Mr. Evert said. "Did Mr. Papandreou remember today that the country's situation is critical?" Mr. Evert asked. The ND leader said that every vote against dropping the charges against Mr. Mitsotakis was a vote in support of the honour of Greek politicians. Political Spring deputies walked out of Parliament after leader Antonis Samaras addressed the chamber. "We are walking out because we do not want to be accomplices to a new debasement of the institutions, because we accept neither squaring off deals nor party dealings involving the reciprocal erasures of guilt," Mr. Samaras told Parliament. He charged that "the unsuspecting citizen is the victim of the political insensitivity of the government and main opposition party". Questioning Mr. Papandreou's motives for taking the initiative to have the charges against Mr. Mitsotakis dropped, Mr. Samaras asked: "When decisions are taken from time to time to refer someone to trial or drop charges, are not national issues then at a critical point? Is there then no deep economic crisis? Are there no serious economic problems?" Likening the debate to theatre, Mr. Samaras said: "We have seen this play before, with the same protagonists but in different roles." Communist Party of Greece (KKE) Secretary-General Aleka Papariga also questioned Mr. Papandreou's motives for proposing that the charges against Mr. Mitsotakis and his former ministers be dropped. "The foreign element and foreign services, which act with impunity in Greece, did not want this trial," she said. She added that PASOK and ND did not want the trials to go ahead because they were no longer effective "as a means of winning over the electorate in the battle between them". "The KKE is completely opposed to this mockery in which both PASOK and ND are telling their deputies to act totally differently to how they acted three months ago when everyone knows that nothing has changed in the meantime," Ms Papariga said. Alevras, others dissent ----------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): Several ruling party deputies diverged from the official party line. Former parliament president Yiannis Alevras said that the proposal was a blow to the government's authority and consistency, and a major setback for Parliament. No new evidence had become available since Parliament decided to refer the former ministers to trial, and the prime minister's rationale was not substantiated, he said. He said that he had always followed party discipline in the past, but in this case he would vote according to his conscience. Deputy and former minister Nikos Athanasopoulos -- convicted by a special court during the previous New Democracy government on charges of covering up a scandal involving the illicit siphoning of European Union subsidies in maize trading -- described the prime minister's initiative as "courageous", but said he could not bring himself to be so magnanimous to his unrepentant persecutors as to vote in favour of the suspension. OECD says performance of Greek economy last year 'positive', optimistic on course of economic indicators ------------------------------------------------------------ Paris, (ANA - G. Zitouniati): The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) report's on the course of the Greek economy in 1994 is positive and it is optimistic about the course of main economic indicators in 1995 and 1996. The report notes that Greece managed to achieve its targets for 1994, important for the country's credibility on international markets. It noted that, in line with predictions, there was an increase in GDP by 1 per cent, the fiscal deficit decreased to 10 per cent with a first-stage surplus of 2 per cent, inflation dropped from 14.4 per cent in 1993 to less than 11 per cent in 1994 and the current accounts deficit decreased further to 0.5 per cent of GDP, which is fully covered by capital inflows from Greeks living abroad. It further noted a significant increase in foreign exchange reserves to 15 billion dollars (60 per cent of exports), industrial production increased for the first time in eight years, and fixed capital investments increased after decreasing over the past three years. The report acknowledged the "energetic and dynamic" way with which the Greek government reacted to the exchange crisis last May, resulting in the successful tackling of the crisis and avoiding a devaluation of the Greek currency. It was stressed that the policy implemented in 1994 was in the right direction and special reference was made to recent tax measures and measures aimed at cracking down on tax evasion and to incomes policy. Assessments indicated that these policies will lead to a reduction of interest rates and the public debt. Greek ambassador at the OECD Ms Nikolaou said these results would strengthen confidence in the Greek economy and create suitable conditions for investments. "To increase the country's international competitiveness, it is essential that we increase productivity, observe incomes policy strictly and continue counter-inflationary exchange policy until convergence is achieved with the inflation rates of trade partners," she said. Ms. Nikolaou said these were the OECD's recommendations, as they resulted from the discussion, and this was Greece's interest. On the question of wages, it was noted that while over the three-year period between 1991-3 there was a cumulative decrease in actual wages by 7.5 per cent, a small increase occurred in 1994. Increases agreed for 1995 will be slightly higher than projected inflation. However, since OECD studies are comparative and the organisation's concern focuses primarily on the position of an economy in relation to the economies of other member-states, it was stressed that, despite progress, inflation still remained much higher than the EU average and the fiscal deficit was twice the average. In addition, the GDP's rate of increase in 1994, despite its increase compared to 1993, was below the average of OECD member-states. Public investments in infrastructure projects jointly financed by Community resources will play a major role in 1995 and 1996. Moreover, despite the fact private investments are already on the increase (with the exception of housing) they are expected t o speed up in mid-1996. GDP will increase even further over the next two years (1.5 per cent in 1995 and 2.3 per cent in 1996) but will be lower than the average of both the Community and OECD member-states (about 3 per cent). This is an indication of efforts Greece must still make. Improving the country's position in export markets would considerably boost recovery, the report said. Reducing inflation will also help in this direction. The present considerable difference in inflation rates between Greece and other trading partners hampers the competitiveness of the Greek economy. The OECD believes that while international markets could absorb Greek products with a 7.5 per cent increase over the next two years, the increase in exports is not expected to exceed 4.5 per cent due to reduced price competitiveness. Turkey comments on premier's interview -------------------------------------- Istanbul, 17/1/95 (ANA): Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou's remarks about Turkey has sparked strong reaction from Ankara. The ANA reported the Turkish Foreign Ministry as calling the Greek premier's remarks "contradictory" and a "reiteration of the familiar (Greek) stance". In an interview with a leading Athens Sunday paper, Mr. Papandreou accused Turkey of creating tension with repeated airspace violations and threats of war over Greece's right to extend its territorial waters in the Aegean. "Mr. Papandreou appears to be in favour of dialogue (between Greece and Turkey) but at the same time criticises Turkey of creating tension in the Aegean," the Turkish Foreign Ministry was reported as saying. "His statements are a reiteration of the familiar (Greek) stance. On the one hand Mr. Papandreou says he favours dialogue but on the other he asks for (Turkish) concessions". Mr. Papandreou did not rule out talks with Prime Minister Tansu Ciller, saying such a meeting could occur "if conditions became ripe later". Military helps out in snow-struck areas --------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): The Defence Ministry said yesterday military personnel and equipment had been sent to eight prefectures in northern Greece to assist in rescue operations and to transfer patients to hospitals in areas hit hard by the recent bad weather. Nine people were reported missing Sunday in northern Greece during snowstorms that swept the country over the weekend, but two of them made it safely to the nearby villages yesterday. Heavy snowfalls have cut off several Greek villages, while parts of the Peloponnese were without electricity and phones. Dozens of villages remain isolated. Sea links to the Greek islands were also cut Sunday. The weather bureau has said conditions are expected to improve today. Russian pledge all assistance in evacuating ethnic Greeks from Chechnya -------------------------------------------------------------- Moscow, (ANA - D. Constantakopoulos): The Russian Ministry for Emergencies has promised a team of Greek officials all possible assistance in the evacuation of about 50 ethnic Greeks who are thought to have remained in the Chechen capital of Grozny. According to Greek community sources in southern Russia, only one Greek has been reported dead so far during the Russian bombardment of the city on January 11. Evacuation efforts are being hampered by the intensity of the fighting. Twelve Greek families, including four from Naourski Rayon, have been offered refuge by other Greeks in the Mineralni Vodni and Esentouki region. They reported that Chechens helped them survive. Tremor recorded --------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): A strong earthquake measuring 4.6 on the Richter scale shook north-western Greece yesterday but there were no immediate reports of damage or casualties. The Athens observatory said the tremor was recorded at 9.27 am local time and came from a distance of 300 kilometres west of Athens. It said the epicentre of the tremor was the sea region Northwest of the island of Levkas. Education ministry looks into promoting Greek in Balkans, wider region --------------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): A one-day conference, aiming to record the problems and the position of the Greek language in the European Union, was held at the Agricultural Bank's training centre in an outer Athens suburb yesterday. Education Minister George Papandreou, who opened the conference, announced that he intends to meet with his counterparts of the other smaller European Union member countries soon, with the aim of carving out a common policy on the issue of language. He stressed that the ministry was examining the setting up of a special agency for educational co-operation between Greece and the other Balkan countries, the countries of Eastern Europe and the Black Sea, with the aim of promoting the teaching of the Greek language. Finally, he announced the organisation of an international conference on Greek studies and language, and support to the conference, to be held in Thessaloniki, on the least widely spoken languages in the European Union. Greece, Georgia sign economic, technological co-operation agreements ---------------------------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): National Economy Under-Secretary Ioannis Anthopoulos ended an official visit to Georgia with the signing of an economic and technological co-operation agreement. Talks Mr. Anthopoulos held with Georgian officials in Tbilisi focused on repairing the oil pipe extending to Vatum and the Georgian port of Poti, construction of a major oil terminal at Poti and Georgia's participation in making the optical fibre cable in the Black sea, linking the cities of Poti, Novorosisk, Odessa, Varna and Kavala. According to an announcement by the National Economy Ministry, Mr. Anthopoulos and Georgian President Eduard Shevardnadze examined the possibility of co-operation in the sectors of agriculture and light industry. Georgia's shortages in the energy sector were stressed and the possible construction of small hydroelectric stations was discussed to confront the energy crisis in the country. Mr. Anthopoulos, the Georgian economy minister and the governor of the country's central bank agreed to the provision of technical aid on banking issues and to this end special seminars will be held in Athens to train staff. Mr. Anthopoulos and visiting Georgian Foreign Minister Alexandre Shikvaidze signed an agreement for the mutual protection and promotion of investments -- the first substantial step towards the creation of a stable and secure framework for the development of bilateral economic and trade relations between the two countries -- in Athens in November last year. The two countries later signed a series of agreements , including consular and cultural agreements. Papantoniou says Greece broadly supportive of French economic priorities ------------------------------------------------------------- Brussels, 17/1/95 (ANA - V. Demiris): In the first EU ECOFIN council under the French Presidency, in Brussels yesterday, Greece's National Economy Minister Yiannos Papantoniou told the assembly that Greece broadly agreed with the French Presidency's economic programme. Mr. Papantoniou's address dwelt primarily on unemployment, implementing Inter-European transportation networks and EU Mediterranean policy. He also welcomed France's statement that, according to the French presidency priority list, the procedure for stepping up examination of excessive public deficits would resume in June, not in September as originally scheduled. He noted that, in Greece's case, examination would focus on 1994 deficits, not on forecasts for this year. With regard to unemployment, Mr. Papantoniou stressed economic recovery alone could not lead to job creation. He said policies to be introduced by Greece under the White Paper would focus on effectively increasing job opportunities and reducing structural unemployment. Mr. Papantoniou pledged Greece would lend the French presidency any help or support it might require in all sectors, especially on the preface to the revision of the Maastricht Treaty in 1996. Turning to Inter-European transportation networks, Mr. Papantoniou stressed the need to implement the Essen Council meeting commitment for full funding of projects to receive top priority. These include the Egnatia motorway, the motorway linking Patras to the Greece-Bulgaria frontier via Athens and Thessaloniki, and the Rio-Antirrio link. With regard to EU Mediterranean policy, the national economy minister stressed Greece's interest in EU expansion eastwards, while noting the need for balanced expansion to the south as well, especially in establishing political and economic relations wit h other Mediterranean countries. Russian committee approves alumina agreement -------------------------------------------- Moscow, 17/1/95 (ANA - D. Constantakopoulos) - A Russian experts committee has ratified the plan to construct an alumina plant in Greece, the Russian Interfax news agency reported yesterday. According to the council, completion of the plan is to the benefit of Russian aluminium producers. According to council of experts' sources invoked by Interfax, the council's proposal will be submitted to the government soon and the signing of the relevant Greek-Russian agreement is expected by the end of March. Bank employees strike to protest lax security --------------------------------------------- Athens, 17/1/95 (ANA): Greece's Bank Employees Federation (OTOE) said yesterday it would stage a three-hour work stoppage tomorrow from 12:30 to protest lax security measures at banks. The move is prompted by a bank raid last week in which a gang of robbers snatched an estimated six million drachmas and held 15 staff members hostage until their getaway. "The number of bank robberies may have decreased between 1993 and 1994 due to the implementation of some security measures but during that period eight people have been injured in raids, two have been killed and seven have been held hostage," the OTOE statement said. "Bank administrations must proceed with the implementation of security measures," it said. On Friday, the Public Order Under-Secretary Sifis Valyrakis said the ministry would take on an additional 1,000 police officers to beef up security at banks.