Athens News Agency: News in English, 05-06-30

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

CONTENTS

[01] Bank employees picket Parliament over controversial pension reforms

[02] Development minister hails inauguration of Greek-Turkish natural gas pipeline next week

[03] GSEE announces 24-hour strike over gov't bill on labour law

[04] World's premier soccer player Ronaldinio arrives in Athens

[01] Bank employees picket Parliament over controversial pension reforms

Hundreds of strikers also marched from the economy ministry to the Federation of Greek Industries' (SEB) offices to underline their demand that the bill be withdrawn.

Meanwhile, the bank employees' union (OTOE) convened an urgent general assembly on Thursday afternoon to decide on further mobilisations as well as possible court action, while press reports stated that the industrial action, which began earlier in the month, would be suspended.

Most state-run banks have been shutdown by the strike, although private banks have been mostly unaffected. Whereas ATMs operated without any problem, pensions and unemployment benefits, as well as check clearances, were affected.

[02] Development minister hails inauguration of Greek-Turkish natural gas pipeline next week

Speaking at the sidelines of events for "Science and Technology Week" at Zappion on Thursday morning, he said that the people of Greece and Turkey had not lived through such major developments since the time of Eleftherios Venizelos and Kemal Ataturk.

The pipeline was also referred to in a speech by Deputy Development Minister George Salagoudis at the 8th Greek-Turkish Business Conference, which began in Athens on Thursday, who stressed that the project was an achievement of friendship and cooperation between Greece and Turkey.

"It is proof that our peoples want to share a better future, with economic, social and political cooperation," he said.

Salagoudis also referred to a link between electricity grids in the two countries that was envisioned to begin operating at the end of 2007.

[03] GSEE announces 24-hour strike over gov't bill on labour law

Following a meeting of the union's leadership on Thursday, GSEE said that it would not participate in dialogue or negotiations with the government on labour relations.

The union group also pledged to support strike action by private employees and small-scale manufacturers over new shop opening hours being promoted by the government and to support all action by the bank workers' union OTOE against an amendment shifting bank auxiliary pension funds to the private sector.

GSEE said it would also respond with strike action to any decision that was carried out at the expense of IKA, while it also rejected a recent early retirement deal struck at the state telecoms organisation OTE and called for action to reverse this.

[04] World's premier soccer player Ronaldinio arrives in Athens

His plane landed at Athens Eleftherios Venizelos airport shortly after midday but Barcelona's star player did not want to make any statements as he boarded the car waiting to take him to a hotel in Athens' southern suburbs.

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