Athens News Agency: News in English, 10-10-19

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article

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

CONTENTS

[01] PM: 2011 will be the last year of recession

[02] Palriamentary committee recommends referral of 5 former ND ministers to judicial council over Vatopedi-state land swaps affair

[03] Droutsas visits Ramala

[04] One dead in torrential rain

[05] Police data on illegal migrants

[06] Athens Newspaper Headlines

[01] PM: 2011 will be the last year of recession

Addressing the meeting, Papandreou said that according to the government's assessment 2011 will be the last year of recession, so that in 2012 Greece will return to growth and in 2013 developments to be scheduled for the country's final exit from the crisis and its economic dependence.

However, the prime minister pointed out that this path will be long and the country must win, as he said, daily struggles. He added that the alert is not yet over since the government is still obliged to clear up serious problems of the past.

In one year of governance, Papandreou aso said, the government succeeded in avoiding bankruptcy, it saved the country with sacrifices by the people, but is building a different Greece with credibility, step-by-step.

The prime minister said that it is now crucial for the government to do all that it promised and for which it committed itself before the elections, those changes that tackle the causes of the crisis.

Referring to next month's local administration elections, the prime minister said that they are not petty political elections nor an opportunity for some to protest, but are an opportunity and a great possibility for change for the country as well.

The dilemma of the elections for the country, Papandreou further said, is whether the task of its salvation and reshaping will be continued or whether we shall go to the decline of viciousness, the looting of public wealth and of clientele extravagance.

The cabinet meeting focused on a discussion on several bills that included the developmentof cinema art, course and installation in the framework of the Burgas-Alexandroupoli oil pipeline, the incorporation of a European Union directive on refuse, the incorporation of a directive on equal opportunities and equal handling for men and women on labour and employment issues and the harmonisation of Greek legislation on the control, sale and possession of weapons in Greece.

Papandreou also announced that he will convene a wide meeting with all the social partners on Tuesday for the issue of employment and unemployment to be discussed. He added that a wide arsenal of measures that the government has planned will be discussed and mutual commitments will be taken so that the social repercussions of this great crisis will be curbed, as much as possible.

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

[02] Palriamentary committee recommends referral of 5 former ND ministers to judicial council over Vatopedi-state land swaps affair

By a majority vote of the ruling PASOK MPs sitting on the committee, which was investigating possible criminal liability in the affair, recommended in its conclusions the referral of former government spokesman and minister of state Theodoros Roussopoulos, former agriculture ministers Evangelos Bassiakos and Alexandros Kontos, former deputy finance minister Petros Doukas, and former minister George Voulgarakis to a judicial council for implication in the land swap case referring to Lake Vistonida and surrounding areas.

The five will be referred to the Special Judicial Council following the expected adoption of the preliminary investigation committee's conclusions by the parliament plenary.

According to critics of a series of controversial deals, the state exchanged prime real estate holdings throughout Greece, including buildings in the Athens Olympic Village, for remote tracts of land where development is either restricted or prohibited, such as forestland, RAMSAR-protected areas around Lake Vistonida, and even archaeological sites.

This specific case concerns suspect land deals by the Vatopedi Monastery, where low-value property on the shores of Lake Vistonida was exchanged for prime pieces of public real estate in other parts of the country in transactions carried out by Hellenic Public Real Estate Corporation which were approved by ministers.

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

[03] Droutsas visits Ramala

Droutsas met with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, as well as with Prime Minister Salam Fayad, with whom he signed the bilateral agreement that facilitates the Palestinian side.

The Greek foreign minister then met his Palestinian counterpart Riyad Al Malki with whom (as they stated later) they examined the current situation regarding the Middle East question and the role of the European Union. Droutsas also invited his Palestinian counterpart to visit Athens.

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

[04] One dead in torrential rain

Fire Brigade rescuers found the body of the elderly man in his overturned car, which was swept away during heavy rainfall, in the Olympoi region on southern Chios.

Another 10 people trapped in their cars from the torrent were also rescued, as the Fire Brigade received more than 140 calls for flooded houses, and reinforcements arrived from nearby Lesvos island.

The island was declared in a state of emergency.

Caption: ANA-MPA file photo

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

[05] Police data on illegal migrants

According to this data, a spectacular increase appears in arrests of illegal immigrants from the land borders with Turkey at Evros, while there is a decrease from the sea borders.

This is due to the fact that measures to protect sea borders have also been boosted with the assistance of FRONTEX, something that makes dangerous for traffickers to bring people from this side and all the weight has fallen on Evros. The increase of arrests of illegal immigrants coming in from Evros amounts to 371.94 percent.

More specifically, from January to September this year, police have arrested on the land borders with Turkey 31,219 illegal immigrants, while over the corresponding period last year the figure was 6,615.

In all, over the nine-month period in 2010, 96,398 illegal immigrants entering the country were recorded, compared to 96,085 over the corresponding period in 2009.

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

[06] Athens Newspaper Headlines

Abolition of tax confidentiality, PASOK's proposal to send five former ND government ministers allegedly involved in the Vatopedi monastery-state swap land scandal to special court, and speculation of new austerity measures in 2011, mostly dominated the headlines on Tuesday in Athens' newspapers.

ADESMEFTOS TYPOS: "PASOK 'Vatogate' and vile conspiracy".

APOGEVMATINI: "Predetermined referrals".

AVGHI: "Something new is born from the Left, social PASOK and youth meeting".

ELEFTHEROS: "PASOK's action to refer ND ministers to special court is preposterous".

ELEFTHEROTYPIA: "One-day contracts without any rights - 12 hours of work will be paid as four hours".

ELEFTHEROS TYPOS: "Additional austerity measures in 2011".

ESTIA: "Greek politicians are indifferent about the future".

ETHNOS: "PASOK charges five ND ministers".

IMERISSIA: "Cutbacks in salaries via four harsh measures".

KATHIMERINI: "EU: Additional measures in 2011".

LOGOS: "Five former ministers to be referred to special court".

NAFTEMPORIKI: "Tax confidentiality to be abolished".

NIKI: "2.3 billion euros in measures to support employment".

RIZOSPASTIS: "Government prepares new harsh attack against workers and unemployed".

TA NEA: "End to tax confidentiality".

TO VIMA: "4 plus 1 former ministers to be referred to special court on Vatopedi case".

VRADYNI: "New measures with the deficit as the alibi".

More details on the subscriber's page of APE-MPE | Subscription request form

Athens News Agency: News in English Directory - Previous Article - Next Article