In Brief
CYPRUS
Third round of intercommunal meetings launched in Nicosia Cypriot President Glafcos Clerides and Turkish-Cypriot leader Rauf Denktash yesterday began a third round of face-to-face talks in Nicosia, under pressure by the UN Security Council for a June settlement. «The EU cannot expect to reach a solution to the Cyprus problem by destroying existing balances and ignoring Turkish sensitivities,» Turkish Deputy Devlet Bahceli said yesterday. Denktash last week expressed his frustration at international pressure for a June settlement. PRO-PALESTINIAN CONCERT Solidarity rally unites singers and protesters Leading Greek singers are to perform at today’s concert in support of the Palestinian people, starting at 7.30 p.m. in Syntagma Square. An initiative of the General Confederation of Greek Labor (GSEE) in association with human rights and minority groups, the event will feature an address by composer Mikis Theodorakis and performances by Haris Alexiou, Eleftheria Arvanitaki, Alkinoos Ioannides, Thanos Mikroutsikos, Giorgos Dalaras, Vassilis Papaconstantinou and Maria Farantouri, among others. CIVIL SERVANTS STRIKE Protest in Athens center tomorrow Public sector workers, holding a 24-hour strike tomorrow, will meet at 11 a.m. at the Korai pedestrian street in central Athens for a protest rally, unionists said yesterday. Workers are disappointed with government proposals for social security reform which will mean they will have to wait longer than the current 35 years to get their pensions. Israel criticized Parliament Speaker Apostolos Kaklamanis yesterday complained about the treatment of Greek and Cypriot MPs and doctors expelled from Israel in a letter to Knesset Chairman Avraam Burg. Israeli authorities «violated humanitarian principles and the right to international solidarity» in stopping a delegation of Greek MPs from visiting besieged Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in Ramallah and turning away a delegation of Cypriot MPs at Tel Aviv airport, Kaklamanis said. Anti-corruption drive Draft legislation on measures to tackle corruption in public administration will be submitted to Parliament during the Easter holidays, Interior Minister Costas Skandalides said yesterday during a session of the National Committee for Management Reform. Traffic jammed The number of cars in Athens doubles every 10 years without the necessary road and parking space to accommodate the extra vehicles, Transport Minister Christos Verelis said yesterday at a seminar, organized by the Athens University of Economics and Business, on the environmental and economic consequences of more cars on the road. A typical Athens bus currently travels at just 12 kilometers an hour due to cramped roads and will halve its speed in another 10 years if the trend is not reversed, noted Verelis. Feta copyright Greece’s bid to establish a European Union-wide copyright on feta cheese remained unsatisfied yesterday after the union’s regulatory committee postponed a decision on whether to accept a European Commission proposal to include the cheese on its list of appellation of origin products. The committee will reconvene to discuss the proposal in about a month. If it fails again to reach an agreement, the final decision will probably end up with the Commission, which has expressed itself in favor of Greece’s positions. Olympic security Public Order Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis yesterday briefed Prime Minister Costas Simitis on the progress of security planning for the Athens 2004 Olympic Games. Price rises Significant price hikes in consumer products since the beginning of the year have affected both medium- and high-income families, according to research by the Consumer Protection Institute (INKA) made public yesterday. The prices of more than half (53 percent) of goods are up by as much as 17 percent, while only 26 percent of prices are unchanged, said INKA. More than a third (39.2 percent) of well-to-do families have been obliged to cut costs due to the price hikes, INKA added.
