From: tzarros@ccs.carleton.ca (Theodore Zarros) Subject: News (in ENGLISH)- Fri, 11 Mar 1994 (Greek Press Office BBS, Ottawa). Athens News Agency Bulletin, Mercouri buried amidst torrent of grief and admiration ------------------------------------------------------ Athens, 11/3/94 (ANA): The Greek capital came to a standstill as thousands of Greeks turned out to pay a final tribute to actress and politician Melina Mercouri and escort her to her final resting place. Official representatives and dignitaries from all over the world attended the funeral service at the Athens Metropolitan Cathedral, along with Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou in whose Cabinet she served a total of nine years as Culture Minister. The European Union was represented by Information and Culture Commissioner Joao de Deus Pinheiro. Other foreign dignitaries included the Aga Khan, spiritual leader of the world's 15 million Ismailite Moslems, the French and Spanish Culture Ministers Jacques Toubon and Carmen Alborch, former French culture minister Jack Lang and the representative of President Francois Mitterrand, Pierre Chassigneux. Government offices, schools and shops closed all over the country as huge crowds in the capital lined the route along which Mercouri's casket, draped with the Greek flag, was drawn on a gun carriage from the Cathedral to the Athens First Cemetery. Police said more than 300.000 people followed the procession, applauding and showering her coffin with flowers, past the Parliament, where she served as a member for 16 years, and to the cemetery where they sang the national anthem as her body was placed in the family grave. She was buried next to her father and grandfather, dressed in her favourite red dress. Mercouri, who gained international fame in the film "Never on Sunday", died of lung cancer at the age of 69 in a New York hospital, on Sunday. "Mercouri was one of the rare people who combined poetry and action. She had the grandeur and the prestige which marked only a few people in our century", said Parliament President Apostolos Kaklamanis in a short funeral oration at the Cathedral. "In her eyes, you could see the Acropolis. Her greatest pride was that she was a Greek and always saw herself as an ambassador of Greece", he added. Representing the government, Interior Minister Akis Tsohatzopoulos said: "Your final and fateful return home became for all Greeks a festival of flowers, placed devoutly by each one of the millions who accompany you to your final resting place". "Melina did not talk about culture, she was culture", said theatre critic Costas Georgousopoulos, who described Mercouri as "a natural phenomenon incarnated in the most perfect form which matter can take". "Melina loved with passion and was loved with passion", said Metropolitan Chrysostomos, who performed the funeral service. Jack Lang, a close friend of Mercouri, stressed that "Melina expresses an ideal which one rarely finds, the ideal of universality ... Melina lives and is spitting fire". French President ---------------- Athens, 11/3/94 (ANA): "The French loved Melina. They loved the artist, her rare temperament. They loved the fighter, her generosity and her courage", French President Francois Mitterrand said in a message. "I want to express my grief for the loss of Melina Mercouri", President of Socialist International Pierre Mauroy, said in a letter to the Prime Minister Andreas Papandreou. "We are shocked at the loss of Melina Mercouri, we share your pain", President of the European Socialist Party Willy Claes said in a message to Mr. Papandreou. Describing Mercouri as a brave and persistent woman, he added that "she service of her ideas, our ideas, for we've always felt proud we belonged to the same political family with her". In a message of condolences, Algerian Foreign Minister Mohamed-Salah Dembri said: "It is with infinite grief that I was informed of the death of Melina Mercouri, whom the Algerian people were honoured to include amongst their sincere friends since the times of their struggle for independence". Earthquake near Lemnos, no casualties ------------------------------------ Athens, 11/3/1994 (ANA): An earthquake measuring 4,5 on the Richter scale shook Northeast Greece, but no injuries were reported, police said yesterday. The Athens observatory said the quake's epicentre was 280 kilometres Northeast of Athens, near the Aegean island of Lemnos. Papoulias has talks with Vance: "Reserved optimism" ----------------------------------------------------- Geneva, 11/3/1994 (ANA / C. Christodoulou): Foreign Minister Karolos Papoulias expressed reserved optimism on the outcome of his consultations with United Nations special mediator on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's issue Cyrus Vance, which started yesterday. Mr. Vance met later with FYROM Foreign Minister Stevo Crvenkovski. Both Mr. Papoulias and Mr. Vance expressed satisfaction on the substance of the four-hour talks they held on ways of resuming dialogue between Athens and Skopje, and agreed to meet again. Mr. Papoulias told reporters that, in the meantime, Mr. Vance would meet with other Greek representatives. The meeting took place in a friendly atmosphere which "promises that there will be good co-operation with Mr. Vance, "he said, expressing the hope that the mediation effort will yield positive results. "For obstacles to be overcome, Greece should submit new ideas at the next meeting", Mr. Papoulias added. The Greek retortion measures against FYROM was a problem which might be discussed. "For the time being, they will not be lifted because the matter is part of the wider problem" of Greek-Skopjan relations, he said. "The lifting (of the measures) cannot be a unilateral act. There are two parties and we think there has to be goodwill on the part of Mr Gligorov (President of FYROM), Mr. Papoulias said. He expressed hope this may happen as soon as possible, reiterating the Greek government's position that discussion on the name will take time. He added the effort now focused on keeping other issues separate, so that things "may move forward". The issue of the name can move on its own, he said. Finally, the Foreign Minister stressed emphatically that no Greek ideas had been submitted in writing. He refused to be drawn on whether or not the "paper" with ideas presented by Mr Vance contained a proposal on the name. "It wasn't a bad meeting, but I don't think we made much progress", Mr. Vance said after the meeting. The UN mediator said he had presented some new ideas, which he also carried to FYROM's Mr. Crvenkovski, along with Greek positions. He confirmed that he had addressed the central issue of the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia's future name, currently recognised by the United Nations as such. After talks with Mr. Crvenkovski he said: "Again I say, it's not easy". Mr. Crvenkovksi told the press that "the only way to solve the problem is to sit down and discuss it", adding that "it is impossible to negotiate anything under pressure of the embargo". In February 16, Greece barred the neighbouring state from using the northern post of Thessaloniki and closed its consulate in Skopje, in response to FYROM's growing intransigence and aggressive behaviour. Greece insists that use of the term "Macedonia" applies only to its northern province of the same name, and accuses Skopje authorities that their use of the term implies territorial designs against this Greek northern province. Athens insists the former Yugoslav republic amend its Constitution, remove a Greek symbol from its flag and cease hostile propaganda against Greece as preconditions for a resumption of UN dialogue. Oil consignment gets through ----------------------------- Athens, 11/3/94 (ANA): Eighty railway tanker carriages carrying fuel, which had waited for more than 20 days near the Greek-FYROM border town of Eidomeni, were allowed through the border, FYROM state radio reported yesterday. A Greek customs official stated that the consignment had been granted special permit, having initially been approved on February 14, two days before the imposition of retortion measures by Greece. Papoulias talks with Milosevic, today ------------------------------------ Athens, 11/3/94 (ANA): Mr Papoulias was due to see late last night International mediator Lord Owen Today he is expected to have talks with Serbian president Slobodan Milosevic in Belgrade, in his capacity as president of the EU Council of Ministers. His scheduled trip to Moscow tomorrow has been cancelled, due to the absence of his Russian counterpart Andrei Kozyrev who is flying to the Middle East. Europarliament takes vote on Skopje measures -------------------------------------------- Strasbourg, 11/3/1994 (ANA/P. Stangkos/K. Verros): A European Parliament plenary session last night ratified a resolution submitted by the socialist group on the trade blockade imposed by Greece on the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) and the Greece-FYROM issue in general, without any substantive amendments. The session ratified by 106 votes to 38 with 18 abstentions, a relatively "balanced" text calling on the lifting of the Greek government's decision, while including Greece's arguments and positions. According to political observers, the resolution constituted a "golden mean" among the socialist group, between PASOK deputies and those critical of Greek policy. The text was also supported by Christian Democrats and leftist Eurodeputies. The resolution takes Greek positions into consideration on the FYROM issue (name, flag and constitution) and that Greece considers the use of the name "Macedonia" by FYROM as a distortion of history. It also "expresses regret" over the Greek trade blockade measures, and calls on the Greek government to "reconsider its decision and lift FYROM's trade blockade without delay". Moreover, it reaffirms its commitment to the fundamental principle of inviolability of borders "as stressed by the Greek government, and warns all extremist and nationalist groups not to try to violate his principle".