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Foreign Minister Solomon Passy opened a two-day working meeting at the Radisson of Central and East European countries on future polar research and its application to scientific and foreign policy. Photo: Prof. Hristo Pimpirev, President of the Antarctic Club (left). Pressphoto BTA. Photo: Bistra Boshnakova
POLITICAL PARTIES HAVE ANNOUNCED LIST CARRIERS FOR PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS.
MIA
The coalition, consisted of VMRO-DPMNE and the Liberal Party, announced Monday the carriers of candidate lists for the six election districts.
List carrier in the first election district is Nikola Gruevski, second on the list is Zoran Krstevski, third is Petar Naumovski, followed by Gjorgji Orovcanec, Zivko Popov and Aleksandar Pandov.
In the second election district, list carrier is Stojan Andov, followed by Ljupco Balkoski, Cedomir Kraljevski, Koce Trajanovski and Aleksandar Florovski.
Ljube Boskovski is the list carrier in the third election district, and the other candidates are Sasko Kedev, Slobodan Danevski, Gjorgji Trendafilov, and Mihajlo Georgievski.
In the fourth election district the list carrier is Marjan Gjorcev, followed by Zarko Karadzovski, Silvana Boneva and Ljupco Meskov.
Macedonian Prime Minister Ljubcho Georgievski is a list carrier in the fifth election district, followed by Slobodan Casule, Spire Mavrovski, Drago Sajnoski and Ristana Lalceska.
The list carrier in the sixth election district is Ganka Samoilovska-Cvetanova, and the other candidates are Vojo Stojanovski, Gjoko Serafimovski, Rexhep Rexhepovski, and Julijana Nikolic.
VMRO-DPMNE and LP say that only the list carriers are certain and that additional changes of candidate lists are possible.
The lists will be submitted to the State Election Commission at midnight at latest.
"We will not give up from the coalition with VMRO-DPMNE and with the Liberal Party. On the forthcoming parliamentary elections we will present three independent lists in the areas where we estimate that we sustain political force," deputy leader of the New Democracy party and Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Macedonian government Slobodan Casule said at the session of the party's executive council held on Monday.
As Casule said, this decision comes as a result of the "sustainable governmental coalition."
Casule added that the leader of the New Democracy, Cedo Petrov expressed readiness for cooperation with the VMRO-DPMNE.
"Petrov has ambitions to be a list carrier, but in that case we will not be able to lead the party and to fight in the campaign. We will establish an electoral headquarters that will take over the party management until the completion of the parliamentary elections and afterwards we will hold an electoral convention and depending on the results achieved we will elect party leadership. Whether he will find this acceptable or not he will say for himself, but we will move forward with a most democratic approach to the elections," Casule said.
Regarding the statement given on Monday by Natalija Markovic-Dimova, the New Democracy secretary general, that he and minister of health Gjorgji Orovcanec were excluded from the party, Casule said that: "In my book, the democratic centralism ended with the first free elections. Obviously in the minds of some people the sickles and the hammers remain as instruments for winning political battles, but not for me."
Casule disagrees that the New Democracy should run independently on the elections.
"That is against our commitment and amendment. As a political party we are still very fragile," he said.
Earlier, Markovic - Dimova has announced the New Democracy list carriers for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
The decision was made unanimously at Sunday's session of the party's Executive Board.
Evuska Trpkova-Elezovic will be the list carrier in the first election district, Natalija Markovic-Dimova in the second district, Cedo Petrov in the third, Gale Galev in the fourth and Suzana Duraku in the sixth election district.
The list carrier of the fifth election district will be known later today, after the additional consultations and the session of the party's presidency.
At a convention Monday evening, the coalition "Together For Macedonia" promoted the lists of candidates for the upcoming parliamentary elections.
SDSM leader Branko Crvenkovski is on the top of the list in the first election district, followed by Radmila Sekerinska, Liljana Popovska, Ilija Filipovski and Igor Ivanovski.
List carrier at the second election district is Trifun Kostovski, followed by Vlado Buckovski, Jovan Manasievski, Ivan Stoiljkovic and Nezdet Mustafa.
Tito Petkovski is a list carrier at the third election district, followed by Slavko Petrov, Vanco Georgiev, Natasa Bikovska and Sonja Libickova.
Petar Gosev is the first on the list at the lection district no. 4, followed by Gjorgi Spasov, Tale Keramitcievski, Cvetanka Ivanova and Ana Andova.
Nikola Popovski is carrier of the list at the fifth election district, followed by Angelka Peeva - Laurentic, Tome Trombev, Kenan Nasufi and Cvetanka Gadzovska.
Ilinka Mitreva leads the candidate list at the sixth election district, followed by Zoran Tomic, Fatmir Sulejmanovic, Zair Sarac and Stojko Paunovski.
The Socialist Party of Macedonia also announced the list carriers in the six election districts.
Party's secretary Jovan Lazarev will be list carrier in the first election district, SPM Vice President and President of the Municipal Board in Kumanovo Branko Petkovski will lead the list in the second, party's leader Ljubisav Ivanov Dzingo will be list carrier in the third, the spokesperson and member of the Executive Board Zoran Vitanov in the fourth, SPM Vice President Petar Ilievski in the fifth and the businessman from Gostivar, Vidoja Stojanovski will be list carrier in the sixth election district.
Today, the Democratic Alliance also announced the candidates' lists for the forthcoming parliamentary elections in Macedonia.
List carrier in the first election district is the party's leader Pavle Trajanov, followed by Mile Ginovski, and Cvetanka Sokolova.
In the second election district, the list carrier is Pance Jovanovski, and the other candidates are Toni Trajanov and Delco Kostadinov.
List carrier in the third election district is Kire Vasilevski, followed by Dragi Simov, and Vladimir Terpovski.
The first candidate in the fourth election district will be Slave Naumovski followed by Dimitar Ancev and Trajce Grkov.
And in the sixth election district, the list carrier is Ljubisa Kitanovski, and the other candidates are Emira Zanoska and Stojmir Milososki.
PDP has also announced the carriers of candidate lists, according to which Naser Ziberi is first on the list of candidates at the first election district, Ismet Ramadani at the second, Axher Aliet at the fifth and Abdurahman Aliti-the party leader-at the sixth.
The Democratic Party of Albanians (DPA) promoted late Monday its candidates for members of the parliament.
Menduh Tachi is the DPA list carrier at the first election district, followed by Mevlajan Tairi, candidate of the Republican Party, (the parties will run together only at the first election district).
DPA list carrier in the second election district is Fatmir Asani, and in the third-Maksut Baksiu. Xhevdet Nasufi is a list carrier at the fifth election district, followed by Muarem Nexhipi. DPA leader Arben Xhaferi is a list carrier in the sixth district, followed by Daut Rexhepi.
Greeks Bearing Gifts.
United Press International (UPI)
By Sam Vaknin
On December 10, 2001 the Brussels-based think tank, International Crisis Group, proposed a solution to the Greek-Macedonian name dispute. It was soon commended by the State Department. The Greeks and Macedonians were more lukewarm but positive all the same. The truth, though, is that Macedonia is in no position to effectively negotiate with Greece. The latter - through a series of controversial investments - came to virtually own the former's economy. So many Greek businessmen travel to Macedonia that Olympic Airways, the Greek national carrier began regular flights to its neighbor's capital. The visa regime was eased. Greeks need not apply for Macedonian visas, Macedonians obtain one year Schengen visas from the applicants-besieged Greek liaison office in Skopje. A new customs post was inaugurated last year. Greek private businesses gobbled up everything Macedonian - tobacco companies, catering cum hotel groups, mining complexes, travel agencies - at bargain basement prices, injecting much needed capital and providing access to the EU.
The sale of Macedonia's oil refinery, "Okta", to the partly privatized Greek "Hellenic Petroleum" in May 1999, was opaque and contentious. The Prime Minister of Macedonia, Ljubco Georgievski, and the then Minister of Finance, Boris Stojmenov, were accused by the opposition of corrupt dealings. Rumors abound about three "secret annexes" to the sale agreement which cater to the alleged venality of top politicians and the parties of the ruling coalition. The deal included a pledge to construct a 230 km. $90 million oil pipeline between the port of Thessalonica and Skopje (with a possible extension to Belgrade).
The Greeks would invest $80 million in the pipeline and this constitutes a part of a $182 million package deal. This was not "Hellenic Petroleum"'s only Balkan venture. It acquired distribution networks of oil products in Albania as well.
After the Austrian "Erste Bank" pulled out of the deal, "National Bank of Greece" (NBG) drove a hard bargain when it bought a controlling stake in "Stopanska Banka", Macedonia's leading banking establishment for less than $50 million in cash and in kind. With well over 60% of all banking assets and liabilities in Macedonia and with holdings in virtually all significant firms in the country, "Stopanska Banka" is synonymous with the Macedonian economy, or what's left of it. NBG bought a "clean" bank, its bad loans portfolio hived off to the state. NBG - like other Greek banks, such as Eurobank, has branches and owns brokerages in Albania, Bulgaria, and Romania. But nowhere is it as influential as in Macedonia. It was able to poach Gligor Bisev, the Deputy Governor of Macedonia's central Bank (NBM) to serve as its CEO. Another Greek bank, Alpha Bank, has bought a controlling stake in Kreditna Banka, a Macedonian bank with extensive operations in Kosovo and among NGO's.
Recently, the Greek telecom, OTE, has acquired the second mobile phone operator licence in Macedonia. The winner in the public tender, Link Telekom, a Macedonian paging firm, has been disqualified, unable to produce a bank guarantee (never part of the original tender terms). The matter is in the courts.
Local businessmen predicted this outcome. They say that when "Makedonski Telekom" was sold, surprisingly, and under visible American "lobbying", to MATAV (rather than to OTE) - Macedonian politicians promised to compensate the latter by awarding it the second operator licence, come what may. Whatever the truth, this acquisition enhances OTE's portfolio which includes mobile operators in Albania (CosmOTE) and Bulgaria (GloBUL).
Official Greece clearly regards Greek investments as a pillar of a Greek northern sphere of influence in the Balkan. Turkey has Central Asia, Austria and Germany have Central Europe - Greece has the Balkan. Greece officially represents the likes of Bulgaria in both NATO and the EU. Greek is spoken in many a Balkan country and Greek businessmen are less bewildered by the transition economies in the region, having gone through a similar phase themselves in the 1950's and 1960's. Greece is a natural bridge and beachhead for Western multinationals interested in the Balkan. About 20% of Greece's trade is with the Balkan despite an enormous disparity of income per capita - Greece's being 8 times the average Balkan country's. Exports to Balkan countries have tripled since 1992 and Greece's trade surplus rose 10 times in the same period. Greek exports constitute 35% of all EU exports to Macedonia and 55% of all EU exports to Albania. About the only places with muted Greek presence are Bosnia and Kosovo - populated by Moslems and not by Orthodox coreligionists.
The region's instability, lawlessness, and backwardness have inflicted losses on Greek firms (for instance in 1997 in disintegrating Albania, or in 1998-9 in Kosovo and Serbia). But they kept coming back.
In the early 1990's Greece imposed an economic embargo on Macedonia and almost did the same to Albania. It disputed Macedonia's flag and constitutional name and Albania's policy towards the Greek minority within its borders. But by 1998, Greeks have committed to invest $300 million in Macedonia - equal to 10% of its dilapidated GDP. Employing 22,000 workers, 450 Greek firms have invested $120 million in 1280 different ventures in Bulgaria. And 200 Greek businesses invested more than $50 million in the Albanian and economy, the beneficiary of a bilateral "drachma zone" since 1993. In 1998, Greece controlled 10% of the market in oil derivatives in Albania and the bulk of the market in Macedonia. Another $60 million were invested in Romania.
Nowhere was Greek presence more felt than in Yugoslavia. The two countries signed a bilateral investment accord in 1995. It opened the floodgates.
Yugoslavia's law prevented Greek banks from operating in its territory. But this seems to have been the sole constraint. Mytilineos, a Greek metals group, signed two deals worth $1.5 billion with the Kosovo-based Trepca mines and other Yugoslav metal firms. The list reads like the Greek Who's Who in Business. Gener, Atemke, Attikat (construction), 3E, Delta Dairy (foodstuffs), Intracom (telecommunications), Elvo and Hyundai Hellas (motor vehicles), Evroil, BP Oil and Mamidakis (oil products).
The Milosevic regime used Greek and Cypriot banks and firms to launder money and bust the international sanctions regime. Greek firms shipped goods, oil included, up the Vardar river, through Macedonia, to Serbia. Members of the Yugoslav political elite bought properties in Greece. But this cornucopia mostly ended in 1998 with the deepening involvement of the international community in Kosovo. Only now are Greek companies venturing back hesitantly. European Tobacco has invested $47 million in a 400 workers strong tobacco factory in Serbia to be opened early next year.
Still, the 3500 investments in the Balkan between 1992-8 were only the beginning.
Despite a worsening geopolitical climate, by 2001, Greek businesses - acting through Cypriot, Luxemburg, Lichtenstein, Swiss, and even Russian subsidiaries - have invested in excess of $5 billion in the Balkan, according to the Economic Research Division of the Greek Alpha Bank. Thus, Chipita, the Greek snacks company bought Romania's Best Foods Productions through its Cyprus subsidiary, Chipita East Europe Cyprus.
The state controlled OTE alone has invested $1.5 billion in acquiring stakes in the Serb, Bulgarian, and Romanian state telecoms. This cannot be considered mere bargain hunting. OTE claims to have turned a profit on its investments in war torn Serbia, corruption riddled Romania and bureaucratic Bulgaria. Others doubt this exuberance.
Greek banks have invested $400 million in the Balkan. NBG has branches or subsidiaries in Macedonia, Bulgaria, Romania, and Albania. EFG Ergasias and Commercial Bank are active in Bulgaria, and Alpha Bank in Romania. The creation of Europe's 23rd largest bank as a result of the merger between NBG and Alpha is likely to consolidate their grip on Balkan banking.
Greek manufacturing interests have purchased stakes in breweries in Macedonia. Hellenic Bottling - formerly 3E - started off as a Coca-Cola bottler but has invested $250m on facilities in the south Balkans and in Croatia, Slovenia and Moldova. Another big investor is Delta dairy products and ice cream.
Moreover, Greece has absorbed - albeit chaotically and reluctantly - hundreds of thousands of Albanian, Macedonian, Serb, Romanian, and Bulgarian economic immigrants. Albanian expatriates remit home well over 500 million drachmas annually. Thousands of small time cross border traders and small to medium size trading firms control distribution and retailing of Greek, European, Asian, and American origin brands (not to mention the smuggling of cigarettes, counterfeit brands, immigrants, stolen vehicles, pirated intellectual property, prostitutes, and, marginally, drugs).
As a member of the EU and an instigator of the ineffectual and bureaucratic Stability Pact, Greece has unveiled a few megabuck regional reconstruction plans. In November 1999, it proposed a $500 million five year private-public partnership to invest in infrastructure throughout the region. Next were a $1 billion oil pipeline through Bulgaria and northern Greece and an extension of a Russian gas pipeline to Albania and Macedonia. The Egnatia Highway is supposed to connect Turkey, Greece, Bulgaria, Macedonia, and Albania. Greece is a major driving force behind REM - a southeast Europe Regional Electricity trading Market declared in September 1999 in Thessalonica.
The Hellenic Observatory in the London School of Economics notes the importance of the Greek capitalist Diaspora (Antonis Kamaras, "Capitalist Diaspora: The Greeks in the Balkans"). Small, Greek, traders in well located Thessalonica provided know-how, contacts and distribution networks to established Greek businesses outside the Balkan. The latter took advantage of the vacuum created by the indifference of multinationals in the West and penetrated Balkan markets vigorously.
The Greek stratagem is evident. Greece, as a state, gets involved in transportation and energy related projects. Greek state-inspired public sector investments have been strategically placed in the telecommunications and banking sectors - the circulatory systems of any modern economy. Investments in these four sectors can be easily and immediately leveraged to gain control of domestic manufacturing and services to the benefit of the Greek private sector.
Moreover, politics is a cash guzzling business. He who controls the cash flow - controls the votes. Greece buys itself not only refineries and banks, telecoms and highways. It buys itself influence and politicians. The latter come cheap in this part of the world. Greece can easily afford them.
LIBYA-BULGARIA-TRIAL.
BTA
Arraignment Chamber in Benghazi to Announce Decision on Trial of Bulgarian Medical Workers on Monday.
Benghazi, August 5 (BTA) - The Arraignment Chamber in Benghazi is expected to announce its decision on Monday about the trial of six Bulgarian medical workers accused of infecting some 400 Libyan children with HIV.
The Chamber is to announce if the accused will be brought to a criminal court or not. This was decided on July 15 so as to allow "additional questioning to be completed", a source from the judiciary said at the time.
The Bulgarians' Libyan lawyer Osman Bizanti said on Thursday the further investigation had not ended and the Arraignment Chamber might adjourn again until the questioning of policemen accused of torturing the Bulgarians was over.
At this stage Bizanti has no information on the findings of the questioning, nor on the number and whereabouts of the policemen.
Bizanti also said he would not attend the Arraignment Chamber's sitting in Benghazi on August 5, but would be represented by a lawyer from his firm.
At its June 3 sitting, the Arraignment Chamber returned the case for further consideration to the prosecuting magistracy and ordered further questioning of the six Bulgarians, nurses Kristiana Vulcheva, Nassya Nenova, Valya Chervenyashka, Valentina Siropoulo and Snezhana Dimitrova and Dr Zdravko Georgiev, as well as of one Palestinian. The order came after the prosecution said it would pursue its charges against the seven of "causing an AIDS epidemic by injecting 393 Libyan children with infected products in the hospital in Benghazi", for which the death penalty is demanded.
On February 17, the Libyan People's Court, which tries cases relating to state security, decided that there was no evidence that the six Bulgarians had intentionally infected the children as an act against the security of the Libyan state and returned the case to the prosecuting magistracy.
The six Bulgarians are also charged with distilling alcohol, extramarital affairs and illegal trade in foreign currency.
The Bulgarians denied all charges. Vulcheva and Nenova, who had made confessions to the police in Tripoli, told the Arraignment Chamber they had been extorted by torture.
LEBANON - BULGARIA - VISIT.
BTA
In Beirut, Prime Minister Saxe-Cobug Gotha Discusses Promotion of Bilateral Relations with Lebanon's President, Parliament Speaker.
Beirut, August 5 (BTA) - Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha discussed the opportunities for invigoragtion of Bulgarian-Lebanese relations with President Emile Lahud of Lebanon and with the President of Lebanon's National Assembly Nabih Berri, the Council of Ministers Information Directorate said.
The sides reviewed bilateral relations. The Bulgarian head of government and his party were received by President Lahud at his official residence, the Baabda Palace. The session took more than half an hour, even though its protocol duration was supposed to be limited to 10 minutes. The role of Bulgaria and Lebanon and Francophone countries was also discussed.
An invigoration of economic relations between the two countries topped the agenda of the convseration with Nabih Berri. Tourism was singled out as one opportunity for such invigoration. The host stressed to his guest that Varna is a very popular resort in his country, and that the combination of forest with seaside, available in Bulgaria, makes the Bulgarian Black Sea coast more attractive than the French Riviera.
Concerning investment in Bulgaria, it was emphasized that the Lebanese are a very enterprising people and nearly 1,000 of them have companies in Bulgaria.
The sides agreed that both countries develop their economy in the right direction despite an adverse international environment.
The Lebanese hosts assessed positively Bulgaria's role as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and its role as a stabilizing factor in the Balkans.
At the start of his visit to Lebanon Monday morning, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha conferred with Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, and an intergovernmental agreement on readmission was signed.
LEBANON-PM-OFFICIAL VISIT.
BTA
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Starts Official Visit to Lebanon, Readmission Agreement Signed.
Beirut, August 5 (BTA) - Bulgarian Prime Minister Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and the accompanying delegation arrived on an official visit here on Monday. Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, heads of European and Arab diplomatic missions and participants in the official talks welcomed the Bulgarian government leader at the international airport in Beirut.
The two prime ministers held a one-to-one meeting. An extended meeting was held between the two delegations afterwards, the Government Information and PR Directorate said.
The accent in the talks was on ways to create better conditions for economic contacts. The Lebanese side showed interest in tourism and conditions for attracting foreign investment to Bulgaria.
An intergovernmental readmission agreement was signed at an official ceremony.
The Lebanese side thanked the Bulgarian prime minister for choosing Lebanon for his first official visit to an Arab country.
Two more official meetings are scheduled for Monday: with President Emile Lahoud and with Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
Bulgarian prime minister meets Lebanese officials.
AP
BEIRUT, Lebanon - Bulgaria's prime minister on Monday discussed bilateral relations and regional development with Lebanese officials.
Simeon Saxcoburggotski met with Lebanese counterpart Rafik Hariri on arrival in Beirut, the Lebanese capital, for a four-day visit.
Both sides signed an agreement accepting the return of citizens living illegally in each other's countries. Saxcoburggotski said two other deals on customs issues and facilitating the travel of citizens of both countries would also be signed.
Saxcoburggotski told reporters that talks focused on bilateral relations and regional developments, while Hariri said both sides will "exert all efforts so as to strengthen relations between our two countries."
Saxcoburggotski also met with President Emile Lahoud.
Bulgaria's former president, Peter Stoyanov, visited Lebanon last year, the first visit by a Bulgarian head of state to Lebanon since both states established diplomatic relations in 1966.
zk-pg
Sofianski to Hand a File with Recommendations to Pm.
Standartnews
Mayor Stephan Sofianski is to hand in to Premier Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha a file containing recommendations for overcoming the economic crisis and an analysis of the first year of the cabinet's government. It was drawn up by the Union of Free Democrats. The first year of Simeon's government was lost for the privatization, investors and Bulgarians who expected higher living standards. "Be frank with people and tell them that no miracles could be worked in economy," the Free Democrats recommend.
I Don't Rule Out a New Bid.
Standartnews
Yunal Tassim,
MRF, vice-chairman of the Economic Committee with the Parliament
I don't rule out the possibility for new bids after a serious review of the final offers. The MRF deems the protection of the national interests to be the most important, i.e. stimulation of the tobacco-growing, as many investments as possible in the holding and higher purchase price.
The Winner Is Suspicious.
Standartnews
Hristo Mihaylovski
Ex-Director of the Board of 'Bulgartabac'
There should be a new bidding, as the bidders are willing to take part in it. The present winner is a suspicious one.
Government's Favorites Liquidate Bulgartabak.
Standartnews
The company should be either disqualified or rated third for 6 untruths in its offer.
In the offer submitted by Tobacco Capital six points are sheer lie, which in itself is reason enough for their disqualification. First they lied about investments and yesterday we informed our readers about it. Second, the access to Russian markets will be denied - Tobacco Capital plans to close all factories in Russia, except the one Sochi. Third, they lied about tobacco quantity meant for buy-out. Forth, they cheat 1 million of tobacco producers in this country. Fifth, they eliminate the smaller investors who will be automatically driven away. Sixth, they have replaced the agreement - Tobacco Capital enclosed to their offer a new secret agreement for Bulgartabak. The three reports stated with horror that it has nothing in common with the draft document prepared by the PA which was handed out to other bidders for Bulgartabak.
BULGARTABAC-PRIVATIZATION.
BTA
Bulgartabac Prospective Buyers to Answer 70 Additional Questions by August 19, Says Economy Minister.
Sofia, August 5 (BTA) - By August 19 the four candidates to buy 80 per cent of Bulgartabac Holding Group must give detailed and exact answers to some 70 additional questions prepared by the Privatization Agency (PA), Deputy Prime Minister and Economy Minister Nikolai Vassilev told reporters, emerging from a three-hour meeting of the working group on the cigarette maker's privatization. The working group, which includes the PA leadership and Agriculture Minister Mehmed Dikme, discussed the reports drafted by consultant on the Bulgartabac deal, Creditanstalt Investment Bank, and the PA team.
The prospective buyers will probably be handed out the questionnaire Tuesday. "We expect detailed and exact answers by 2 p.m. on August 19.
The PA will then familiarize itself with the answers and within a few days it will name the winner of the competition, with whom additional talks will open," said the Deputy Prime Minister.
Taking up a question on whether candidates will be requested to revise their bids, Vassilev said that the meeting did not discuss the issue. "It is a matter of decision by the working group whether to proceed with a request for revision of the candidates' bids," Agriculture and Forests Minister Mehmed Dikme said before the meeting referring to the current requirement that the candidates provide further explanations. "Clearly, if the candidate buyers do not revise their bids, we will hardly proceed [with the deal]," Dikme said. He left the meeting an hour before its ended.
Taking up a question on Dikme's early departure, Vassilev said that the Agriculture Minister had another engagement.
Meanwhile, workers of the Bulgartabac Holding Group's companies in Haskovo, Pleven, Blagoevgrad, Vidin and Doulovo launched a token strike.
The protest is organized by the Independent Trade Union of Tobacco Workers with the Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria.
The protesters are concerned over Bulgartabac's future privatization and announced themselves against the plans to lay off 3,600 people.
According to Kosta Bozhinov, Chairman of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Tobacco Workers, the protesters will insist that Bulgartabac's prospective buyers state clearly their plans concerning the alternative employment of layoffs.
The trade unionists insist that cigarette makers in Vidin, Shoumen, Isperih, Sandanski and Doupnitsa be paid 1,8 million leva of back wages and state insurance contributions.
The Federation will hold meetings Tuesday and Wednesday with representatives of the candidates for Bulgartabac, at which it will put forth its demands.
Prince Kardam Incognito in Sofia together with His Children.
Standartnews
The eldest son of Premier Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha arrived incognito in Sofia, "Standart" learnt. Prince Kardam of Tarnovo, his wife and their two children arrived from Madrid on Friday night. The prince and his family will stay with their relatives only in the weekend. Kardam arrived for the first time in Bulgaria in 2000 to introduce Simeon at the national celebration "Rozhen - 2000" in August. At the time, he visited the residence in Krichim and Bania, as well as the grave of his grandfather King Boris in the Rila Monastery. He took with him a handful of Bulgarian soil. "To me, this is the most precious gift from Bulgaria," the Prince said at an improvised briefing in Smolyan before leaving. Kardam is fluent in seven languages but has not learnt Bulgarian as yet.
MPs Write Laws on the Beach.
Standartnews
Pavlina Zhivkova
There's a risk Emil Koshlukov won't tan this summer because of the promised projects.
A group of deputies from the NMS will have to combine vacation with hard work. Emil Koshlukov, Miroslav Sevlievski, Borislav Tsekov and some other colleagues of theirs made a commitment to draft the new election act and lobbying act before the start of sessions in autumn. "We shall fulfill what we promised", said yesterday Sevlievski. King's deputy Nikola Nikolov also has an important assignment for August. He will prepare a theoretical construct for the new parliamentary commission - "Anticorruption". The NMS deputies sincerely hope that none of the ministers will jump on the decision to tour their constituencies in summer. The chief of their parliamentary group Plamen Panayotov gave explicit orders that the deputies are obliged to accompany cabinet members on their visits to the provinces.
Tighter Control over Arms Deals.
Standartnews
Victoria Serafimova
Go-betweens and carriers of special produce with mandatory licenses.
The intermediaries engaged in arms trade will have to be licensed. The document will be issued by the Interdepartmental Commission to the Council of Ministers. This is envisaged in the amendments to Law of Control over Arms Trade, Goods and Technologies of Possible Double Application. The law was promulgated in the State Gazette and will be enforced from September 2. It does not ban offshore companies from being intermediaries in arms deals. Licensing becomes mandatory also for the carriers of special produce to and from Bulgaria and the third countries. Licenses for arms trade will be issued initially for one year and then renewed every third year. For each separate deal the Interdepartmental Commission will issue a license.
POLAR RESEARCH-INTERNATIONAL MEETING.
BTA
Representatives of Nine Countries of Central and Eastern Europe to Discuss Future Cooperation in Polar Research.
Sofia, August 5 (BTA) - Representatives of nine countries of Central and Eastern Europe are discussing ways to carry out polar research and use it for promoting scientific and foreign policy. A two-day working meeting opened at Sofia's Radisson Hotel on Monday.
The meeting is organized by the Bulgarian Antarctic Institute, the European Polar Board with the Council of Europe and the St Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia. It was opened by Foreign Minister Solomon Passy, who wished the forum success and thanked Assoc. Prof. Hristo Pimpirev, Director of the Bulgarian Antarctic Institute, for his efforts to turn Bulgaria into a Balkan leader in polar research. Passy recalled that he himself had been to the Antarctic three times.
The meeting opened with a presentation on "The European Polar Board: Aims, Structure, Organization" by the Board's Executive Scientific Secretary Paul Egerton. The meeting will hear reports on "Organization and Operation of the Scientific Committee on Arctic Research" by its Vice President Jeronimo Lopez Martinez and "Bulgarian Arctic Studies" by Assoc. Prof. Pimpirev.
The participating countries will make presentations at Sofia University in the afternoon. There are delegations from Estonia, Poland, Romania, Russia, Ukraine, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg and Switzerland. The participants will discuss ways for non-EU members to cooperate with the EU countries in polar research.
Bulgaria Is the European Laggard in Terms of Incomes.
Standartnews
Bulgaria ranks 31 in Europe in terms of average annual incomes per capita, which amounts to 361 euro, a market study of the Nurnberg Institute reads. Even the Macedonians, Ukrainians and Albanians are ahead of Bulgarians in terms of incomes. The Albanians have average annual income of 563 euro per capita, and the Ukrainians - 379. Among the Europeans, the Swiss are the most prosperous with average annual incomes of 25,603 euro per capita. The poorest ones are the Moldavians who survive with 223 euro per year.
Carlsberg Buys 67 pct of Bulgaria's Pirinsko Pivo.
Standartnews
Danish brewer Carlsberg Breweries said on Friday it had bought 67 percent of Bulgarian brewery Pirinsko Pivo for an undisclosed sum from a group of institutional and private investors. Carlsberg Breweries is obliged under Bulgarian law to make a public offer for the remaining shares, it said in a statement. Pirinsko Pivo, with 2001 sales of around $8 million, has a 12 percent share of the Bulgarian beer market. In June, Carlsberg acquired 59 percent of another Bulgarian brewery, Shumensko Pivo, which has an eight percent share of the market and which Carlsberg plans to merge with its latest acquisition.
Negotiations With Nigeria On Construction Projects Of USD 150 M.
News.bg
The Bulgarian Deputy Minister of Regional Development and Public Works Georgi Georgiev departed for Republic of Nigeria, from the press department of the ministry announced.
The purpose of the visit is the recently signed Memorandum for understanding in the sphere of construction between the Bulgarian Ministry of Regional Development and Public Works and Kogi State.
PRESIDENT-SUSPENSORY VETO.
BTA
President Purvanov Returns Environmental Protection Act for Reconsideration.
Sofia, August 5 (BTA) - President Georgi Purvanov returned the Environmental Protection Act for reconsideration on Monday, the President's Press Secretariat told BTA.
Purvanov argued that the law should develop, as well as maintain, the environmental protection standards, and create legal requirements that would guarantee the citizens' constitutional right to a healthy and favorable environment.
Purvanov said the new law changed the principle of providing information on the environment. Until now state and municipal bodies were obliged to provide such information to the whole public in routine procedure, while the new law stipulates that these bodies must provide it at the request of concrete persons.
Thus the obligation of the State to keep citizens permanently informed about circumstances which have an impact on their life and health is shifted in the direction of the individual citizen's initiative, the President said.
Article 31 introduces an obligation of the national public media to disseminate information on environmental protection and management, which is insufficient and is formal in nature, according to Purvanov. The law must guarantee that Bulgarian citizens will be informed by the competent state authorities about their living and working conditions on a daily basis, because otherwise there will be prerequisites for information blackouts on vital issues, Purvanov argued.
The President's reasoning also deals with the regulation of ecological assessment and environmental impact assessment. The legal framework does not comply fully with the State's obligations for preservation and reproduction of the environment, enshrined in Article 15 of the Constitution, and the fundamental constitutional right to a healthy and favourable environment.
The existing obligation for periodic environmental impact assessment of major polluters should not be scrapped, according to Purvanov. Article 81 of the law should be edited to oblige major polluters to make a continued effort to protect the environment.
The restriction on ecological assessment and environmental impact assessment of plans, programmes and investment proposals relating to defence and national security (Article 85(3)) would be justified only if the concept of "national security" was clearly defined, as is done in the Safeguarding of Classified Information Act, in line with the concept established in contemporary international law. This is the only way to guarantee that national security considerations will not be abused to waive ecological assessment or environmental impact assessment of a potentially dangerous project, Purvanov said.
Purvanov argued that the entities for which environmental impact assessment is required should be specified in an annex to the law. Only stable legal regulation can guarantee the public interest and form a barrier to exempting future polluters from preliminary environmental impact assessment.
Paragraph 10 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the new law sets July 1, 2004, as the date when the new procedure, ecological assessment, will be introduced. Until then, environmental impact assessment of national and regional plans and programmes for development will be made according to a procedure, which will be determined by an ordinance by the environment minister. Thus stable legal regulation will be supplanted by lower-level regulation, albeit for a short time, which is unacceptable, especially in the sensitive area of environmental protection, the President said.
This is the third law returned for reconsideration by Purvanov after the Privatization and Post-Privatization Control Act and the Biodiversity Act.
There is no need to hold an extraordinary sitting of the National Assembly to debate the vetoed Environmental Protection Act, Parliament Chairman Ognyan Gerdjikov said.
Answering a question, Gerdjikov said he was not surprised at the President's veto. It is quite normal for the head of state to exercise his powers, Gerdjikov said.
The vetoed law will be redebated during Parliament's autumn session, said Djevdet Chakurov, Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on the Environment and Waters.
The Committee has 15 days to draw up a report and introduce it into Parliament, but this will be done in the autumn because the committee members are on holiday.
BULGARIA - BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY ACT - COMMENT.
BTA
Controlversial Provision of Biological Diversity Act Allows Expeditious Updated of Protected Areas Space.
Sofia, August 5 (BTA) - The controversial Clause 11 of the Transitional and Final Provisions of the Biological Diversity Act makes it possible to update the space of protected areas without wasting time, Deputy Environment and Water Minister Fatme Ilyaz told a news conference Monday.
President Georgi Purvanov vetoed the Biological Diversity Act in mid-July. At the end of the month, the National Assembly voted, 120-98 with six abstentions, to re-adopt an unrevised version of the act that the President had refused to sign into law.
Clause 11 empowers the Minister of Environment and Water to order an updating of the space of protected areas provided that their boundaries remain unrevised. Iliyaz argued that this is an act of disposition rather than of governance and, therefore, the minister does not usurp powers vested in the National Assembly.
The space of protected areas has to be updated because the areas were measured by different instruments 50 years ago and now, said Mihail Mihailov, expert at the Environment Ministry's National Nature Protection Service Directorate. He insisted that the new measurement of space will not redraw the boundaries of protected areas.
Bulgaria has more than 600 protected areas, 90 reserves and three national parks.
MRF Will Suspend Privatization of Bulgartabak if It's Wrongful.
INTERVIEW Standartnews: Emel Etem
Velislava Krasteva
We can demand changes in cabinet, assures Emel Etem, vice-chairperson of MRF.
Vice-chairperson of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms, Mrs. Emel Etem, carries out her second mandate in the National Assembly as a representative of the Movement in Razgrad. She is an engineer by profession. In the 39th NA Emel Etem is the vice-chairperson of the commission on mass media and a member of the commission on culture.
- Mrs. Etem, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms gave a good mark to the government for the first year of their rule, but you haven't answered if you have any critical remarks to the performance of individual ministers?
- We analyzed cooperation between MRF and NMS and pointed out problems of separate regions. The NMS party was set up only several months ago and they don't have established structures yet, which makes communication difficult. After summer vacation we'll assess the performance of each minister separately. If we see that the problems are personal and they impede implementation of the program of the ruling majority, we shall come up with proposals for changes in the cabinet.
- Does the MRF have a clear-cut strategy for the protection of its electorate in the context of privatization of Bulgartabak? Does anything in this privatization worry you?
- We have set concrete requirements connected with the guarantees for tobacco producers. We scrutinize all relevant procedures and are capable of responding to any problem or even something suspicious that can pose a risk to thousands of people and provoke serious social tension in the country. In this case we are prepared to suspend this privatization procedure. |
