Cretan outlaw takes own life - 5 January, 2011
Police in the Cretan prefecture of Rethymno yesterday recovered the bullet-riddled body of a 53-year-old fugitive and murder suspect from his hideout in the mountain village of Archontiki following a shootout.
It appears Vangelis Selianakis, whom police have been seeking since 1996, took his own life. According to a coroner, Selianakis – who was left-handed – bore a gunshot wound to his left temple. The wounds to the 53-year-old's legs were incurred during a shootout with police.
Officers surrounded the hideout and called on Selianakis to give himself up. The fugitive responded by opening fire on police, who shot back. The 53-year-old, charged with two murders and linked to another three, had been at large since escaping from Alikarnassos Prison in 1996. He had been dressed in army combat clothes and surrounded by guns and ammunition when police found his body.
Rare Greek dialect alive in Turkey
A Greek professor of linguistics at Cambridge University has been credited with identifying an endangered Greek dialect which is spoken in a remote mountainous region in northeastern Turkey and is believed to be a "linguistic gold mine" because of its close similarities to ancient Greek.
The significance of the Romeyka dialect was highlighted by Dr Ioanna Sitaridou, director of studies in linguistics at Queen's College, following fieldwork in the area around Trabzon, on Turkey's Black Sea coast. In a short film about her research, Sitaridou said the dialect was unique.
"Romeyka is a living language preserving structures only to be found in Classical Greek, which has been dead for more than 2,000 years," she remarked. "What these people are speaking is a variety of Greek far more archaic than other forms of Greek spoken today."
Sitaridou said religion was a major reason behind the dialect's survival. The Romeyka speakers are devout Muslims and were therefore exempt from the large-scale population exchange between Greece and Turkey that took place in 1923, she said.
The Cambridge linguist's research has involved trips to villages near the Black Sea (or Pontus) where Romeyka is spoken, where she has mapped the grammatical structures and variations in use. Information is gathered using audio and video recordings of the villagers telling stories.
The ultimate aim of the research is to explain how Pontic Greek evolved. "We know that Greek has been continuously spoken in Pontus since ancient times and can surmise that its geographic isolation from the rest of the Greek-speaking world is an important factor in why the language is as it is," Sitaridou said.
But the dialect's survival is at risk due to waves of emigration from Trabzon and the influence of the dominant Turkish-speaking majority. With as few as 5,000 speakers left in the area, Romeyka could soon be "more of a heritage language than a living vernacular," Sitaridou said.
From: Kathimerini
_____________  VAT... 3 January, 2011
Consumers will have to dig deeper to fill their shopping baskets as of today due to the latest hikes in value added tax (VAT). The VAT applicable on food items, non-alcoholic drinks and sweets increased to 13 percent from 11 percent on Saturday, as the government scrounges for more revenues in a shrinking economy. Other items that will be affected by the tax hike include power and water bills, transport costs and movie tickets. The 5.5 percent VAT tax rate, paid on products such as books and newspaper, has also been increased to 6.5 percent. [From July 1, 2010 the general VAT rate in Greece is 23%, compared to the previous 21% rate.]
From: Kathimerini
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Airport taxis to get fixed rate - 30 December, 2010
A new initiative by the Transport Ministry, to be made public soon, aims to crack down on profiteering by taxi drivers shuttling Greeks and tourists between the capital and Athens International Airport by introducing a fixed-charge of 35 euros for the route.
A fixed price of 50 euros will apply for journeys during the double-tariff period – between midnight and 5 a.m. These prices will be featured on a card that all taxi drivers will be obliged to display in their cabs. By late last night there had been no reports of objections to the planned measure by taxi driver unions. Sources said however that some drivers object to the set charge being imposed on days when there is heavy traffic, such as during transport strikes, as the journey will take longer.
Ministry sources said the 35-euro figure was not picked at random but was the average price of several test journeys from different parts of Athens to the airport.
From: Kathimerini
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Registering land - 14 December, 2010
Ktimatologio SA, the company that has been charged with creating Greece's first comprehensive land register, has started registering plots of land in 19 prefectures, it emerged yesterday. Once all plots of land in these prefectures – which cover 263 different regions – have been registered, the company will proceed to register the country's remaining 32 prefectures. A spokesman for Ktimatologio said yesterday that the project was due for completion by 2020.
From: Kathimerini
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Crisis fuels pre-holiday scrimping - 10 December, 2010
Owners of hotels and guesthouses at popular winter holiday destinations report a significant drop in bookings for the Christmas season, a slump experts attribute to the impact of the debt crisis. Meanwhile a survey by consumer protection group KEPKA shows that a third of Greeks are planning to spend their additional holiday salary on paying off debts. [...]
CHRISTMAS PENSIONS
Yuletide bonus to be 400 euros
The government confirmed yesterday that pensioners over the age of 60 will receive a Christmas bonus of only 400 euros this year due to spending cuts. The measure only applies to pensioners whose monthly retirement pay is under 2,500 euros. Those who receive more will not be paid any bonus.
Xenia demolition
A court in Iraklio, Crete, yesterday cleared 34 people, including Mayor Yiannis Kourakis and the general secretary of the region, Athanasios Karountzos, of any wrongdoing in connection to the demolition of the defunct Xenia hotel in 2003.
From: Kathimerini
_____________ Action needed on road safety - 9 December, 2010
Greece has fallen far short of a target set by the European Union in 2000 to halve road traffic accidents within a decade, the head of the Hellenic Institute of Transportation Engineers told a cross-party road safety committee yesterday.
According to Vassilis Halkias, Greece managed to reduce the number of accidents and fatalities on the country's roads by 23 percent in 10 years, significantly below the EU average of 36 percent. This means that Greece ranks third from last in the 27-nation bloc for its efforts to improve road safety. Still, authorities can significantly improve the situation by implementing a harsher stance against traffic offenders and modernizing the country's road network.
According to Halkias, Greece's safest road is currently the Attiki Odos highway, with only 0.6 percent of the country's road fatalities occurring on it. Of the traffic-related deaths recorded on Attiki Odos, however, half are drivers or passengers of motorcycles or scooters.
From: Kathimerini
_____________ Greeks 'unhealthy but happy' - 8 December, 2010
Greeks hold one of the worst records in the European Union for smoking and child obesity but they are also among the most optimistic citizens in the region, according to a joint report by the European Commission and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
The report, whose findings were made public in Brussels yesterday, showed that four in 10 people in Greece (39.2 percent) aged over 15 smoke every day. Greeks have the highest rate for smoking in the 27-member EU, followed by the Bulgarians with 29.1 percent smoking daily and the Irish with 29 percent, just over the EU average of 24.2 percent. The findings came just two weeks after the Greek government heralded the launch of a campaign to discourage children from picking up the habit of smoking by informing them early on about the associated risks. Health Ministry figures show that some 50,000 young Greeks join the ranks of the country's smokers each year.
Another health risk faced by Greek children, according to the joint report by the EC and OECD, is obesity. Greece has the worst record in the EU for child obesity after Malta, the report showed. A total of 18.9 percent of Greek children aged between 11 and 15 are obese, significantly above the EU average of 13.3 percent but also much lower than the Maltese with 29.5 percent.
However, despite these unhealthy habits, Greeks appear to be among the least depressed citizens in the bloc. The most recent figures available, for 2008, show Greece to have the lowest rate of suicide, with 2.8 suicides per 100,000 residents recorded in that year, compared to an EU average of 12 suicides per 100,00 residents. In Cyprus, the rate in 2008 was 4.3 suicides per 100,000 residents and in Italy 5.2 suicides per 100,000. The highest rates were recorded in Lithuania with 30.7 suicides per 100,000 residents and Hungary with 21.5 suicides per 100,000.
Captain found
Missing tanker skipper safe
A 41-year-old tanker captain has been reunited with his family on Crete after being reported missing last Thursday. There had been no sign of the sailor after he left his ship, which had docked in Kaloi Limenes, to withdraw money from the village of Moires to pay his crew. Police called off their search after the captain's wife contacted them on Monday to say that the 41-year-old had returned home safely.
Meteor shower
One of the most impressive meteor showers of the year will be visible in most parts of the world, including Greece, on the evening of December 13 and through the early hours of December 14. The meteor shower is called the Geminids because it appears to radiate from the constellation Gemini.
From: Kathimerini
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CAVO SIDERO - 4 December, 2010
Court rules major tourism project on Crete illegal
The Council of State yesterday ruled illegal a controversial project to build a large holiday complex and golf course on a 2,500-hectare plot on the eastern tip of Crete, dubbed Cavo Sidero. The country's highest administrative court deemed that a ministerial decision issued in February 2007, granting a British development company the right to proceed with the project, was illegal as it violated restrictions for construction on the island.
From: Kathimerini
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Seamen ordered to return to work - 30 November, 2010
Sailors who have been on strike for the last week are to be forced back to work after the government issued civil mobilization orders to prevent further disruption to travel and the shipment of goods after the seamen called a new 48-hour strike.
Maritime Affairs Minister Yiannis Diamantidis took the rare step of issuing the order – it is only the third time the measure has been used since 2002 – after the seamen were unable to reach a compromise with shipowners in a labor dispute.
The Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO) called a new 48-hour strike after failing to find common ground with the Union of Marine Enterprises (EEN). The seamen are demanding a new collective contract for 2011 and job security. PNO announced the strike after Diamantidis had intimated that the government might resort to the rarely used method of enlisting strikers as army conscripts so it can order them back to work.
"All the options for confronting the problem are open," Diamantidis told Skai TV yesterday morning. He said that it was unacceptable for the country to be "cut in half" by the strike, which has prevented farmers on Crete from being able to transport their produce to markets and has hampered islanders and travelers in their efforts to journey to and from the mainland.
Cretan farmers welcomed the move to force the sailors back to work as they estimate that they have suffered damages of 200 million euros as a result of being unable to ship their fruit and vegetables to the mainland.
Diamantidis had earlier brought PNO and EEN to the negotiating table, suggesting that the strike be suspended for three days so that talks between the two sides could take place. Sources said that EEN was open to the suggestion as long as it could raise several issues of its own with the ministry.
DUST CLOUDS
Weathermen say Saharan sand will stay until the weekend
The Saharan dust seen in most parts of Greece yesterday will linger over the country until the end of the week, meteorologists said yesterday. The dust is being carried on southwesterly winds and has been accompanied by unseasonably warm temperatures, which are expected to reach as high as 28 Celsius (82F) in some parts of the country this week. "The movement of dust from the Sahara is more usual in the spring, and even in summer sometimes," said the head of the National Meteorological Service, Dimitris Ziakopoulos. "The increasingly common presence of dust in the fall is connected to climate change and we should expect this to happen more frequently in the future."
From: Kathimerini
_____________ Pressure on striking sailors growing - 29 November, 2010
Rolling 48-hour strikes by seamen prompted the government on Saturday to say that it would intervene unless the action, which has enraged farmers on Crete unable to transport their produce and hampered thousands of travelers, is brought to an end.
On Saturday, the Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO) called a new 48-hour strike, thereby extending to seven the number of days that sailors had not been to work. The seamen are demanding a new collective contract and job security. The extension of their protest drew criticism from the government, which for the first time since the strikes began threatened to take action, without detailing whether it intended to force the sailors back to work by issuing a civil mobilization order.
"The government strongly disagrees with any attempts to abuse labor rights," said Maritime Affairs Minister Yiannis Diamantidis. "We want to protect workers' rights but we also want to protect public interest and the national economy.
"The government will protect society responsibly and decisively with effective intervention wherever and whenever is needed."
The latest strike is due to end at 6 a.m. tomorrow but PNO is due to meet again then to discuss whether it should take further action, unless employers show a willingness to agree on a new collective contract.
The strike has caused tension on Crete, where farmers have clashed with seamen as they have been unable to get their fruit and vegetables to the mainland. The two sides came to a compromise on Saturday and three vessels set sail from Crete for Piraeus carrying local produce. The ships arrived at their destination yesterday but PNO said that it would not allow any more vessels to sail until the strike was over.
From: Kathimerini
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Ferry strike - 24 November, 2010
Action extended for 48 hours
Coastal ferries and passenger ships will remain docked today and tomorrow due to another 48-hour strike by the Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO), which is calling for its members' jobs to be safeguarded, as well as strict adherence to the law for 10 months of employment per year and the creation of an independent unemployment fund for seamen.
From: Kathimerini
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Cheese thieves - 17 November, 2010
Unidentified thieves made off with about 10 tons of cheese from a factory in the Cretan prefecture of Iraklio early yesterday, police on the island said. According to police, the thieves gained access to the maturing room where the cheese is kept by hacking a hole into the exterior wall of the three-floor factory. The factory owner told officers that the cheese taken was worth around 100,000 euros.
From: Kathimerini
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Wind woes - 10 November, 2010
Strong winds reaching up to 8 on the Beaufort scale kept passenger ferries moored in Piraeus and other ports around the country yesterday. Passengers with scheduled departures from Piraeus and other ports to the Aegean are advised to contract the ferry firm in advance to check scheduling. On Monday night, strong winds caused the Superfast XII passenger ferry to hit the jetty at Iraklio, Crete, as it returned to port to fix a faulty ramp shortly after setting off for Piraeus. The collision resulted in minor damage to the vessel but no injuries. Meanwhile a small tornado caused widespread damage to houses on the Ionian island of Zakynthos, in the southern town of Vassiliko.
From: Kathimerini
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Tourism scam uncovered - 9 November, 2010
Culture and Tourism Minister Pavlos Geroulanos yesterday dispatched to an appeals court prosecutor a report compiled by the financial crimes squad (SDOE) implicating nine officials and employees of the Greek National Tourism Organization in losing the GNTO some 5.5 million euros between 2006 and 2009.
According to the report, the losses were incurred by the GNTO's state-subsidized social tourism program which the officials and employees are alleged to have exploited by overissuing coupons. In 2006 alone, the body issued more than 22,900 coupons, according to the report, compared to the 2,000 foreseen by official decisions. This resulted in an additional financial burden on the organization of 1.75 million euros for that year. The report also draws attention to the issuing of bogus coupons by hotels – a practice that GNTO officials are alleged to have noticed but failed to follow up on.
From: Kathimerini
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Bee disease - 3 November, 2010
A new disease, nosema ceranae, kills large numbers of bee colonies amongst the more than 700 beekeepers in Chania province, Crete. It started in June 2010 and already has killed 70% of all the bees.
From: Haniotika Nea
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Schools closed - 2 November, 2010
All state primary and secondary schools will be closed on Friday, November 5, and Monday, November 8, to allow the schools to be readied as polling stations for local authority elections due on Sunday. Schools in prefectures or municipalities where elections will go to a second round will also be closed on Friday, November 12, and Monday, November 15. Schools will also be closed tomorrow due to school council elections.
From: Kathimerini
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One of wettest Octobers ever - 1 November, 2010
October was one of the wettest months on record in recent years, with more rain falling on one day in Athens, October 18, than throughout the entire month in the years 2000, 2001, 2005 and 2008, according to meteorologists.
On Monday, October 18, an average of 38 millimeters of rain fell in Athens. When the final figures for the whole month are in, it is expected to be wetter than any October of the last decade, when the record was in 2006 with a total of 89 millimeters.
"This fall is reminiscent of those we were used to in the past," said the head of the National Meteorological Service, Dimitris Ziakopoulos. "We cannot make accurate predictions for the future yet but it is clear that records for low temperatures and rainfall will be broken more regularly."
A number of areas of Greece experienced flooding during October, including the island of Icaria, where 303 millimeters of rain fell in just over a day – about a third of the total rainfall on the island between August 2009 and August 2010.
From: Kathimerini
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WINTER HOURS - 30 October, 2010
Clocks go back at 4 a.m. Sunday as summer ends
Clocks are to be turned back one hour at 4 a.m. to 3 a.m. on Sunday, as European Summer Time ends and Greece enters winter time. Clocks change back to summer time at the end of March.
From: Kathimerini
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