NORTHERN NOTES

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 THESSALONIKI 000067 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EINV PGOV PHUM PREL SOCI SMIG GR SUBJECT: NORTHERN NOTES REF: A) ATHENS 1291, B) THESSALONIKI 63, C) THESSALONIKI 65, D) THESSALONIKI 64, E) ATHENS 1362 THESSALONI 00000067 001.2 OF 002 Following is a summary of last month's major developments in Northern Greece: TRADING OF LAND BETWEEN GOG AND MONASTERY CAUSES UPROAR ¶1. A scandal over trading of large plots of land between the GoG and the Vatopedi Monastery of Mt. Athos (a semi-autonomous peninsula in N. Greece, administered by Orthodox monks) dominated northern Greek news (ref A). Media and post contacts have characterized the scandal, in which Vatopedi and government officials allegedly profited illegally from the land trades, as one of the biggest in the country's modern history. Vatopedi Monastery - second in seniority on Mt. Athos and often visited by international celebrities - negotiated lucrative land swaps with the Greek government, based on the monastery's Byzantine and Ottoman-era ownership deeds, which critics claim to be of questionable validity at best. Moreover, the properties traded included archaeological sites and land claimed by multiple parties. The Attorney General is investigating the matter, with wide public speculation the deals will be reversed. The Mt. Athos Holy Synod (governing assembly of monasteries) issued a statement on 09/25 apologizing for the "unpleasant situation", indirectly calling on the Greek justice system to resolve the matter. The scandal constituted yet another blow for the government and further tarnished the image of the Greek Orthodox Church. THESSALONIKI INTERNATIONAL TRADE FAIR LOSING LUSTER ¶2. Organizers of the annual Thessaloniki International Trade Fair claimed an increase in visitors (254,847 versus 251,000 in 2007),but media and businesses lamented the ongoing decline in the Fair's ability to attract businesses and promote trade. Media repeatedly cited the absence of the traditional U.S. pavilion at this year's Fair as evidence of the decline in the quality of the event as well as in U.S.-Greek relations. The Hellenic-American Chamber of Commerce announced that its decision not to host the U.S. pavilion was "purely due to bad financial circumstances" and denied rumors of any political factors. Embassy and Consulate General statements also emphasized that the decision was entirely up to businesses, not the USG. Prime Minister Karamanlis's annual speech at the Fair (ref B) was criticized by the media for sticking to unpopular reforms and blaming the country's economic problems on the international economic crisis. Opposition PASOK party leader George Papandreou's speech (ref C) promised a more "social state" and helped boost PASOK's popularity. Again this year, security was tight at the Fair and violence was minimal, with around 2,000 police deployed, twelve demonstrators arrested (ref D). LABOR PROTESTS: SIEMENS, CUSTOMS, PORT, OLYMPIC AIR ¶3. The employees of the Thessaloniki Siemens factory are demanding the GoG's intervention with the parent company to prevent the plant's announced shutdown on September 30. Siemens is rumored to be trying to sell the land to real estate developers but a former Siemens manager believes there is still a "slim possibility" a foreign investor will be found to re-open the plant. On another front, workers of Olympic Airlines have protested at the local airport the government's decision to proceed with the privatization of the company. Meanwhile, the Association of Exporters of Northern Greece has complained formally to the Ministry of Finance about the adverse effects the rolling strikes at the Customs Offices have on its members. Port workers continue their work slow-down in protest of the privatization of the port's cargo handling operation. VISIT OF UN HUMAN RIGHTS REPRESENTATIVE IN NORTHERN GREECE SEEN AS PROMOTING "AMERICAN" AGENDA ¶4. Media described the visit of UN Independent Expert on Minority Issues Gay McDougal (an American citizen) to Thrace and the northwestern Greek town of Florina as an "American initiative". The announced purpose of the visit (ref E),which was entirely independent of the USG, was to observe minority issues in Greece and assess the level of co-operation between the minorities and the majority. Some officials and media expressed concern about McDougal's choice of minority interlocutors, though other observers accepted her schedule as balanced. She described the Roma community's circumstances as "desperate," while she also met with members of the Pomak and the Turkish-speaking communities. McDougal also visited Florina and spoke to Slav-speaking activists who identify themselves as Macedonian. She told journalists she would submit her report to the UN Council on Human Rights in March. DIVISIONS WITHIN MUSLIM MINORITY OVER EDUCATION ¶5. The parents of 24 Turkish-speaking Muslim children refused to send their children to a local primary school for Muslim minority students in Xanthi, apparently because a number of Roma THESSALONI 00000067 002.2 OF 002 and Pomak (Slavic speaking Muslims) children were enrolled there. Leaders of the Turkish-speaking community criticized school authorities for refusing to enroll their children at another minority school. The authorities responded that the children had to attend the school to which they were assigned based on geography. Parents of the Pomak and Roma students condemned Turkish minority leaders in conversation with post for encouraging racist attitudes. On a positive note, media reported a rise of Muslim children attending Greek universities from 67 in 1996, to 226 in 2008 in the town of Komotini alone. CONSULATE OUTREACH TO THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY ¶6. On September 17, ConGen Thessaloniki hosted an Iftar dinner at the CG's residence. The event was attended by representatives of Thessaloniki's diplomatic corps, clerics, journalists, representatives of the local authorities and Muslims of all three communities in Thrace (Roma, Pomak and Turkophones.) All mainstream media reported favorably about the dinner. On September 24 and 25, the Consulate organized a film festival on "Multi-ethnicity in America: Conflict and Co-existence" in the Muslim-majority town of Komotini, aiming to promote dialogue about multi-culturalism and respect for diversity. Local media gave the event wide and positive coverage. ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION INCREASES RAPIDLY ¶7. During September, media reported 22 arrests of smugglers and 221 arrests of illegal immigrants, mostly from Iraq, Iran, India and Pakistan, in the area of Thrace. A police contact told post of a "big rise" in numbers, an assessment confirmed by the country-wide police data for the first eight months of 2008 that was published in the press. According to those statistics, police arrested 1,304 smugglers - up by 43.92% - and confiscated 645 vehicles - up by 45.92%. YEE