VZCZCXRO2975
PP RUEHIK
DE RUEHIK #0001/01 0020936
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 020936Z JAN 08
FM AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 0300
INFO RUEHTH/AMEMBASSY ATHENS PRIORITY 0211
RUEHIK/AMCONSUL THESSALONIKI 0329

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 THESSALONIKI 000001 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR EUR/SE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL PGOV PHUM SMIG ECON TU BU GR
SUBJECT: NORTHERN NOTES DECEMBER 2007 
 
REF: 07 THESSALONIKI 0193 
 
Following is a summary of recent political and economic 
developments in northern Greece: 
---------------------------------------- 
TURKISH FOREIGN MINISTER VISIT TO THRACE 
---------------------------------------- 
 
¶1.  Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan visited Komotini in 
Thrace on December 6, following a two-day official visit to 
Athens (Reftel.)  The government of Greece tried to downplay the 
visit and present it as private, but local media reported 
extensively and negatively on Babacan's activities in Thrace, 
suggesting that the GoG was uncomfortable because Babacan raised 
a variety of issues relating to the minority and to the alleged 
oppression of religious freedom in the area.  Local press and 
Thrace's conservative daily Chronos noted that Babacan was 
escorted by members of the Turkish MFA, Turkish journalists and 
members of a business delegation and described his statements 
and general stance as "provocative" and "aggressive." 
Reportedly, Babacan addressed the Muslim minority using the 
phrase "my brother Turks" and he asked them to defend their 
Turkish origin and if necessary turn to the European Courts when 
their rights were being violated.  Babacan reportedly only met 
with the elected Muftis rather than the legal, appointed (by the 
Greek government) Muftis, and he referred to "Turkish minority 
problems that should be resolved in the framework of the 
Greek-Turkish friendship." 
 
¶2.  Not all Muslims in Thrace embraced Babacan's remarks, 
however.  Tahir Konte, head of the Pomaks of Xanthi, objected to 
Babacan's reference to the minority as "Turkish."  In a prepared 
statement, Konte noted that many Muslims living in Thrace are 
Pomaks and Roma and not Turkish, especially in the prefecture of 
Xanthi where, he stated, there are more Pomaks than 
Turkish-origin Muslims. 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
DRAFT LAW ON THE WAKFS TABLED IN THE GREEK PARLIAMENT 
--------------------------------------------- -------- 
 
¶3.  In early December, the Greek government introduced in 
Parliament a draft law relating to the Muslim minority and 
specifically Wafks (Muslim charitable foundations).  The draft 
law provides for major changes in the administration of the 
Greek Muslim minority wafks in Thrace and also for the abolition 
of the wafks' debts, a provision previously approved by the 
Greek Parliament in March 2007.   The most important change 
proposed in the draft law is that the committees that manage the 
wakfs, previously appointed by the Greek government, would be 
replaced by elected committees, starting in November 2008. These 
elected committees would continue to report to the GoG-appointed 
local Mufti.  The draft law also includes a provision for a five 
percent quota for Muslim job candidates who want to join the 
public sector. 
 
¶4.  Thrace's main conservative press strongly criticized the 
five percent quota system for Muslims and noted that 100 
Christians from Thrace have signed a petition to protest the 
government's draft law on the wakfs.  The petitioners claim the 
draft law violates the principle of reciprocity between Greece 
and Turkey.  They also call upon the government to upgrade the 
role of the legal, appointed by the government, Mufti.  And 
neither are Muslim groups in Thrace entirely satisfied with the 
provisions of the draft law.  A variety of Muslim leaders have 
objected to certain provisions of the bill that they suggest are 
not in accordance with Islamic law.  They also suggest that the 
bill fails to address important issues regarding roles and 
responsibilities on several issues relating to the wakfs and 
they generally object to the fact that the minority community 
was not consulted in the development of the draft law. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------------ 
GREECE INVESTS 2.2 BILLION IN BULGARIA, 4.5 BILLION IN TURKEY 
--------------------------------------------- ------------------ 
 
¶5.  According to data presented on December 5 to the local press 
and announced at the first Greece - Turkey - Bulgaria Business 
Forum in Komotini, Thrace, twelve percent of Bulgarians workers 
are employed in one of the 1,500 Greek-owned businesses in the 
neighboring country.  Greek businesses in Bulgaria invest a 
total of 2.2 million in the country, primarily in industry (900 
businesses) and real estate (600 businesses.)  Greek business 
investment in Turkey is even higher at 4.5 million, despite the 
fact that because of Greek law and bureaucracy in both 
countries, there are only 75 Greek-owned businesses operating in 
Turkey. 
 
--------------------------------------------- -------------- 
GREEK GOVERNMENT WAS A IMPEDIMENT TO GREEK-TURKISH BUSINESS 
--------------------------------------------- -------------- 
 
THESSALONI 00000001  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶6.  Rahmi Kog, a Turkish business mogul and one of the founders 
of the Southeastern European Cooperative Initiative (SECI) 
program, gave an interview on December 12 in which he blames the 
lack of progress in Greek-Turkish business relations before the 
late 90s on the fact that Greek businessmen do not do business 
without their government's permission.  Kog said that the Greek 
and Turkish economies complement each other and there is 
significant room for cooperation but, he said, Greeks have often 
been reluctant to participate in initiatives.  But Kog said that 
he has seen a transformation in attitudes since the years when 
George Papandreou and Ismail Cem were Ministers of Foreign 
Affairs in the two countries and that the situation is now much 
improved. 
 
--------------------------------------- 
UNEMPLOYMENT SOARS IN BORDER PREFECTURE 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶7.  According to the state employment office (OAED) in Drama, 
unemployment in the prefecture bordering Bulgaria has increased 
nearly 50 percent in the past several years.  Recently, the 
prefecture hosted a conference of the Prefectures Union of 
Greece to discuss a proposal for the merger of several 
prefectures into larger ones.  The hosting prefecture sought to 
highlight the problems of their region and especially the high 
unemployment that has resulted from the relocation of several 
clothing manufacturing operations from Drama to Bulgaria and the 
closing of an Athens paper industry (SOFTEX S.A.).  6,000 people 
in Drama have lost their jobs in the last decade. 
 
------------------ 
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS 
------------------ 
 
¶8.  Problems with illegal immigration into northern Greece 
continued in December.  On December 1, police in Kilkis arrested 
four illegal immigrants and a 44-year-old female trafficker who 
transported them with her vehicle after they entered Greece by 
an unguarded point of the border with Macedonia.  The five 
suspects have been led before the Kilkis public prosecutor. 
 
--------- 
NARCOTICS 
--------- 
 
¶9.  On December 3, Thessaloniki police arrested two people aged 
51 and 32 for drug-related offences in Evosmos municipality, 
west Thessaloniki, after a car chase.  In their effort to avoid 
being captured, the two suspects threw a 68.8-gram heroin 
package out of their car window, while a search of their 
apartments revealed a number of narcotic pills. 
 
--In a separate incident (same date), in Kalamaria municipality, 
east Thessaloniki, a 35-year-old was arrested after police found 
in his possession 96 narcotic pills and small quantities of 
heroin and cannabis. 
 
 
--On December 16 two individuals were arrested by Serres 
security police on charges of drug smuggling after quantities of 
heroin and cocaine were found hidden in their vehicle.  A search 
by the police revealed 29.5 grams of heroin and 15.7 grams of 
cocaine. 
 
--On December 17 Police in Veria arrested a 48-year-old drug 
smuggler for possession of more than 1.5 kilos of heroin.  A 
search of the suspect's house later turned up 59 grams of 
cocaine and a variety of narcotic substances. 
 
 
--On December 27 Thessaloniki Police arrested the drug dealer 
who shot a policeman last October.  The dealer was carrying 522 
grams of cocaine when he shot and injured a policeman.  After 
his arrest, police found a gun and bullets in his house, as well 
as 42.5 grams of heroin and 70.6 grams of cocaine.  In a 
separate incident, police also arrested an Albanian bus driver 
who was carrying 8,674 grams of heroin. 
KING