Sutiyoso to depart for Athens

Sutiyoso to depart for Athens

JAKARTA: City Governor Sutiyoso is scheduled to leave the city
on Monday for a week's visit to Athens, Greece and to Madrid,
Spain, a reliable source said here on Sunday.

The source said Sutiyoso had actually sought a permit from the
Ministry of Home Affairs for a two-week visit to the European
cities, but the ministry gave permission for only one week.

Sutiyoso had planned to depart for Athens on Saturday, but his
departure was adjourned as he had to open an exhibition on
regional autonomy in the Monas (National Monument) park on
Saturday.

The purpose of the governor's visit to the two cities was
still unclear.

Sutiyoso made his last foreign trip to Pusan, South Korea in
April, this year, when he received an honorary doctorate from
Pusan University.

Recently a number of city councillors also made a
controversial foreign trip to the U.S., Japan and China. The
visit, the purpose of which, they claimed, was to carry out
comparative studies, was apparently for pleasure, as most of
their time was spent visiting tourism sites in the three
countries. -- JP