Millions of workers joined strikes across southern Europe on Wednesday to protest against spending cuts and tax hikes that trade unions say have brought misery and deepened the region’s economic crisis.
Spanish and Portuguese workers were holding their first co-ordinated general strike and unions in Greece, Italy and France, Belgium also planned work stoppages or demonstrations as part of a “European Day of Action and Solidarity.”
“We’re on strike to stop these suicidal policies,” said Candido Mendez, head of Spain’s second-biggest labour federation, the General Workers’ Union, or UGT.
International lenders and some economists say the programs of tax hikes and spending cuts are necessary for putting public finances back on a healthy track after years of overspending.
While several southern European countries have seen bursts of violence, a co-ordinated and effective regional protest to the austerity has yet to gain traction and governments have so far largely stuck to their policies.
Read more: Anti-austerity strikes sweep across Europe - The Globe and Mail
No comments:
Post a Comment