General strike in Spain, 21 injured and one arrest in clashes in Madrid

At least 21 demonstrators injured and one arrest: this is the initial toll of the incidents that occurred overnight and in the early morning hours in Madrid, during the start of the 24-hour national strike beginning at midnight. The clashes took place in front of the bus depots of the Empresa Municipal de Transportes (Emt), in the neighborhoods of Carabanchel and Fuencarral. At the Mercamadrid general markets, where around a thousand people gathered, the union reports police charges and the use of pepper spray. Thirteen people were treated and one person arrested, according to police sources cited by the Efe agency. In Carabanchel, eight other picket participants suffered minor injuries and were treated at the 12 de Octubre hospital. In Fuencarral, four others were injured. Union pickets and roadblocks were also reported in Catalonia, Andalusia, Galicia and Extremadura. In Catalonia, groups of strikers blocked some twenty points on the road network, mainly access routes to Barcelona. The 24-hour general strike was called by the tenants' unions and the trade union centers Comisiones Obreras (CcOo) and Union General de Trabajadores (Ugt) together with other organizations, to demand more adequate wages, the right to housing with affordable rents and measures against the rising cost of living. The mobilization, the first since 2012 and during the eight years of progressive government led by Pedro Sanchez, comes 18 days before the early elections of November 29. According to initial provisional data, the protest shows high but not uniform participation: 90% in the automotive industry and in the ports of Valencia and Algeciras, 85% in the meat industry and 82% in waste collection. In social and health services, participation is estimated at 38%, while in the postal sector it stands at around 35%. In the transport sector, minimum services are covered at 80% and provisional participation stands at 50%, according to the unions. The main industrial hub of Cadiz, in Andalusia, is at a standstill at 80%. Unions: 'A success beyond expectations' "The strike is a success that exceeds expectations. Few mobilizations have had the reach of today's across all of Spain." This is the assessment given at midday in front of Madrid city hall, in Plaza Cibeles, by the leaders of the unions Comisiones Obreras (CcOo) and Union General de Trabajadores (Ugt), Unai Sordo and Pepe Alvarez, after the first hours of the national strike demanding decent wages, the right to housing and action against the cost of living, called together with the tenants' unions, 14 years after the previous general strike. Sordo described it as "an embrace between generations" and made an appeal "to working youth to take the reins of their own destiny" by claiming their rights. "It is a watershed day. From today, no one can look the other way," added the CcOo secretary, speaking of "record participation numbers," but without giving definitive figures. Meanwhile, in the center of the capital, hundreds of people marched along the Gran Via, blocking traffic in one direction, amid a heavy police presence. The procession included workers, students and union representatives. Many teachers from schools of all levels took part, having been on strike for three weeks in defense of public education in the Community of Madrid. Most businesses lowered their shutters as the protest passed. Employers: 'Strike participation low in most sectors' The Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (Ceoe), the main employers' association, described participation in today's general strike in Spain as "low." According to Ceoe, participation was contained in most territories and economic activities and "higher in the most unionized areas and sectors," it reported in a statement. The employers' president, Antonio Garramendi, had described on the eve the national strike for housing, housing policies and decent wages as "more electoral than labor-related," less than 3 weeks before the November 29 elections. Ceoe assured that in the first hours of the day minimum services were respected, while reporting difficulties of access to major industrial areas such as Barcelona, but also Valencia and Seville, as well as the port of Algeciras (Cadiz), due to the pickets. On the energy front, one of the indicators of participation in the protest, the employers' organization reported after 8 a.m. a reduction in electricity demand of close to 10%, lower than the 14% drop recorded in previous strikes. According to data from Red Electrica (Ree), the Spanish public operator, at 11 a.m. actual consumption was 281,103 MWh, about 7.5% less than that recorded on a normal working day. Reproduction reserved © Copyright ANSA