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News :: Civil & Human Rights
La Naval Sestao doesn�t give up � resistance continues.	Current rating: 1
by Editor1 (No verified email address)	18 Nov 2004
The workers of La Naval continue the mobilisations. After a massive demo last weekend (13-11-04), they announced their plans to barricade themselves again inside the factory of Sestao. Representatives of the workers have held meetings with the government�s body responsible for the company�s privatisation SEPI without getting any positive result for them. Workers anger was expressed in more barricades in the town of Sestao, an area where fire barricades are becoming part of the landscape. Yesterday workers were back in the streets, cutting roads and railways and fighting back the Basque regional police charges � again! La Naval doesn�t give up!

On 12th November the Spanish minister for Industry and Trade surprised everyone by communicating a possible contract for La naval of Sestao to build a gas tanker for the company Gas Natural. Remember that the Spanish government wants to privatise La Naval and that it alleges that this company has not possibilities to get enough contracts. The announcement was done on the day before a massive demo was plan in Bilbo. Therefore this was seen by the workers and their unions as a way to prevent people for attending thinking that La Naval�s problems were over. This possible contract arrives after a year without neither alternatives nor contracts. On the day after however the attendance was excellent with several thousands marching in Bilbo and all parties but PSOE and unions taking part. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Shipbuilders� struggle against privatisation and unemployment in the Basque Country Current rating: 1 by MMantxo (No verified email address) 19 Sep 2004 (and in the rest of Spanish State) -------------------------------------------------- (Update 30-9-04) Sestao's shipbuilders have been in the street this morning again. Once again the railway and road access of the town have been cut-off with baricades. The Basque police has acted against them. Union representatives were meeting the government's agency SEPI. Since the last meeting last week, things have not change and it seems the government doesn't want to withdraw their privatisation plans. The SEPI confirmed workers' opinion of the company's profitability. There is demand for shipbuilding, but the company Izar does not want to take risks. In the meantime, shipbuilding gompanies in China, Korea and japan are taken more than 80% of the works while other countries like Holland, Germany, etc still continue producing. Once again, in this absurd capitalist system, industry is shifted to countries who can produce more for less price and summitting workers to harsher work conditions. In those situations the only option left to workers facing unemployment is to rebel. PSOE has inherited further privatisation measures, which started when they were in government eight years ago and continued under PP. This privatisation of the shipbuilding industry will mean the closure of many of the Izar factories. Among them shipyards in Sestao (Bilbo, Basque Country) where 1,200 workers face unemployment and also others in the rest of the Spanish state such as Gij�n, Seville, vigo (Galiza) and (San Fernando (C�diz). ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ (Update 23-9-04) Sestao is on fire. La Naval workers have cut the roads of Bilbo to Santurtzi, and the access to the A-8. The railway is cut as well by a barricade near the station. The SEPI (government's agency) is meeting the unions today) +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The area of Sestao and the also known Big Bilbo has suffered a huge de-industralization. This is the new city advertised in all British and European papers as tourism destination. The city of the Guggenheim museum and little more else but his surrounding landscapes. This was the industrial heart of the Basque Country and we could say of Spain too. But since the previous PSOE government the big steel works were closed down, remaining just a little factory. The struggle of the Altos Hornos workers was heroic. So was it the one of another shipyard, Euskalduna, right in the centre of the new trendy Bilbo. Everyday the police charged against the barricaded workers cutting the main road of Bilbo�s centre. The yard was knocked down � in its place we can find the Euskalduna hall linked with the Guggenheim museum by a nice boulevard along the former docks. Now the turn is for La Naval. On the last days, current Spanish president Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero on his visit to Bilbo ensured the future for this and other shipyard. However trade unions and workers believe this was a diverting technique against the dimension of workers resistance. Trade unions and workers proposed a solution where the Basque regional government would take over the factory and remain it public. However, they have also denounced the lack of response by the Basque regional government who has been passive all along this crisis. They also propose a move from military to civil shipbuilding and to be part of the group Izar. In the last days shipbuilders have been on strike and there have been barricades and riots with the subsequent police charges. On 14th September 2004, 3,000 people marched in Sestao in support of la naval workers. On 16th September 2004, due to the lack of action by the central and Basque government, they went a bit further by building barricades closing the road and the railway linking Bilbo and Santurtzi. The Basque regional police Ertzaintza charged against the workers with rubber bullets. The workers replied throwing nuts. A worker was hospitalised due to the impact of a rubber bullet on his eye. Sixteen workers had bruises as a consequence too. The unions refused to ask the striking workers to �calm down�, therefore we can foresee a long resistance!