Dockworkers in 22 countries to strike against arms shipments
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Business Day (South Africa)
Dockworkers’ unions in 22 countries plan to strike to protest arms shipments and the use of ports for this purpose. More than 25 unions support the action in 113 ports, which could disrupt freight transport, according to organisers.
Dockworkers in 22 countries will strike on Friday to protest the use of ports for arms exports and denounce wars. Organisers estimate that the action could disrupt more than 40% of Mediterranean freight and block goods worth more than $2 billion, Reuters reports.
The call, initially launched by dockworkers’ unions in Italy, France, Greece, the Spanish Basque Country, Turkey and Morocco, is now backed by more than 25 unions in 113 ports. The action is expected to affect Hamburg, Valencia, Le Havre, Algeciras, Piraeus, Genoa, Tanger Med in Morocco and Nhava Sheva in India, among others, according to the organisers.
The extent of the disruption remains uncertain. The Italian port of Genoa expects a limited impact, while Piraeus expects disruption to ferries bound for the Greek islands. In Greece, dockworkers, engineers and sailors are due to stop work, and ferries will remain in port on Friday.
In Italy, the grassroots union Unione Sindacale di Base has called a 24-hour general strike, with demonstrations planned in more than 40 cities. The Global Sumud Flotilla, a pro-Palestinian activist group that attempted to deliver aid to Gaza, has announced coordinated actions on the water in support of the movement.
