THREE thousand workers staged a militant march through Athens on Thursday, despite temperatures of 40 degrees, demanding the overthrow of the government and an ‘indefinite strike’.
At the front of the march were the Metal Workers’ Union banner proclaiming the fight against the closure of the four state-owned Ammunitions and Weapons factories. During the march the main slogan was ‘listen carefully Mr Minister, we won’t allow the closure of the factories’.
But when the march reached the Finance Ministry building, young female workers grabbed the loudhailers and shouted: ‘We have come for you sons of bitches – we are putting up gallows’ and ‘We will take up arms and storm the Vouli’.
The local government and the secondary teachers’ trades unions have organised daily mobilisations through the weekend and on to the general strike next Tuesday.
Workers are very critical that the Greek TUC (GSEE) along with the ADEDY (public workers’ trades unions federation) have called a one-day general strike for next Tuesday 16 July, the day the two-party coalition government introduces a Multi-Bill in the Vouli (parliament) for mass sackings in public health, state education, civil service and local government.
The GSEE-ADEDY decision was derided on Thursday’s march as ‘yet another blank shot’.
The workers are demanding an indefinite general strike to bring down the government.
