Wed, 14/11/2012 - 10:44

Early morning General Strike reports from Spain

As workers are on general strike in Italy, Greece, Portugal and Spain today, we will have updates throughout the day. Here are ongoing strike reports from Spain.

[update 14:00] Barcelona: a large roving picket, composed of pensioners, is blocking roads!

Violent police charges reported now in Valencia.

Caixa banks, responsible for the eviction of Emaya Egana who threw herself to her death just before the eviction, are covered in red paint all over Spain today.

Reports of evictions stopped today by force of numbers blockading the doorways.

Castro Urdiales, a small town, reports CNT demonstration of 400 people.

No trucks went in at MercaCordoba due to mass pickets.

Ferrol: number of workers on strike exceeds all previous general strikes. City completely shut down, nothing open anywhere in the centre of town, demonstration is too big to fit in the central square.

Gijon: more than 30,000 people in the streets! Most shops closed, neighbours show a lot of support to pickets. 

Guadalajara: buses could not leave bus depot until about 7am, with escort of 15 police vehicles.

Hundreds of pickets blocking Gran Via in Madrid, police attack pickets with batons, ride motorbikes into the crowd.

[scroll down to bottom of page for older updates]


Barcelona 7:30 am:  Barricades outside MercaBarna (fruit and veg wholesale market) nothing going in. In the airport police have expelled 50 people who were sitting down in the check in area. 200 students have occupied the faculty of Biology. No buses leaving from the Triangle depot. Just before 7am N-11 motorway blocked in both directions with tyres. C-17 motorway blocked. Train lines also blocked.


A Coruña: total shutdown in Seat, Ford, Opal, and Nissan factories and 80% in Volkswagen.


Zaragoza: bicipicket, bike parades blocking roads at rush hour.


Andalucia: 80% of the fishing fleet is on strike.


Salamanca midnight: around 100 roving pickets go round closing down the bars.


Santander 2am: more than 90% of the workers on the nightshift in in industry in Cantabria are on strike. The strike is total among the street cleaners.


Asturias: Night shift in industry almost totally closed down. Industrial estates closed by pickets, motorways in mining region blocked, HQ of Cajastur bank closed by CSI pickets, Mercadona, which forbids the workers to strike, picketed now, Corte Ingles closed in Oviedo.(Corte Ingles forbids the workers to strike)  Noreña and El Berron all shops and bars closed except one supermarket. Police have entered with violence into a union building in Gijon and have injured people.


Madrid up to 7:30 am: Major roads blocked in the early hours, very combative atmosphere, roving pickets in the working class neighbourhoods from midnight, 200 students occupying faculty of Medicine. Teatro National occupied by actors at midnight.  Telemadrid off the air. 2:30 am: trucks are entering MercaMadrid due to more than 100 police, some on horseback, pushing pickets aside, pickets are not able to speak to truck drivers. Neighbourhood assemblies out blocking major roads at 7am. Police cars escorting the distribution of newspapers. Mounted police charge pickets at Fuencarral bus depot, arrests made. 200 students block roads near university. A lot of police aggression and 15 arrests in Madrid so far.

[Update11:30am ] Reports say the strike is stronger than the last one, and is especially strong in industry and transport, and that so far there are reported 62 arrests.

[Update 13:30] Picket injured after being hit by a vehicle in Tarregona and picket with broken arm after police charge in Malaga. Photos from different regions of streetlights turned on in the day by PP councils to use more electricity (one way the strike is measured is by the drop in electricity consumption, to measure drop in industrial activity.)

Malaga: roving picket of more than 200 people managed to close nearly all the bars in the early hours. Blockade of Mercadona. An eviction was stopped by mass picket outside the house. Around 200 people blocked the ringroad with a barricade.