A policeman talks with Athens metro employees on strike occupying the network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013 in Athens (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Police stormed a Metro depot in Athens occupied by subway workers who refused to go to work for nine consecutive days. On Friday all public transport workers in the Greek capital joined the strike, putting the city on the verge of transport collapse.
Police officers raided a subway train depot in western Athens where some 90 workers barricaded themselves on Thursday. The operation started before dawn, right after 4am, when a crew of around 100 officers stormed the barricaded gates while riot police blocked off the facility to prevent other workers that started gathering near the depot from getting in.
The protesters were dispersed, with no fewer than 10 of them were detained for resisting in force. One woman has been hospitalized with slight injuries.
For nine days Metro workers have been protesting against austerity measures taken by the conservative-led Greek government as demanded by the foreign sponsors of Greece’s bailout plan. A unified wage scheme for public sector workers proposed by the government would slash their salaries by at least 25 per cent.
Protesters, joined by bus, tram and railway workers in solidarity on Friday, refuse to return to work despite harsh emergency legislation under which they could face five years in jail.
So far no one has been arrested under the emergency law as the authorities are reluctant to escalate the protests even further.
Athens metro’s union’s president, Antonis Stamatopoulos (L) take part in a meeting with Athens metro employees on strike at the network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013 in Athens (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Athens metro employees on strikes barrycade themselves at network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013 in Athens (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Athens metro employees on strike hold a meeting at their network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013 in Athens (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Commuters talk at the closed entrance to an urban rail station in Athens on January 24, 2013, as employees decided to strike to support striking metro employees , along with bus drivers , bringing capital’s public trasport to a standstill (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Athens metro employees on strike hold a meeting at their network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013 in Athens (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
Tv crews gather outside Athens metro network’s headquarters on January 24, 2013, after government ordered a civil mobilisation to break their eight-day metro standstill (AFP Photo / Louisa Gouliamaki)
