Dockworkers Strike Against Arms Shipments at More Than 100 Ports Globally

October 30 ------ Dockworkers in 22 countries will strike on Friday, protesting against war and the use of ports for arms exports in action organizers say could disrupt over 40% of Mediterranean cargo and snarl over $2 billion worth of freight.

The strike, originally called by dockworkers' unions in Italy, France, Greece, Spain's Basque Country, Turkey and Morocco, is now backed by more than 25 unions in 113 ports.

The protest is expected to target major shipping hubs across Europe and beyond, including Hamburg, Valencia, Le Havre, Algeciras, Piraeus and Genoa, as well as Morocco's Tangier Med and India's Nhava Sheva.

However, it was unclear how many dockworkers would take part or how severe any disruption would be. A spokesman for Italy's Genoa port said it expected only a limited impact, while Piraeus warned of disruption to ferry services for the Greek islands.

Among the labor groups joining the protest are ver.di in Germany, Ireland's largest trade union SIPTU, 3F in Denmark and CGT Ports et Docks in France.

Beyond Europe, the organizers said about a dozen ports in India could be disrupted, with the Water Transport Workers Federation of India (WTWFI) also supporting the action.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, a pro-Palestinian campaign group that repeatedly tried to break Israel's blockade of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid, said it would execute "coordinated, strategic actions on the water" to support the strike.

Italian grassroots union Unione Sindacale di Base (USB) called a 24-hour general strike in Italy for the same day, with protests scheduled in over 40 cities.

Ferries will remain docked at Greek ports on Friday as Greek dockworkers, engineers and seafarers' unions join the strike.

"We will send our own message of peace from Piraeus, and we will show our solidarity with the peoples suffering from war,” dockworkers at Greece's largest port, Piraeus, said in a statement, adding they would stop work from 0800 to 1100 GMT.

Other unions in the country will stop working for 24 hours.

Source: marinelink.com