The leader of the Socialist Party (PS) parliamentary group, Eurico Brilhante Dias, commented on the general strike and the statements by the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, this Thursday at the Assembly of the Republic. “The workers’ response to the labor package is significant. This general strike is a great success and we must congratulate the mobilizing capacity of the trade unions. We hope the Government listens and observes what is happening across the country,” he initially remarked.
“Today is a great defeat for the Government, and looking at what is happening in the country, it should look back, sit down with social partners, and promote necessary changes to the labor package,” he continued.
For Brilhante Dias, the position of the PS “is clear.” “Regarding these measures, we are against them; they represent a setback and more precariousness,” he noted, questioning: “Are we going to challenge fundamental rights?”
“After hearing Minister Leitão Amaro’s statement, I could only think of the Minister of Propaganda of the Iraqi government during the Gulf War,” he exclaimed, adding: “The minister does not live in this country, he did not understand what is happening today in the different institutions – from hospitals to schools, in the most emblematic and exporting factories, to public transport,” he said.
According to the socialist, it is “a great signal,” and Leitão Amaro “must understand this signal.” “The Socialist Party expects the law proposal entering Parliament to be completely different from the one currently on the table,” he stated.
“It is the Government’s duty to listen carefully to what the workers of this country are saying to it. They are saying ‘no’ to this labor package,” he concluded.
Strike Participation Level “is Insignificant,” Says Leitão Amaro. CGTP Disagrees
Earlier, the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, played down the participation in the general strike, which is impacting various sectors from transport to health. It is “insignificant,” he stated, contradicting the unions.
“It seems more like a partial Public Administration strike. The country is working. The strike participation is insignificant,” said the Minister of the Presidency in a press conference evaluating the strike in Lisbon. “The overwhelming majority of the country is working,” he noted.
Leitão Amaro assured respect for “those who strike,” but insisted that “the country chose to work,” explaining that “if some people could not work, it was due to disruptions in transport.”
He further guaranteed that the Executive has been “always open to dialogue,” which “yields results.”
The Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro, stated this Thursday that the “overwhelming majority of the country is working” on the day of the general strike, emphasizing that the Government remains “open to dialogue.”
Meanwhile, the CGTP estimates that over three million people participated in the strike. “It is one of the largest ever, if not the largest ever,” said the Secretary-General, Tiago Oliveira, during a press conference summarizing the strike, expressing his view that it represents an “unmistakable force for the demand for more salaries and more rights.”
CGTP estimates more than three million people joined the general strike this Thursday, announced the Secretary-General of the trade union center, shortly after the Government downplayed the participation.
[Updated at 14:10]
