The 23rd of March general strike organised by the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP) hit especially hard in Lisbon and Oporto, where public transport, garbage collection and harbours were affected. The CGTP called for the general strike in protest of another austerity package to be implemented in exchange for an international bailout, imposed by the troika of European Commission, European Central Bank (ECB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF). The National Federation of Doctors also announced its support for the strike, accusing the centre right government of having launched “an offensive against the national health service”. Portugal’s second biggest union, UGT, did not endorse the strike and Euronews reports that while protests were intensive, the numbers of protesters were not numerous.
English:http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/portuguese-cities-hit-by-general-strike … ;
http://www.euronews.com/2012/03/23/portugal-strike-fails-to-rouse-workers/;
http://www.theportugalnews.com/cgi-bin/article.pl?id=1155-22
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