New nationwide strikes hit Greece
Public Power Corporation employees hold a banner during austerity measures protests in Athens
Public services have shut down across Greece as workers took part in a new nationwide general strike that disrupted public transport, left hospitals operating on emergency staff and stopped all news broadcasts.
Tension mounted in the country's main port of Piraeus where hundreds of demonstrators from a Communist Party-backed union attempted to prevent tourists and locals from boarding ferries to Aegean islands, even though a court had declared seamen's participation in the strike illegal.
Although some ships did leave early on Tuesday morning, not all passengers managed to board.
A similar strike by two seamen's unions last week left thousands of travellers stranded for a day in Piraeus. Shipping companies and officials in Greece's vital tourism industry strongly criticised the government for not taking action to stop the strikers.
Tuesday's strike disrupted public transport, with bus, metro and tram drivers walking off the job for several hours. The country's airports remained open and international flights have been operating normally - although nearly 100 domestic flights were cancelled.
All news broadcasts were halted for the day, while no newspapers would be printed for Wednesday as journalists walked off the job.
The general strike was called by debt-ridden Greece's two major unions who oppose draft legislation that will increase retirement ages and make it cheaper for companies to fire workers.
Parliament is to start discussing the proposed reforms on Tuesday, in a debate expected to last more than a week. Despite opposition from several of its own lawmakers, the government - which holds a seven-seat majority in the 300-member house - is expected to win the final vote.
Unions are also planning more demonstrations in Athens. Protests during previous strikes have turned violent, and three employees died on May 5 in a bank torched by rioters.
Greece is caught in a major debt and deficit crisis. It only avoided bankruptcy last month after receiving the first instalment of a 110 billion euro emergency loan package from the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. In return, Athens passed painful austerity measures, cutting pensions and salaries and raising consumer taxes.
Press Association
