Friday was a day of anti-government protests and strikes across Italy. While metalworkers’ FIOM Union staged a walkout in northern Italy, the base union COBAS called a 24-hour nationwide public transport industrial action, causing severe disruption in many Italian cities.

Smaller unions representing public sector researchers and private firm workers were also present in the strikes and demonstrations. And all of them were angry at the government’s labor reforms and harsh budget measures. Violence has been recorded in Padua and Milan. Several policemen were injured when a group of protesters tried to climb the Colosseum in Rome. While trains and buses have stopped running and planes have idled on tarmacs and much of Italy slipped into a state of temporary paralysis, thousands of students have gathered in central Rome to protest against the planned education reform. Students are accusing the government of wanting to destroy public free education, turning schools into factories for the job market. The Rome demonstration also featured people demanding greater social housing. Migrants and refugees were also angry about the government as well as the European Union’s migration policies which they described as draconian. (Courtesy: Ganashakti)