More than 200 firefighters, on strike since June 15 to demand better working conditions, marched today in front of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan
In addition to 200 firefighters of Galician regional parks, which have been on strike since last June 15 to demand better working conditions, mobilized today in front of the Provincial Council of Ourense, starring moments of tension with the ‘riot police’ of the National Police, which is the first to be used a flamethrower against the line of agents.
The Unified Police Union (SUP) showed their support to the partners of the Police Intervention Unit (UIP) who formed the police cordon to protect the Ourense Provincial Council. Firefighters were also used in the protest smoke canisters, flares, and firecrackers.
“Firefighters from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Ourense tried to enter and when they were prevented from doing so, they attacked. fire against our partners. It seems unbelievable that people who know how painful the burn is to do these actions,” criticized SUP on his social network account X, as reported by Europa Press.
PAINT LAUNCH AND TIRE SUPPLY
The protests started last Friday in front of the provincial institution of Pontevedra, and today it’s the turn of the province of Ourense, where the firefighters gathered in front of the Provincial Pazo shouting “resignation”, “poor firefighters, never again” or “corruption”, throwing paint at the façade of the building and also burning tires in front of it, in the center of Rúa Progreso.
Likewise, the road is filled with smoke not only to burn tires but to use smoke canisters, flares, and fireworks. More than 200 firefighters gathered at the door of the institutional headquarters where there were many riot police and where moments of tension occurred.
One of the firefighters was injured in the nose when he was hit in the struggle. According to fire department sources, he suffered a nasal septum, for which he was taken by ambulance to the Ourense University Hospital Complex.
For its part, the police union SUP Galicia denounced on social networks the “radical” protest in which, it admitted, the protesters attacked “with great violence and including flamethrowers” the agents protecting the officer that place. In addition, it informs its attention can be seen as a private accusation to claim for damages caused by both agents.
“Our Fight, Your Shame”
The protest started from Alameda in front of the main building of the Post Office, a few meters from the Sangguniang Panlalawigan, which kept the road closed for more than a little. in hours.
On the route taken by the firefighters brochures demand that read “a nosa loita, a vosa vergoña” – “our struggle, your shame” -.
Upon arriving at the building of the Ourense provincial entity, they asked to be accepted by its president, Luis Minorwho was the General Director of Emergency during his time in the Xunta de Galicia and agreed to the meeting.
Afterward, the president of the strike committee, Angel Moldesof the CIG, stated that the provincial president committed to “mediate” to sit down to negotiate “as soon as possible”, but “for now there is no action.”
“We hope so call us this week because these movements bring injuries, we have a firefighter with a serious blow to the face,” he warned.
In this sense, he assured that he was “doubtful” about the “commitment of any politician” until they were called to the joint negotiation table – where the four provincial councils and the Xunta in Galicia – and “put black documents in white.” “Until we don’t know what we have,” he argued.
“Too far postures”
For his part, the president of the Ourense Provincial Council, Luis Menor, clarified that what he promised was that he would transfer the requests to the negotiation table, requests that he recalled, “are public and known” and pointed out that the negotiations are “very far along.”
“I have to explain that this is a service of the autonomous community and everyone should know that “It will be an autonomous solution.”Menor clarified, guaranteeing that it would be “single and joint”, “no political colors” and “no differences” between the consortia, but acknowledged that, in any case, “the positions are very far” and that “right now I don’t see any immediate solution”.
In these lines, he insists that “you can’t enter auctions”, and “The solution must be at the level of Galicia because the service must be provided with the same quality at the level of the entire autonomous community, so the solution will be Galician.”
However, he emphasized that Ourense “is the province that is in the best conditions” in this negotiation because it is the province where firefighters “have the highest salary in all of Galicia” and where “the most large part of the demands”, so the provincial president said that “the distance is short”.
CRITICISM OF FORMS
Therefore, the provincial president of Ourense condemned the way the firefighters in the region expressed themselves. “You will not lose the strength factor in this kind of action,” he criticized, making the attacks on public and institutional furniture ugly.
“They don’t seem right to me, I think we understand each other in other ways and I told him,” he explained, explaining that, “despite the misunderstanding of forms,” he first listened to people. “many more of the people who I have worked with for many years and who I respect a lot and know that they respect me,” he added.
Regarding the paint stains visible in front of the provincial institution, he said they will be repaired “in legal channels”, explaining that “it is our own way, collecting insurance or claiming it from them.”
CLAIMS AND CALENDARS
Firefighters demand a collective agreement at the regional level, united for all provinces according to their profession; greater provision of technical means and greater provision of human resources, as well as fixed work by the doctrine of the Supreme Court in January 2022.
Despite receiving Luis Menor, the mobilization calendar was not affected. “The steps we agreed on in the assembly are what we will continue. It is based on the assembly, we will not change the roadmap”, said the president of the strike committee, Ángel Moldes, in front of his colleagues at the door of the Ourense Provincial Council.
This way, it will continue on October 27 before the Provincial Council of A Coruña and the 31 this same month in front of the Sangguniang Panlalawigan of Lugo.
In addition, there is planned a demonstration on November 17 in Santiago de Compostela and, for now, the holding of another assembly on November 20 to assess the state of negotiations and “the possible adoption of new measures”, where they discuss closures, camping in public areas and even a hunger strike of almost 500 firefighters in the regional park of Galicia.
