Overview
- The Front syndical pour la défense du travail launched a three-day general strike that began on Wednesday and union officials say it has been widely followed across the country.
- Teachers, health staff, electricity workers and public transport employees have joined the action, leaving many schoolyards empty and reducing services in hospitals and power networks.
- The government has declared the strike illicit, issued administrative requisitions to compel work, and used military personnel to operate national buses in an effort to maintain urban and intercity transport.
- Parent groups have publicly condemned the timing of the stoppage after recent flood-related school disruptions, saying further closures harm students and families.
- The walkout takes place against heavy public debt and after an IMF financing deal, which limits fiscal options and raises the risk of a prolonged stalemate that could deepen social strain ahead of the Youth Olympic Games.