SPAIN:AS THE strike by Spanish road hauliers entered its third day anti-riot police stepped in to move trucks blocking international frontier posts and main highways to allow movement of essential supplies.
Peaceful "informative" picketing is permitted under Spanish law, but it became violent in many places on Tuesday and yesterday. One man died near Granada when he tried to stop a van driving through a picket line.
In a similar incident in Portugal, where many lorry drivers are staging a sympathy strike, a second driver was killed and yesterday morning a driver sleeping in the cab of his truck was badly burned when protesters set fire to four parked trucks near Valencia.
Police intervention became necessary after essential supplies ran out in many sectors. Hundreds of filling stations ran out of fuel and oil tankers needed police protection to bring in more. Shops and supermarkets have sold out of dairy produce, fish, fruit and vegetables.
Motor manufacturers, including Mercedes, Citroen, Nissan and Seat, have either closed or drastically reduced production because parts could not be delivered.
Interior minister Alfredo Rublacaba said that more than 85 arrests have been made since the protest began. "The public cannot be prevented from going about their daily life and everyone has the right to work. We have to guarantee supplies of foodstuffs, fuel and medical supplies get through, " he said.
Talks between the government and some drivers' representatives are continuing. The main transport organisations have agreed in principle to consider the government's offers to delay social security payments, but the protesters are mostly small independent concerns who have refused to negotiate.
There was plenty of sympathy for the hauliers in the first days of the protest because nearly everyone has been hit by the soaring fuel prices.
But sympathy is fast running out.
Juan Giner, the young owner and chef of the award-winning Eliana Albiach restaurant near Valencia, is a worried man.
"Of course they have the right to strike to make their point, but not an indefinite protest. We are all having to pay more for our petrol and diesel. But if we can't get fresh supplies to put the food on the tables then we will have to close. It could ruin us," he said.
Fruit farmers near Alicante destroyed hundreds of kilos of peaches and nectarines which were rotting on the farms and dairy farmers poured away tons of milk because it could not be collected.
Jose Antonio, a cherry grower from Extremandura, complained he too had to pay the high cost of diesel.
"But this is the height of our cherry picking season. If we can't get our fruit to the markets, it will all go to waste," he said.
"What are we expected to do?"