Deputy Prime Minister and Transport Minister Matteo Salvini has reiterated his commitment to ensuring public transport access for Italians. This as 15 strikes for December are planned, including a general strike.
“I am satisfied that yesterday we guaranteed the right to travel by public transport to millions of Italians. My commitment does not change in view of December, when there are already 15 strikes proclaimed, including a general one set for the 13th (coincidentally another Friday) a few days before Christmas. I am ready to intervene again, to help the citizens,” Salvini stated in a note following the recent general strike.
15 Strikes Planned for December
December will see 15 transport strikes, including a General Strike scheduled for Friday, 13 December. Just two days later, air travel will face further disruption due to another strike. On Sunday, 15 December, Milan’s airports (Linate, Bergamo, and Malpensa) and those in Catania and Parma will face both four-hour and 24-hour strikes.
For the latest updates on transport sector strikes, visit the Ministry of Transport website.
Landini Calls for Social Revolt
Maurizio Landini, leader of the CGIL union, has criticised the government’s approach, calling for collective action against injustices. Reflecting on his recent meeting with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, he said, “When I was at Palazzo Chigi for the budget law, I gave the Prime Minister The Rebel by Albert Camus. The meaning of that book that made a lot of noise is to put people’s freedom back at the centre. If a person doesn’t revolt in the face of injustice, he doesn’t exist as a person, because he is erased. That’s how I thought about it.”
Speaking at the ACLI national congress, Landini added, “Today, democracy is not being questioned by people in the streets for their rights, but by those in Parliament who are trying to pass a decree that calls for security but reduces people’s freedoms and spaces. Security is peace and not war, security is not being precarious but having a dignified job. Security is not dying at work, is not having men who kill women, is telling a young person that he can stay in our country, is not being afraid by closing the borders, a madness in the face of demographic decline.”
Landini urged Italians to unite in response to these issues. “If someone in the face of injustice has no reaction, I don’t know what to say. We need to get together, to call for a revolt in terms of participation to change this situation,” he said.
‘Unions bring people together’ – Landini
The CGIL leader also highlighted the union’s role in bringing people together. “In the face of inequalities and the crisis of democracy, with people not going to vote, I see the risk that people will resign themselves, that fear will prevail, closure, precisely because this is the situation and precisely because on the other side the government is acting to question the social organisations of representation and to govern without mediation. In the face of all this, I don’t think people will turn away but will rebel, they will join with others to change.”
Reflecting on the recent strikes, Landini emphasised the significance of public participation. “Yesterday what came from the squares was the will of the people to be there and to participate. From those squares comes a transversal demand for participation and representation because the level of exploitation and social impoverishment is no longer acceptable and people want to react. It is very important to offer a ground for initiative that is able to grasp this,” he said at the ACLI conference.
