The Tanta Flax and Oil strikers tried today to re-take the building of their trade union, which was confiscated by the management around a year ago, but were prevented by the police. The building, I’m told, is roughly 15 minutes away from the company compound. The workers and the management ended up in the police station filing charges against one another. The prosecution is expected to look into the cases on Saturday.
In other developments, thousands of miners in the Upper Egyptian province of El-Minya have cut the freeway, demonstrating against the Governor.
UPDATE: Here is a report by Reuters:
Thousands of quarry workers clash with Egypt police
CAIRO, July 16 (Reuters) – Several people were injured after thousands of quarry workers and owners clashed with police in Egypt on Thursday in the central province of al-Minya, security sources and witnesses said.
The protesters marched into al-Minya city and blocked a bridge spanning the Nile and connecting the east and west of the city, in protest against a decision by the authorities to impose new duties on quarried rock, security sources said.
Police used teargas to disperse the crowd, but the protesters stoned police.
Reports of the number injured varied. One security source said at least eight riot police had been wounded, and 17 protesters were suffering the effects of teargas inhalation.
The website of the independent daily al-Masry al-Youm said the government had imposed duties of 40 Egyptian pounds ($7.17) per tonne of quarried stone, leading some quarries to shut down and lay off their laborers.
Protesters said they had resorted to the demonstration because petitions to various officials had been ignored and some quarries had been shut for more than two weeks, according to the website.
Labour unrest has become common in Egypt, usually over pay, and often in privatised companies. Even professional groups such as doctors, pharmacists and lawyers have stopped work or threatened strikes over pay.
UPDATE: A Central Security Forces soldier has died from injuries sustained in the clashes with the miners, Al-Masry Al-Youm reports.
مصرع جندي أمن مركزي في اشتباكات مع عمال المحاجر في المنيا #egyworkers
— المصري اليوم (@AlMasryAlYoum) July 16, 2009
UPDATE: Police source tells Reuters 48 protesters were detained.