In inflation of crude oil prices.
The demonstration was estimated to be 10,000 strong and comprised of 20 tones of free fish being distributed outside the ministry for Spanish agriculture. This attempt to increase support for the plight of the fisherman left hundreds of boats harbored in ports across the coast as their crews travelled to the capital in a convoy of 150 buses in order to demand Zapatero's government into a sympathetic reaction to Europe's largest fishing fleet.
Within a day of Madrid's protests there has been similar action taken by Belgian and Italian fishermen and their supporters. In Italy only a third of the country's fleet took part in the strike and in Brussels, despite the use of flares and flags the group only consisted of fifty fishermen.
However the cause has started to gain international support. For the past two weeks the efforts of French fleets to raise awareness by obstructing ports has been supported by farmers and lorry drivers who have blockaded oil-depots and brought major motorways to a standstill.
The protests have occurred in response to the Fishing Industry's conference on how to tackle the growing crisis. Representatives from different companies and of different nationalities have joined forces to find a solution.
The main concern is with the EU's quotas on the amount that fishermen are allowed to fish in order to offset their fuel consumption costs. The problem many fishermen are facing is that, with the price of fish remaining constant, there is little they can do to afford escalating fuel prices.
In Madrid Zapatero and agriculture minister Elena Espinosa bore the brunt of the discontent. Protesters chanted "liar Zapatero" and challenged Espinosa's loyalty to her Galician roots. The strike, called by The Spanish Fishing Confederation (Cepesca), has been declared indefinite and is only expected to be brought to an end when the government introduces an effective means through which to decrease fuel prices and introduce policies that will offer Spanish fishermen security in the form of tax breaks and restrictions on the import of fish from foreign companies.
Despite a 50%-60% increase in operation costs over the past five years the government has denied the fisherman Tax Breaks and is expected to continue such a policy. However with the strikes set to cost Spain in access of one million pounds over the course of a few weeks, the Government may be
forced to implicate some impressive policies in order to get the fisherman back to work.
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This post was written by Edward Harkness on June 3, 2008