Italian Taxi Drivers Win - For Now - After Using LaRouche Movement Leaflet

June 1, 2007 (LPAC) - On the very day that Italian taxi drivers used a LaRouche-movement leaflet as a key piece of their national strike against the deregulation of public transport services, the Italian government backed down and agreed to some of their demands. The drivers protested that in the name of the "free market," the sector was to be opened up to privatized services, which are already acting as bootleg operations, driving down wages and safety standards.

In a meeting with the taxi drivers held yesterday evening, the Development Ministry of Minister Pierluigi Bersani agreed to remove the provision which would have opened the sector up to "innovative services" to be performed by private companies. Any changes must now be made in the context of the publicly-licensed taxi system and the municipal public transport company. All of Italy's 30,000 plus taxi drivers went on strike yesterday, holding a large demonstration in downtown Rome.

In both Milan and Rome, thousands of leaflets written by Movisol, LaRouche's co-thinkers in Italy - were distributed by the strikers and others during the demonstration, calling for an end to the deregulation policy which threatens numerous sectors of the productive economy, and the launching of an FDR-style public works program.