TRUCKS all around the island kept their handbrakes up for the second day of strike yesterday, with Larnaca, Nicosia and Limassol port all feeling the impact of the action.
The strike was sparked by a government call on A licensed truck drivers to take exams from January to renew their licences under new EU rules. Government officials have warned extended action could have a catastrophic impact on the economy.
The drivers insist they will continue to strike until their demands are satisfied.
On the Larnaca-Dhekelia road yesterday, around 40 lorries lined up, causing havoc to businesses in the region. One farm just outside Aradippou was in danger of losing its livestock, with one of the trucks on strike being the main vehicle for delivering its livestock feed.
The Manager of Limassol Port, Christos Matsis, told the Cyprus Mail that although there had been a few minor incidents just outside the port, there had been no serious violence. Radio reports said there was shout and scuffles when shop owners and importers arrived in their own vehicles at the port to collect some of their cargo. Truck drivers outside Larnaca port went as far as to search vehicles leaving the port.
Matsis said that for now the strike was affecting importers more than the actual functioning of the port.
“The main parties being affected by all this are the importers who depend on the independent truckers for their business. To deal with this problem some importers have preferred to keep the cargo on the boats rather than dock until the problem is resolved, whereas there are others who obviously cannot wait any longer and are now forced to pay bigger fees to have the cargo loaded into the port and stored at a storage facility here.”
He added: “We currently have three boats waiting outside the port; two of which are carrying a cargo of 2,500 tons of iron and another boat carrying a cargo of 2,000 tons of fertilizer. One boat is unloading its cargo now as we speak and another one is waiting behind it.”
Meanwhile, the mood was more sedate outside the Presidential Palace in Nicosia. Despite the elongated queue of lorries parked outside the walls, the handful of truck drivers joked and chatted away with policemen outside the gates, enjoying coffee and cigarettes.
President Tassos Papadopoulos also gave a smile as he drove in at 12.25pm with a couple of drivers smiling back and waving. One driver said that although the mood was calm where they were, there intent was still very real and very determined.
“As you can see, it is obviously much calmer now, although that is not the case in Limassol, but we still very much want our demands to be met and we will continue to strike until the problem is solved.”
