Spain’s Nov. 11 General Strike Stays On After Puente Quits Over Crash

The general strike called for Nov. 11 by the unions CCOO and UGT is still going ahead after transport minister Óscar Puente resigned over the Toledo train disaster, The Olive Press reported. The walkout falls in the middle of the run-up to the snap general election on Nov. 29, and rail safety has become one of the campaign’s main arguments.

Puente stepped down on Nov. 3 and also took his name off the PSOE (Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s party) candidate list. He said he could not stay on after two serious rail accidents in less than a year: the Toledo crash, which killed 69 people, and a derailment in Adamuz, in Córdoba province, in January that killed 46.

Who backs the Nov. 11 strike and who opposes it

The organizers, Comisiones Obreras (CCOO) and the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), say it is about housing, wages and public services, railways included.

Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the opposition Partido Popular (PP), has asked the unions to think again and called the timing “clearly inappropriate” so soon after the crash. Employers’ leader Antonio Garamendi is also against the walkout, and both men say it is aimed at the opposition and at business. Vox leader Santiago Abascal wants it called off too. UGT leader Pepe Álvarez described Feijóo’s argument as an insult.

Support has widened in the past days. More than 800 people from the cultural world, among them filmmaker Rodrigo Sorogoyen and actor Carlos Bardem, signed a statement in favor of the strike. Their demands center on housing: secure rental contracts, rent caps in high-pressure areas and an end to evictions. They argue that rising property costs are forcing residents and cultural businesses out of their neighborhoods. “On November 11, culture stops too,” the statement says.

Why it matters for people living in Spain

The strike’s demands on rent caps, rental contracts and evictions matter to tenants across Spain, and the unions also list public services such as the railways among their reasons for walking out. Details of minimum services for Nov. 11 were not disclosed.

Rail safety has also turned into a voter issue. ERC spokesman Gabriel Rufián said what passengers need to know is whether taking a train in Spain is safe. Abascal said he would not put his family on an AVE high-speed train because he lacks full information on the state of the network. Podemos candidate Irene Montero called for the railways to return to public control, arguing that private companies put profit ahead of safety.

A political row over the resignation

Sánchez defended Puente, saying he dealt with the crisis and then stepped aside out of dignity and by his own choice. Feijóo dismissed the resignation as a sham and claimed Sánchez already knew it was coming. Puente and government sources said he told the prime minister only minutes before announcing it.

The funeral for the 69 victims of the Toledo crash will be held at Toledo Cathedral on Nov. 10, with the King and Queen attending.

The Nov. 29 election takes shape

The Boletín Oficial del Estado (BOE, Spain’s official state gazette) has published 895 approved candidacies, 534 for Congress and 361 for the Senate. Television debates remain unsettled because the PSOE and PP disagree over which broadcasters should host them.

Ada Colau leads the Frente Amplio alliance, which brings together Sumar, Izquierda Unida, Más Madrid, the Comunes and other groups, and which has also joined the PSOE in a Senate alliance. The PP and Vox agreed to stand aside in some Senate races. Junts has ruled out supporting Feijóo and would only consider backing a PSOE government if Sánchez stepped down.

Feijóo opens his campaign in Badalona under the slogan The necessary change, while Sánchez starts in Sevilla province. Vox launches its campaign in Madrid on Nov. 13.

Source: Olive Press