Economy & Business - September 2003

The opposition held a general strike on Tuesday 23 September. The government claims that the (illegal) strike cost US$15m in lost production. The action was called by the Frente Nacional por la Defensa de la Seguridad Social, an umbrella organisation for 60 separate unions and social organisations. The Frente fears that the government has plans to privatise the social security system. It also objects to the sacking of the well-known academic economist Juan Jované, who chaired the Caja del Seguridad Social (CSS). The government sacked him for ineptitude: he claims that he refused to sanction a government order to use fund resources to buy government bonds.