FRENCH CRISIS GRAVE

Chronicle (Levin), 9 October 1948, Page 5

FRENCH CRISIS GRAVE

(N.Z.P.A.-

— Reuter,

Half A Million Men Now On Strike

Copyright)

Received Friday, Midmght. LONDON, Oct. 8. France's crisis is fast developing into the gravest since the war and is worsening every hour. The Government may decide to order another strike vote among the coal workers, this time a seeret ballot. The Commnnist leaders issned new statements urging the men to keep out of the pits, but the spokesmen of. the Socialist workers have denoimced the strike as a rneans of exploiting the legitimate discontent of the workers. Reuter says the French Government has deeided to dral't a labour fprce to keep the coke ovens operating in the strike-bound eoalmining area of North France. If the ovens are allowed to die completely many industries in the north will be forced to shut down for months. The British United Press 's Paris correspondent says that half a million workers are now estimated to be on strike. The eoalfields are silent, the railwaymen are out in the north and northeast and there is a 24-hour strike of merehant seamen. Twelve people were wounded when troops and security squads clashed with the strikers oecupying the Micheville steel works in the Nancy district. Two hundred troops supported about 300 security squad men who used teargas bomos. The Communist newspaper Ce Soir, reporting the elash, said two companies of Republican security squads -encircied the Micheville steel works. A battalion of engineering troops arrived soon afterwards to start up the coke ovens. The strikers opposed police entry and received rniners from neighbouring pits as reinforcements. The Republican squads tried to use . f orce and a serious cla.sh occurred. The Associated Press correspondent reports that the troops forced their way intp the Micheville works and drove the strikers from the premises. In face of the mounting wave oi' strikes, the French Government is taking precautions against civil unrest. Cabinet at a spepial meeting last night prepared measures to use troopprotected labour if necesasry to maintain 13 vital coke ovens on whieh tbe gas supplies in the northern coallields depend. In the coallields reinforced strike pickets are barricading themselves behind locked pit gates. The arrival of troops in full battle kit is reported from some mining areas. Reuter 's correspondent says that the eoalmining dispute has developed into a battle between the Government and the Communists who called the strike, which has already cost the European recovery programme at least 600,000 tons of coal, , ,, Non-communist miners say that they are anxious to return to work, but eannot do this without breaking the Communist picket lines which would lead to bloody battles. The Communist leader (Auguste le Ooeur), in a speech to miners, said: "The Government pretends that it eannot raise wages, but allots 400,000,000,000 fraucs to the military budget. The workers will never be President Truman's infantrymen. By our strike we rise against that shameful policy. " >Striking railwaymen occupied the station at Chalons-sur-AIarne, half way between Paris and Strassbourge, eausing the main line traffic. to be diverted and slowed up.