BELGIAN COAL CRISIS

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28824, 19 February 1959, Page 13

BELGIAN COAL CRISIS

33,000 Men Now On Strike (N.Z. Press Association— Copyright) (Rec. 10 p.m.) BRUSSELS, February 18. Thirty-three thousand miners in Belgian coalmines were on strike last night. Their numbers may be swelled tomorrow when thousands of other miners threaten to strike in sympathy with the original strikers, who are protesting against the planned closing of some uneconomic pits. 'About half the strikers . are Italians. Of Belgium's 137.000 coalminers, 60.000 are Italian. Pithead coal stocks are about three times abbve normal. Some miners have been working only a three or four-day week to help reduce stocks. Police clashed with strikers at Frameries. a coalmining township - near Mons, when the strikers tried to prevent the unloading of brewery lorries. The miners dispersed after a scuffle, police said. At Mons, where 500 strikers clashed with police yesterday. 15.000 men have already been out on strike for nearly a week. They were joined by miners from La Louviere central basin ' yesterday. , Miners held up trains for the second day in succession to the Borinage coal basin, but traffic resumed a few hours later. Only a few .trams ran and some roads . Were barricaded.

The Belgian Prime Minister, Mr Gaston Eyskens. today discussed the country's coal crisis with the European Coal and Steel Pool High Authority. Belgium wants the European community to declare a state at crisis to the industry, permitting the fixing of quotas and Import relaxations.

The Belgian industry has a big coal surplus, while the miners are striking over economy plans, agreed by the High Authority, which threaten the jobs of 6000 men.