Chance of agreement with hawkers - UHM

A meeting held yesterday between Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi and Union Haddiema Maghqudin secretary general Gejtu Vella over the Monti hawkers dispute could lead to an agreement between the two sides, the union said in a statement.

Earlier in the day the UHM had warned the government that it was preparing to call on workers in "sensitive places" to resort to industrial action in sympathy with the Valletta hawkers.

However, in the evening the UHM informed the hawkers' committee that as a result of its meeting with Dr Gonzi, it had suspended a meeting planned for today which was to consider industrial action.

The union appealed to the hawkers not to gather at St James Ditch today, as they have been doing all week, and to await further instructions from the UHM.

Addressing the hawkers at St James Ditch in the morning, just before a protest march which took them to Castille Place and Republic Street, UHM general secretary Gejtu Vella said the union was convening workers' committees and preparing them for possible sympathy actions.

He also said the union was filing a judicial protest against the government, claiming damages for the revenue the hawkers have lost in the past week.

Mr Vella's brief address was followed by a peculiar protest march which at one point took on the character of a religious procession as the hawkers chanted "Henn ghalina, Mulej henn ghalina" (Lord have mercy of us), followed by a rhythm reminiscent of a funerary march.

After spending a few minutes in front of the Prime Minister's office in Castille Place, chanting "We pay VAT too", the protest eventually spilling into Republic Street and Merchants Street where the hawkers stayed for a while until they returned to Republic Street where the judicial protest was presented in court.

The dispute between the government and the hawkers, now in its sixth day, revolves around the relocation of the hawkers away from the place they previously occupied in Merchants Street.

The hawkers were ordered to move to St James Ditch, just outside the capital, for about two months, while Merchants Street is paved as part of the pedestrianisation project in the city. They demanded that they move to Freedom Square instead but the authorities deem the entrance to the capital unsuitable for an open-air market.

The hawkers are also against their permanent relocation to a spot further down along Merchants Street once the repaving is complete.

A meeting with the Prime Minister on Thursday ended in deadlock after the government stuck to its position.