Thousands Of Serb Workers Protest Anti-Crisis Plan

Thousands of Serbian workers protested in central Belgrade on Wednesday against government austerity measures in the biggest demonstration in the former Yugoslavia since the world financial crisis hit.

About 10,000 members of Serbia's largest union, the Alliance of Independent Trade Unions, assembled in Belgrade from all over Serbia. Union leader Ljubisav Orbovic said middle-class and blue collar workers would bear the brunt of the government's anti-crisis plan.

"The government will create a small circle of profiteers and a huge number of losers," he said.

Serbia's parliament was scheduled later on Wednesday to pass a revised budget to cut its deficit to 3 percent of Gross Domestic Product and win a 3 billion euro ($3.98 billion) International Monetary Fund loan.

The budget plan consists of a public-sector wage freeze, higher income taxes, higher excise duties on petrol, diesel and natural gas, and higher taxes on mobile phone bills.

"The government's measures are half-hearted, selfish, short-sighted and aimed at keeping them in power," said Ljubisa Nikolic, a metal worker from the southern city of Nis. "For months, I haven't been able to afford a decent meal for my children, and the government is imposing more belt-tightening."

From 2000 until this year, Serbia's economy enjoyed healthy growth following the turmoil of war and isolation in the 1990s. It is expected to shrink by 2 percent or more in 2009.

Dragan Zarubica, another union leader, said the government should "downsize itself and cut the number of useless agencies and we will have sizeable savings."

Protesters also cheered Zoran Bulatovic, a union activist from the southwestern city of Novi Pazar who over the weekend cut off his finger and ate it to protest against unpaid salaries.

Escorted by riot police, the demonstrators marched from a central Belgrade square to the government building, bringing traffic to a standstill.