After announcing last week their intentions to stop traffic on federal highway 200, a number of truckers’ and transportation organizations went through with their threat and blocked all traffic Monday morning.
Oganizers of the blockade, between Pinotepa Nacional and Acapulco, called on members of the Alianza de Transportistas de la Costa de Oaxaca and the Federación de Transportistas Concesionados del Estado de Oaxaca to join in a series of protests. These organizations repesent bus and truck drivers in the region and the state.
The organizers are complaining about a permit issued earlier this year by the state Mobility Ministry, Semovi, that granted the municipality of Santa María Huazolotitlán the authority to allow the circulation of mototaxis.
The protesters claim that the operation of such taxis, which has been ongoing for months now, is affecting their business, and demand Governor Alejandro Murat solve the issue by rolling back the permits.
The blockade was set up early Monday morning in the vicinity of El Retén, in the municipality of Pinotepa, and if no positive response is offered, the truckers have warned that the blockade could become permanent.
The truckers have also said that if their demands continue to go unheard, blockades will turn regional later in the week, further extending into the Coast, Mixteca and Chatina regions of the state.
They also didn’t rule out other protest activities against the state government, whose administration concludes on Wednesday. A new government will be sworn in the following day.
With reports from Estado Actual and MVM Noticias
