Thousands of people take to the streets again to demand Palestinian freedom in Palma.

PalmThousands of people took to the streets in Palma this Wednesday in support of Palestine and to urge a boycott of Israel, in a demonstration held to coincide with the general strike for the same cause.

The march, organized by the Workers' Union Coordinator (COS), STEI CGT, and other groups and unions, began in Plaça d'Espanya at 6:30 p.m. and marched through the city streets chanting "From the river to the sea, Palestine freedom."

Demonstrators also marched through the streets of Sant Miquel, through Plaza de Cort, and all the way to the Cathedral, carrying banners reading "Freedom for Palestine" and "It's not a war, it's a genocide," among many others. The demonstration was attended by Podemos councilor in Palma, Lucía Muñoz, and Reyes Rigo, the Mallorcan activist held for nearly two weeks in Israel after the interception of the flotilla's ships in Gaza; as well as MÁS deputies from Mallorca.

Specifically, Muñoz hailed the strike as "an important day" because, in his opinion, it will be the working class "that stops this genocide." "Governments were complicit for two years in the worst genocide of the 21st century, and we have shown that popular pressure works," he argued. Muñoz, who also sailed aboard the flotilla to Palestine, argued that "we must continue mobilizing because a ceasefire is not peace." He thus invited people to continue filling the streets and supporting the Palestinian people's struggle.

On the other hand, according to Joan Vicens, Secretary of Finance Administration for the CGT Baleares, the impact of Wednesday's strike in the Balearic Islands hasn't been very significant, but it has had a social impact. "We've tried to stop everything to stop the genocide," he said, while criticizing the fact that schools "have tried by every means possible to prevent students from exercising their right to strike."

Union rally

A little later, in the Plaza del Olivar, more than a hundred people gathered to demand freedom for the Palestinian people and their "direct participation in the reconstruction" following the ceasefire agreement.

At this rally, called by the UGT and CCOO unions, Pedro Homar, the general secretary of the former union in the Balearic Islands, described the public's response to the general strike as positive. He also called Wednesday's strike a "success," emphasizing the workers' positive response. "The people are with us," he said during the reading of a manifesto.

Both unions encouraged continued social pressure to ensure that Palestine "takes the lead role in its future." "There will be no lasting peace without their participation," they asserted.