French ports blockade leaves tourists stranded

THE French ports of Marseille and Bastia remained blocked yesterday by angry union members, amid a sometimes-violent privatisation dispute which has disrupted sea trade and left thousands of tourists stranded on Corsica island.

A first group of nearly 600 of the 15,000 holiday-makers stranded on Corsica left Ajaccio’s seaport in Corsica Saturday after riot police removed striking workers angered at government plans to privatise the state-owned ferry company SNCM.

The relieved tourists boarded the cargo and passenger vessel Girolata, along with their cars, and left for the mainland port of Toulon under maritime police escort.