SIX REPORTED WOUNDED IN ECUADOR GENERAL STRIKE
At least six persons, including three
soldiers, were reported wounded at the start of a general
strike in Ecuador called to press the government to suspend an
earthquake-related austerity programme.
    The information ministry said workers had partially
complied with the strike. Witnesses said bus transport ground
to a halt in Quito and schools were closed throughout the
country, but banks and shops remained open.
    Three soldiers on a military truck were burned by a
gasoline bomb, information minister Marco Lara told reuters.
    In the central city of Latacunga, three workers were
wounded in clashes with police, unionists and hospital
authorities said. The strike was called for one day but could
be extended.
 Reuter
