Miners all over France took action in support of the 2,000 minors of Decazeville on Thursday 27th December. These minurs had boon on a staydown strike for ton days in protest against plans to close their pit. The 307 mayors of towns and villages of Aveyron County in the Scuth of France, in which Decazeville is situated, have written to the Government announcing their collective resignation in protest against the Government's failure to protect the minors,
Pit closures have boon going on for some years in this mining area as a direct result of the ‘uropean Common Iiarkot and the Suropean Coal and Steel Community, and had already reduced the number of miners employed from 5,000 to 2,000. The action of the remaining 2,000 in staying down their pits in protest was a last-resort move, following ycars of representation to ths Government.
Workers and farmors in tho Aveyron aroa havo rallied to help tho miners by supplying food and clothing for the men down the pit and financial support for their families. In Decazeville itself six youths went on hunger striko in a room of the town hall in sympathy with their fathers, who are among thu 2,000 miners on strike below ground.
The determination of the Decazeville miners can be judged from the fact that thoy continued their staydown strike right through the Christmas holidays, tho first time this has happened anywhere in France. Only one of them has so far come to the surface, and he did it in order to got married, returning to join his comrades below only 24 hours lator.
The miners' unions say that the Fronch Govermiont is going ahead with the closures only because of pressure of the West German coal combines. They say that the moves will bring disaster not only to the miners themselves but to the area gonerally, There are known reserves of over 30 million tons and production os manshift has risen from 1.4 tons in 1959 to 2.1 tons today, the highest in Tance.