A-Infos (en) Italy, Sicilia Libertaria #469 - World Views - SPAIN. The "Seis de La Suiza" Free. Unionism is Not a Crime (ca, de, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

On March 31, 2026, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved a partial 
pardon for the "Seis de La Suiza," six CNT activists from Gijón (five 
women and one man) sentenced to three and a half years in prison for 
protests against the "La Suiza" pastry shop in Gijón (Asturias) to 
defend a worker. The case originated in 2016, when a pregnant employee 
asked the owner for leave due to illness, but the owner refused. His 
refusal prompted the worker's partner to intervene and a dispute between 
the latter and the owner, which resulted in the manager filing a 
complaint for threats and damage to the premises. Following the opening 
of the trial against her partner, the worker quit her job and contacted 
union members from the National Confederation of Labour, who had 
organized a demonstration in 2017 against the owner's refusal to 
negotiate her dismissal. To defend the worker, the union members 
demanded the withdrawal of the complaint and financial compensation of 
EUR6,000 for the worker.

The demonstration continued with protests in front of the premises and 
other solidarity initiatives spread on social media, prompting the 
intervention of the Gijón Criminal Court, which deemed the protests to 
have exceeded legal limits and had led to the closure of the business, 
despite the fact that the premises had already been put up for sale on a 
real estate website a year before the demonstration and several sources 
indicated that the business had already been experiencing financial 
difficulties before then.

The union members were arrested in 2025, after the Supreme Court upheld 
their individual sentences of two years in prison for obstruction of 
justice and a year and a half for coercion, in addition to the payment 
of approximately EUR150,000 in compensation to the pastry shop owner. 
The Gijón court, which had convicted them in the first instance, ordered 
the sentence to be carried out, so the five women and the man were sent 
to prison on July 10th to serve their sentences. However, on July 18th, 
they were granted third-degree prison terms, meaning probation.

The conviction of the "Seis de La Suiza" has sparked a large solidarity 
movement across the country in recent months, called by the CNT. The 
movement has involved several trade unions and associations, as well as 
some parties of the institutional left. The CNT reports that in 
solidarity with its militants, "hundreds of thousands of people filled 
the streets, supported the resistance funds, highlighted the case, and 
denounced the injustice." The pardon was granted by the government to 
recognize and protect, according to its members, the legitimacy of union 
action, the right to strike, mobilize, and organize workers. However, 
the CNT stated in a statement that the pardon is not a gesture of 
generosity on the part of the government, but the direct result of the 
struggle of recent months and the collective strength of the organized 
working class. The statement continues, stating that the experience of 
La Suiza confirms that anarcho-syndicalism, founded on direct action, 
mutual support, and solidarity, is more useful than ever and that no 
right is won without a struggle.

Although the government pardon allowed the unionists to avoid prison, 
they still face financial compensation of approximately EUR150,000 and a 
criminal record.

ErreEsse

https://www.sicilialibertaria.it/wp-content/uploads/maggio-2026_compressed.pdf
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