Riot police clash with May Day protesters around the world as unions and masked labour activists take to the streets with petrol bombs to 'fight capitalism'
Cars set on fire by protesters in Milan burn during a rally
against Expo 2015 (left), a six-month-long showpiece of culture and
technology which is opposed by many in the city, giving an added edge to
the May Day violence which engulfed the city centre. Protesters also
took to the streets in cities in South Korea, Greece, the Philippines
and Malaysia. Members of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions
confronted riot police as they marched toward the presidential house
after a May Day rally in Seoul (top right). Demonstrators, some armed
with Molotov cocktails, rampaged through the Okmeydani neighborhood of
Istanbul (bottom right).
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Inferno: Cars set on fire by
protesters burn furiously during a rally against Expo 2015 in Milan. May
Day violence engulfed the Italian city
No way through: Members of the Korean
Confederation of Trade Unions confront riot police as they march toward
the presidential house after a May Day rally in Seoul, South Korea
Armed: A protester with a Molotov
cocktail runs through the streets of Istanbul during clashes with police
in the Okmeydani neighborhood of the Turkish city. Officers fired tear
gas and water cannon at hundreds of stone-throwing May Day protesters
Prepared: Activists equipped with gas
masks in Milan. Dozens of demonstrators threw firecrackers and dragged
burning rubbish bins to block streets in the centre of the city amid
clouds of teargas fired by police
As one: Masked activists clad all in
black march in a line through the streets of Milan. Demonstrators
clashed with riot police far from the world's fair sprawling grounds on
the edge of the city
Man down: Policemen put out the flames engulfing a colleague after he was hit by a Molotov cocktail during the Milan protests
Taking aim: Demonstrators aim bottles
and flares at Milan riot police. It is hoped the city's Expo will cheer
up a gloomy national mood
Engulfed: Protesters face off against
riot police amid a cloud of teargas fired at them by officers during
demonstrations in Milan
Broken: A riot policeman takes a break from the mayhem of the protests in Milan. Police detained a number of demonstrators
May
Day is a traditional annual celebration of laborers and the working
classes and is promoted by the international labor movement, anarchists,
socialists, and communists across the world.
Thick
clouds of smoke from burning cars filled parts of central Milan where
groups of protesters, their faces masked against the fumes, threw stones
and faced off against lines of police in riot gear.
The
confrontation came hours after a glitzy opening ceremony at the Expo
site, with Prime Minister Matteo Renzi hailing the start of a
six-month-long showpiece of culture and technology focused on the theme
of sustainable food production.
The
fair, which follows the 2010 Expo in Shanghai, mobilised a diffuse
range of left-wing protesters, from anti-globalisation and
environmentalist activists to students and anti-austerity campaigners,
who see it as a symbol of waste and corruption.
Thousands
of police were deployed to counter the threat of violence before the
event, which Renzi has been counting on to reinforce fragile signs of
recovery after years of recession that have hit young people especially
hard.
'Today
it is as though Italy is embracing the world,' he said at the opening,
which featured a flight of jets trailing the colours of the Italian
flag. 'All you experts who kept saying 'We'll never do it' -- this is
your answer,' he said. 'I like to think that tomorrow begins today.'
Instead,
the elegant centre of Milan was transformed into a battle ground, with
sirens and periodic bangs from flash bombs and firecrackers ringing out
against the shouts of protesters.
The
main part of the demonstration was halted by police vans blockading the
street, but breakaway groups of demonstrators fought running battles in
the rain that left streets littered with makeshift barricades and
debris.
Chaos: An overturned car was one of
many damaged or destroyed by protesters in Milan. The centre of the city
was transformed into a battle ground, with sirens and periodic bangs
from flash bombs and firecrackers ringing out against the shouts of
protesters
Mayhem: One
protester armed with a wooden pole has a gas mask to protect him from
the tear gas (left) while another does not and has his face covered
while he flings a stone at police (right)
Abandoned: Debris, including flares,
clothes and helmets, litters a Milanese street. A diffuse range of
left-wing protesters took part in demonstrations, from
anti-globalisation and environmentalist activists to students and
anti-austerity campaigners
Destroyed: Cars torched by protesters
burn outside and apartment block in Milan. Confrontations between police
and demonstrators came hours after a glitzy opening ceremony at the
Expo site
Calm amid the chaos: A man rides a
bicycle past a burning office building in Milan. The main part of the
day's demonstration was halted by police vans blockading the street
Explosion: A firecracker goes off
above the streets of Milan during May Day clashes between demonstrators
and police, given an added edge by the opening of the Expo
Flashpoint: An Italian policeman fires
tear gas towards a demonstration in the centre of Milan. Breakaway
groups of demonstrators fought running battles with officers in the rain
Total mess: A wheelchair-bound person
wearing a helmet looks over a Milan street in the aftermath of a clash
between protesters and police
Danger: A demonstrator wearing a
helmet and a gas mask prepares to fling a rock towards police lines in
Milan during violent clashes
On the move: Riot police with batons,
gas masks and shields advance to a new position amid confrontations with
protesters in Milan
Dozens
of demonstrators, their faces masked against clouds of tear gas, threw
firecrackers and dragged burning rubbish bins to block streets in the
centre of the city while sirens rang out around them.
Police
released water from fire hydrants to dispel hundreds of demonstrators
who scrawled graffiti on walls and threw smoking flares during a march
in the city, where the Italian premier and other VIPs were inaugurating
Expo.
One
man risked his own life to save his car from exploding in a fire
started by protesters, while riot police had to help put out the flames
which had engulfed a colleague after he was hit by a Molotov cocktail.
Police
detained a number of demonstrators and at one point officers who put a
woman in handcuffs were surrounded by an angry crowd demanding that she
be released. There was no immediate official estimate of the damage,
which included smashed windows and street fittings and burned-out cars.
The
Expo had already been tarnished by a corruption investigation that saw
several top officials arrested, and by cost overruns and construction
hold-ups. Large parts of the site were not ready for opening day.
Pope
Francis, who spoke via a televised link-up to the opening ceremony,
referred to the irony of a global mega-spectacle dependent on corporate
sponsorship deals being devoted to sustainable development and feeding
the poor.
Fury: Thousands of protesters gathered
in Turkey to protest against austerity, on the first May Day holiday to
be marred by violence
Armed response: A
man lies injured and helpless on the ground in Istanbul where police
used force to contain the violent demonstrations and prevent people from
reaching Taksim Square in the city centre
Aggression: Protesters desperately run for cover as police use water cannons and tear gas to disperse demonstrators in Istanbul
Ready to fire: Turkish riot police
officers fired rubber bulletsand tear gas against demonstrators during
violent clashes in Istanbul
Battle: The street battle in Istanbul
became incredibly dangerous as protesters in protective masks launched
gas canisters at police
Burning: Police and May Day
demonstrators clashed in Istanbul (pictured) where crowds of
demonstrators, determined to reach the iconic Taksim Square, started
fires in the streets
Retaliation: Turkish protesters
retaliated against police, who bombarded them with water cannons and
tear gas, by throwing and kicking gas canisters back towards officers
Cover: Demonstrators had to protect
themselves from water cannons and tear gas grenades (pictured) being
thrown by police in Istanbul
Anger: Police officers used batons to
destroy wreaths made with red and white carnations during a rally near
Taksim Square in Istanbul
'In
certain ways, the Expo itself is part of this paradox of abundance, it
obeys the culture of waste and does not contribute to a model of
equitable and sustainable development,' he said.
The
real protagonists of the event should be 'the faces of the men and
women who are hungry, who fall ill and even die because of an
insufficient or harmful diet,' he added.
Italian
labour activists held their main rally in the Sicilian town of Pozzallo
where thousands of migrants fleeing persecution from Africa, the Middle
East and Asia have arrived in recent weeks after being rescued at sea
from smugglers' boats.
Meanwhile
hooded youths in Greece threw petrol bombs at police officers and
Philippine citizens burned a massive effigy of their president in the
capital Manila.
Thousands
of South Koreans continued to march in Seoul for a third week to
protest their government's labour policies and the shocking handling of a
ferry disaster that killed 300 last year.
At
least 12 people were arrested for allegedly assaulting police officers
and other disorderly behaviour but there have been no reports of
injuries. Other protesters tried to create a huge barricade by tying
cables to buses and pulling them into place.
Catastrophe: Amid scenes of
destruction in Milan, Italy a man helped someone save his car from being
set ablaze by the fire which surrounded it (pictured)
Emergency: Police and firemen in Milan (pictured) tried desperately to extinguish the burning cars which protesters set ablaze
Rally: Hundreds of protesters wielding
sticks threw smoking flares (pictured) at the police who retaliated by
firing their water cannons
Charge: Hundreds of protesters -
dressed in black and wearing biker helmets - watched on as one charged
at the police with a rubbish bin (pictured) in Milan
Armed: Riot police in Milan (pictured)
retaliated by firing tear gas canisters at protesters who were throwing
flares and setting cars on fire
High profile: Police clashed with
protesters outside Expo 2015 - a world's fair running for the next six
months - which was being attended by Italy's premier and a host of VIPs
Partition: Demonstrators in Milan
dragged burning rubbish bins (pictured) to block streets in the centre
of the city while sirens rang out around them
Flames: People walked through the
smoke of burning cars (pictured) as clashes broke out with police during
a protest against the Expo 2015 fair in Milan
Street war: South Korean riot police
use fire extinguishers from their bus to stop protesters who tried to
force their way through barricades in Seoul (pictured)
Violent:Some angry South Korean
protesters tried to protect themselves from police aggression by pulling
buses (pictured) to form a barricade
Furious: Many thousands of South
Koreans marched in Seoul (pictured) for a third week to protest against
new labour policies and the shocking handling of a ferry disaster that
killed 300 last year
Protest: At least 12 people were
arrested for allegedly assaulting police officers and other disorderly
behaviour in Seoul (pictured)
Fight: Labour union members attacked
buses in Seoul (pictured) from which police were firing water cannons
and using pepper spray on protesters
Many
of the buses were vandalised by protesters who spray-painted
anti-government slogans on them. Tens of thousands of workers vowed to
wage an 'all-out general strike' if the government pushes through with
unpopular labour reforms.
South
Korean union leaders said more than 100,000 workers took part in two
rallies in Seoul, while police put the total number of participants at
38,000.
More
than 10,000 workers and activists marched in Manila and burned an
effigy of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III to protest low wages
and a law which allows employers to exploit a loophole so they do not
have to give benefits to workers.
Workers
in metropolitan Manila now receive £7.12 as a daily minimum wage and
even though it is the highest rate in the country, it is still 'a far
cry from being decent', according to the vice chairman of the left-wing
May One Movement.
In
austerity-hit Greece, around 13,000 people took to the streets in three
separate May Day marches in Athens. Clashes broke out at the end of the
relatively peaceful marches when a handful of hooded youths threw a
petrol bomb at police.
They
were responding to a call from both public and private unions led by
the country's controversial anti-austerity Finance Minister Yanis
Varoufakis.
Malaysia's
opposition government joined activists in Kuala Lumpur on May Day -
also known as Labour Day - to protest against the rising cost of living
due to increased taxes.
Violence: Activists in Manila burned a
huge effigy of Philippine President Benigno Aquino III (pictured) in a
violent protest against low wages
Blaze: As the marches drew to a close,
hundreds of protesters who want better wages gathered around a massive
effigy of the Philippine president (pictured)
Unfair: Philippine protesters in
Manila (pictured) were also protesting against a law which allows
employers to hire laborers for less than six months - to avoid giving
benefits received by regular workers.
Anger: More than 10,000 workers and
activists protested low wages in Manila in the Philippines (pictured)
where they threw food at images of their president
Dangerous: Clashes broke out in Athens, Greece (pictured) after a group of hooded youths threw a petrol bomb at police
Attack: Despite the petrol bomb
launched at riot police in Athens (pictured), no injuries or arrests
have been reported in the city
Masked
demonstrators stood ominously in front of the city's iconic Petronas
Towers as 59 anti-government protesters were arrested as the rally drew
to a close.
Around
10,000 people attended the 'The Workers Day' rally which took place at
several points across city, according to local website The Malay Insider.
Hundreds
of people turned up for a May Day march in London to protest against
the privatisation of the National Gallery, whose staff are currently on
strike. Droves of people gathered in Trafalgar Square held aloft
sunflowers as a show of solidarity.
It
was the first May Day in Turkey - a national holiday - to be marked
after parliament passed a controversial security bill this year giving
the police greater powers to crack down on protests.
President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan's administration was shaken by weeks of deadly
anti-government protests centred on Taksim Square in 2013. And his party
is hugely nervous about more violent public demonstrations ahead of the
June 7 elections.
He
said in a speech at his Ankara presidential palace: 'If find that this
insisting on [protests in] Taksim is wrong and has a purpose. Having a
meeting in Taksim means basically paralysing all Istanbul.'
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