Public Service Union members staged a bold protest outside the Philip Goldson International Airport this afternoon as it ramps up pressure on the Briceño administration amid a simmering trade dispute.
Wearing yellow and holding signs, union members gathered near Terminal One, just metres from where tourists entered the country. The protest quickly escalated after PSU President Dean Flowers was barred from entering the terminal and had his vehicle booted.
Flowers told the media: “I am here to pick up people who are coming in on that flight that just landed… How come, as a citizen, I cannot come pick up my people who are coming in?”
Police presence around the area was visibly increased.
“I was requested to do some office visits at the PGIA. I am carrying out my legal responsibility as president of this union,” Flowers said. “It is not my fault that the Briceño administration is afraid that the visitors of this country [are] informed of the oppressive administration that he’s administering.”
Union Senator Glenfield Dennison and First Vice President Annisa Gonzalez also condemned the heightened security response. “We don’t have freedom of speech anymore or freedom of congregating,” Gonzalez said.
Flowers confirmed that his vehicle was locked and faced a charge of $50 to unlock his vehicle.
This afternoon’s demonstration is part of the PSU’s protest against the government’s refusal to meet its full 8.5% salary adjustment demand.