Galapagos briefly paralyzed as islanders strike over losing subsidies; troops fire tear gas
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
Flights to the Galapagos islands were canceled for the day and Ecuadorean soldiers fired tear gas to clear roads blocked by residents protesting cost-cutting legislation that will strip them of subsidies they call essential to absorb high living costs.
Hundreds took part in the nine-hour strike Friday on the two main islands of the archipelago popular with tourists made famous by naturalist Charles Darwin.
Ecuador's National Assembly overturned on Tuesday a 1978 law giving public employees on the islands a wage subsidy that effectively doubled their salaries. Private workers have been getting a 75 percent subsidy on top of their wages.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}
The 25,000 inhabitants of the islands, which are 600 miles from Ecuador's coast, also lose the right to fly free of charge to and from the mainland.