BEIJING, Nov. 21 (Xinhuanet) -- Argentine President Cristina Fernandez faced a nationwide strike on Tuesday, led by union bosses who once were her most steadfast supporters.

Many workers stayed at home, with some trains and bus lines paralyzed. Banks, courts and schools were closed. Many hospitals offered only emergency services, airlines cancelled flights and garbage was left with no one to pick it up.

Strikers on Pueyrredon Bridge burned tires and banged drums as they blocked the road. The strike impacted businesses across Buenos Aires. Truckers union boss Pablo Moyano and his supporters’ demands include "the total elimination of income taxes," as well as other new salary hikes and benefits.

Most union workers won pay hikes of 25 percent or more this year. Private analysts say Argentina’s true annual inflation rate has become much higher than the 10 percent a year cited by the government’s widely discredited inflation index. Fernandez tried to call on workers to act responsibly and defended all she’s accomplished for workers.

(Source: CNTV.cn)