Thousands protest austerity in Rome
A protestor holds a banner reading ‘Enough’ during the left-wing Italian metalworkers’ union FIOM rally in downtown Rome on May 18, 2013.
Thousands of people marched in downtown Rome on Saturday, protesting high unemployment and their governments austerity policy, demanding their new prime minister do more to create jobs.
Prime Minister Enrico Letta, who took office less than a month ago, is faced with Italy's longest recession on record and a population suffering 38 percent youth unemployment.
The rally was organized by the left-wing Italian metalworkers' union FIOM, but radical leftists also joined in the demonstration.
A controversial poster, seen in this slideshow, shows Germany's Chancellor Merkel dressed in a Nazi uniform.
Letta had said he would make job creation a priority, but after he outlined his property tax reform program last week, many protesters said he had failed to uphold his promise.
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