United in anger and deapair, the day a small town went on strike. Usually their worries are earthquake and the Sicilian Mafia's sinister activities here, but now Fiat, the only significant employer, is bowing out. A last-minute reprieve in the form of government intervention seems unlikely. It's struggling with its own economic problems, inflation higher than the rest of Europe and a budget deficit. Even the schools are on strike as teachers explain how parents are losing their livelihood. Without this job, we cannot live, we cannot earn money, so we cannot eat. It will be a disaster for us. All the economy of this town, of this part of Sicily will be, er... Destroyed. Destoryed, will be destroyed, yes. At the town hall, a show of solidarity from local bigwigs. "They're imbeciles in charge of Fiat," says the mayor of Termini, but the stark reality is that Fiat's vast plant, five miles from the town, has lost money for years. It was the banks who blew the whistle today. Now, households here are whispering a word Sicilians loathe: emigration. As the pasta doled out today, Franco Dema knew his days at Fiat were over. He recalled his father had to emigrate for work. Then he told us,"I don't want to cry in front of the kids." Tonight angry workers, who'd blockaded Fiat for three days this week, finally snapped. They invaded their own factory, which will close before the end of the year. This is a shaken community in the throes of a nervous breakdown. Brian Barron, BBC News, Sicily.


BRIAN BARRON: 愤怒绝望之中，小镇上的居民在这一天联手举行罢工。通常他们担心的是地震和西西里黑手党的罪恶活动，如今却是仅有的重要雇主菲亚特正退出当地经济。政府介入是最后的缓兵之计，但似乎行不通。政府正在费力解决着自身的经济问题：高于欧洲其他地区的通货膨胀和预算赤字。 BRIAN BARRON: 当老师解释父母是怎样丢了生计后，甚至连学校也在罢工。 MAN: 没了这份工作，我们无法生活，无法赚钱，因而无法果腹。这对我们来说将是场灾难。这个小镇，西西里岛这个地区的整个经济将会，嗯… … BRIAN BARRON: … …被毁掉。 MAN: … …被毁掉，是的，将会被毁掉。 BRIAN BARRON: 小镇大厅里，当地名流们表现得十分团结一致。“他们在管理菲亚特上都是一群蠢材，”特米尼市长说道，但真正的事实是离镇子五里远的菲亚特大工厂，已多年亏钱。是银行今天才揭发了这些。现在，这儿家家户户都在窃窃私语着一个西西里人痛恨的词：移居他国。 BRAIN BARRON: 随着通心粉今天被分发完毕， Franco Dema 知道他在菲亚特的日子结束了。他回想起父亲不得不移居他国工作。然后他告诉我们：“我不想在孩子面前哭。”今晚愤怒的工人最终爆发了，他们这周已封堵菲亚特三天了。他们冲进了自己将在年底前倒闭的工厂。这是一个摇摇欲坠的社区，正挣扎于崩溃之边缘。英国广播公司Brian Barron来自西西里的报道。