Mexican businesses strike to demand end to road blockades

MEXICO CITY — Mexico's business community is publicly pressuring the government to end months of protests that have disrupted commerce in southern Mexico.

Some of Mexico's leading business groups are using full-page newspaper ads to express support for businesspeople in Oaxaca state who shuttered stores and restaurants yesterday to demand an end to highway blockades.

Radical teachers' unions have been blocking highways in the southern state for months to protest mandatory teacher evaluations and other reforms.

Businesses in the colonial city of Oaxaca say they have been driven to the brink by disruptions that have damaged commerce and tourism, the state's lifeblood.

Business chambers recently threatened to withhold taxes if the government fails to act.

Video on social media sites shows owners standing outside their businesses with placards reading "We are going broke."