The Diario Libre’s editorial says that no one should regard this strike as successful. The street battles and preventive detentions were reminders of past authoritarianism, and, says the editorialist, strikes achieve nothing while entailing a high cost. The column ends by saying that those who really want to protest should do so with their vote on 16 May. Hoy’s editorial examines the effects of the strike action, highlighting the heavy armed presence and the almost total shutdown of economic activity. It goes on to say that too much time has been lost in January 2004, with all the national holidays and now this two-day strike. The writer exhorts people to get back to work, not just for the good of themselves and their families, but for the sake of the country’s productivity. “Much of what has to be done is up to the government, but they are not the only ones who have to make this effort.” El Caribe’s main editorial calls it “a losers’ strike” and a “moral defeat” for the government. A losers’ strike, because of the violence and casualties: “We cannot claim victory while lives are being mourned.” A moral defeat, because of the overwhelming public support. The writer lays blame on the authorities for failing to prevent the violence, and like his counterpart in Hoy, calls on the citizenry to return to its business. The government-intervened Listin Diario’s Yaqui Nunez de Risco, in his “Hola Nuevo Dia” column, says that it is still unclear who the winners and losers are. “If the organizers are so sure, they should register their candidate for the 16 May and see who wins.”