French farmers returned to the streets of Paris this Friday (23), warning President Emmanuel Macron that he should expect a harsh reception when he opens a major agricultural fair on Saturday (24), amid dissatisfaction over the costs, bureaucracy and environmental regulations.
Dozens of tractors entered the French capital, honking loudly. A tractor carried a sign that read: “Macron, you are sowing the seeds for a storm — be careful what you reap.”
Farmers have been protesting across Europe for higher incomes, less bureaucracy and denouncing unfair competition from cheap Ukrainian produce due to aid for Kiev's war effort.
This month, French farmers largely suspended protests that included blocking highways and dumping manure in front of public buildings, after Prime Minister Gabriel Attal promised new measures worth 400 million euros.
But protests resumed this week to pressure the government to help them more and fulfill promises, ahead of the Paris agricultural fair, a major event in France that attracts around 600,000 visitors over nine days.
“Some farmers will try to prevent the president (Macron) from entering the trade fair. And if he gets in, they will disturb his walk,” Jean Lefevre, a member of FNSEA, France's largest agricultural union federation, told Reuters.
There will be tractors and around 2,000 farmers waiting for Macron at the fair, Lefevre said.
Farmer protests have spread across Europe, most recently in countries such as Poland, Spain and the Czech Republic. They come at a time when far-right parties, for which farmers represent a growing electorate, are seen making gains in June's European Parliament elections.
Source: CNN Brasil
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