Farmers insist on bringing tractors to Athens

As farmers plan to descend on Athens on Tuesday, Citizen Protection Minister Michalis Chrysochoidis has reportedly expressed his opposition that they do it with tractors, but is not against the use of cars and buses. 

He met with representatives of farmers from Macedonia, Thessaly and Central Greece at the Ministry of Macedonia-Thrace on Friday, a day after their decision to escalate their mobilizations over demands including duty-free agricultural diesel, reduced electricity costs, subsidies on supplies and animal feed, and renegotiation of the EU’s new Common Agricultural Policy, among others.

According to reports, the farmers appeared to be adamant about coming down to the capital on tractors, with the minister making it clear that the government is opposed to that.

“We mentioned that tractors are the tool of our work and we noted that all over Europe, the demonstrations and demands of our colleagues are made with their tools, namely their tractors,” said the president of the Agricultural Association of the Municipality of Alexandria (Imathia), Giorgos Diamantopoulos. “Now we are waiting for a phone call from the minister to convey the government’s final response to our request. In any case, we will come down with our tractors, which are expected to number 200 to 300,” he said.

Meanwhile, farmers at blockades around the country are in consultations to coordinate the start and manner of their descent to Syntagma Square in central Athens, where a large-scale rally will be held, following decisions taken at their national meeting in Nikaia, Larissa on Thursday.

Farmers’ representatives told the AMNA news agency that they will “push wherever we can and for as long as we can.”

Farmers, livestock farmers and beekeepers planned to proceed with the temporary closure of the Thessaloniki-Nea Moudania highway on Friday evening. Tractors remain lined up in all other agricultural blockades that have been set up recently in Central and Western Macedonia.

Discussions are under way with local police departments in order to find a common formula to minimize the disturbance on the roads.