French farmers announce an indefinite blockade of access to Paris starting this Monday

The Government promises "additional measures" to support the French countryside and mobilizes 15,000 police officers

The National Federation of Agricultural Holdings Unions (FNSEA) and the Young Farmers of the Greater Paris Basin association have announced the blocking of access to Paris "for an indefinite period" starting at 2:00 p.m. on Monday, January 29.

Farmers from 19 departments will position themselves at seven blocking points around the capital, on the roads that give access to Paris, explained the president of Young Farmers of the Ile-de-France region, Clément Torpier, in statements to the network. BFMTV television. "All this will be organized safely and with respect for people, on the strategic axes of the highways," he explained.

The newspaper 'Le Parisien' specifically mentions the A1, A4, A5, A6, A12, A13 and A15 roads and there is speculation about the mobilization of some 500 tractors.

"We want clean, supervised and safe demonstrations. We are not here to completely obstruct everything," Torpier said. The goal "is not to bother the population, but to obtain answers from the Government."

The president of FDSEA Oise, Régis Desrumaux, has acknowledged that "we are going to take the families hostage." "We are going to prevent people from going to work. We are going to prevent appointments from being made. It is sad, we all have families, it hurts my heart, but unfortunately we have to do it," he argued.

The national administrator of Young Farmers, Maxime Buizard, explained on Saturday that the objective is "that no truck can supply the capital and that we hold on as long as necessary for the shortage to be felt and we can be heard."

This same Sunday, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal announced that they are studying "additional measures" at national and European level in response to farmers' demand against "unfair competition" from other countries. A series of measures to support the sector were already announced on Friday.

"I know very well that we have not yet responded to the concern and unrest of our farmers. I am determined to move quickly. As long as we can make decisions immediately, we will make them. We will have to make other decisions with them in the coming weeks," he said. Attal pointed out.

Attal believes that "our farmers do not ask for something extravagant or insurmountable." "They want to be taken into account, to be able to work and receive remuneration for their work (...). We will continue to advance against unfair competition," he argued. "Seeing imposed rules that are not imposed on others and seeing products not subject to those rules in national territory is called unfair competition," she argued.

For Attal "what is at stake here is absolutely fundamental for our country." "Our agriculture is, above all, an important part of France's identity. We do not want to import 40 percent of our fruits and vegetables when we have all the possibilities of producing in our country," he stated.

The Minister of Agriculture, Marc Fesneau, has announced that there will be additional measures next Tuesday.

MOBILIZATION OF 15,000 POLICE OFFICERS

Given the announcement of cuts, the Ministry of the Interior has announced the mobilization of 15,000 police officers throughout France and to "avoid any blockade" at the eight blockade points planned in the Ile-de-France region and prevent access by protesters to the capital.

On the outskirts of Rungis and Roissy airport, armored Gendarmerie vehicles have been seen since early Sunday afternoon to prevent access from being blocked. There will be similar operations in wholesale markets and main communication nodes.

The Minister of the Interior, Gérald Darmanin, has recalled in any case that the Government's position is that of "understanding the agricultural environment" and that is why it does not want "any intervention in the blocking points", but that the Police will provide "security ". He has also urged the Police to intervene in case of damage and attacks on foreign trucks.

Darmanin chaired the meeting of the interministerial crisis unit held this Sunday. Also present were the Minister of Agriculture, Marc Fesneau, and the general directors of the Police and Gendarmerie, Frédéric Veaux and Christian Rodríguez, as well as the prefect of police of Paris, Laurent Núñez.