Paris fills with tractors in a new farmers’ protest in France

The tractors of French peasants occupied Paris. The day before the debate with President Emmanuel Macron in the traditional Agriculture Hall, the compatriots decided to go this Friday to the Invalides and Napoleon’s tomb to make their demands heard. The limousines in the very chic VII district of the French capital have been replaced by the noise and smell of engine oil.

In the midst of a magnificent traffic jam, which lasted for kilometers and which covered the Periférico surrounding the city, rural producers maintain pressure on the government. This time with a view of the Eiffel Tower, closed for the fifth day of the strike.

“We will stay there,” says Nicolas Bongay, one of the organizers of the mobilization.

Nicolas Bongay, the initiator of this convoy coming from Doubs, declared that he had no intention of respecting the dispersal order, scheduled for the end of the afternoon.

“We were allowed to stay until five in the afternoon. But this program is not suitable for us,” she says. “Let’s stay here.” The farmers target the Agricultural Palace of the Porte de Versailles, south of the capital. “We are negotiating it. But we will go anyway,” says Nicolas Bongay.

This Rural Coordination convoy will try to join the FNSEA, which in turn had planned a concentration.

The protests by French farmers are part of a larger movement across Europe against the European Union’s agricultural policy, bureaucracy and general conditions in the sector.

They complain that the 27-nation bloc’s environmental policies, such as the Green Deal – which calls for limiting the use of chemicals and greenhouse gas emissions – They limit their business and make their products more expensive than imports. from outside the block.

With a view of the Eiffel Tower

“I am very surprised by this support,” reacts a farmer in the Parisian march.

Cyril, 59, arrived from Seine-et-Marne on his tractor and discovered Paris for the first time. The cereal manufacturer is not against holding the fair. “It’s nice to raise awareness of the profession.” But, very cautious in the face of government announcements, which are “just words”, he jokes about Emmanuel Macron’s arrival in the living room on Saturday. “Those who sell eggs there better hide them otherwise they will leave quickly!” he jokes. “He’ll see how angry the farmers are.”

“It’s not about moving forward, it’s just words. For things to change, the show should not take place,” believes Alexandre Cuny. “Why should we have a show this year? It’s the showcase of French agriculture and it’s not doing well! Usually people advertise to us and then we don’t hear from them again for 2 or 3 years. This time we want to show that we will not give up like this,” he said from his tractor, at the blockade of the Mirabeau bridge, in the heart of Paris.

The atmosphere was very calm in Place Vauban. The farmers parked their tractors and lit a fire for their lunch break, chips included, before the eyes of the CR, the French riot forces. Motorists and passers-by greet them and encourage them. “This support warms my heart,” says Cyril, during the first visit of his life to Paris.

throughout France

Tractors don’t just circulate in Paris. Tractors are also out of service in Nantes and in the south of the country.

The farmers of Loire-Atlantique also showed their anger this Friday. The tractors paraded in front of the castle of the Dukes of Brittany in Nantes.

“The government’s responses are not satisfactory,” FNSEA 44 reported in X.

Macron invites debate

President Emmanuel Macron organized a debate with farmers on Saturday at the Agriculture Hall to resolve a crisis that forces him to struggle to survive with his profession, with its meager profits and the bureaucracy imposed by Brussels. There are many suicides among his countrymen due to his low profitability.

“The Presidency of the Republic collaborated with the organization of the show to create an open moment of listening and debate on the future of French agriculture to confirm the actions launched in recent weeks, make new commitments and chart the course for the coming years”, The Elysée said this in a statement.

The invitations, together with the organization of the fair, refer to farmers, agricultural unions, agri-food industries, distributors and environmental associations represented in the organizations. Furthermore, contacts have been established with groups that have disrupted the salon in the past to offer them, for this edition, a constructive expression within the framework of this exchange”, justified the Elysée in a publication in X.