Warsaw (Brussels Morning Newspapwer) – Polish agricultural unions will protest in Warsaw on January 3 against EU policies they say harm local farming, with five key demands.
Over 20 agricultural associations and unions in Poland will protest against the “harmful policies” of the European Union on Friday, January 3, in Warsaw in front of the European Commission, farmer.pl reported.
“All agricultural organisations in our country will demonstrate against the harmful policy of the European Union, against Ms Ursula von der Leyen, who sets such a tone of this agenda that will force our farms to close,” Tomasz Obrzanski, head of the Solidarity Individual Farmers’ Association, said. According to him, the protesters’ five demands oppose Brussels’ dictates. The motto 5 x STOP refers to the treaty with Mercosur, the “green” course, imports from Ukraine, the collapse of Polish woodlands and hunting, and the decline of the Polish economy.
Where will the farmers’ demonstration in Warsaw take place?
The demonstration is planned for the afternoon. The farmers will assemble at 14:00 at the EC Delegation in Warsaw. “We’ll start at 14:00 in front of the European Commission Delegation. Then, we will march through the streets of Warsaw to the National Theater, where we will also perform on Senatorowa Street. And we will be there until the evening. We will meet Ursula von der Leyen with dignity during the inauguration of the Polish presidency, which will officially begin that day at the National Theater,” clarified Damian Murawiec, a member of the Mass National Farmers’ Protest.
The demonstration was arranged by the Agreement of Agricultural Organizations, which brings together more than 20 trade unions and associations, including the NPZZ Individual Farmers Solidarity, the National Association of Sugar Beet Producers, the Farmers’ Trade Union Self-Defense, the National Council of Agricultural Chambers, the Mass National Farmers’ Protest, the Farmers and Agricultural Organizations, the Young Farmers’ Movement, the Institute of Agricultural Economics, and others.
Last year, farmers in Belgium barricaded roads leading to Brussels on January 30, which marked a larger protest on February 1. A group of hundreds of protesting farmers camped outside the European Parliament, expressing their frustration over escalating prices, taxes, and the competition that came with low-cost imports. In their protest, demonstrators lit fires and threw eggs at the parliament building. This was an important event because it showed the frustrations of farmers toward EU policies and their demand for better support.
