Paris It seems that the spark of the peasants’ revolution began to ignite again 6 days before the European Parliament elections, as French and Spanish farmers blocked the highway and closed the crossing points across the border between the two countries, today, Monday, threatening the authorities to increase this type of mobilization and use the ballot paper to achieve Their demands.
The border between France and Spain has witnessed great tensions on the cross-border roads and surrounding areas across the entire Pyrenees mountain range, from the Basque Country to the eastern Pyrenees, since this morning, and it is expected to continue for varying periods not exceeding 24 hours initially.
This mobilization, which was described as “historic and symbolic,” was coordinated between the farmers of the two countries, with the participation of about 3,000 farmers and 1,000 tractors. France and Spain are considered among the European countries most represented in the field of agriculture, in addition to Germany.
Signs of anger returning
This movement does not enjoy the support of the French agricultural unions, as the “Ultras de l’A64” group, which does not present itself as political, is adopting this demonstration, headed by farmer Jerome Pyle.
Agricultural economics expert Jean-Marie Sironi believes, “What we must take into consideration is that today’s mobilization was not organized by the main agricultural organizations in the two countries, but rather by farmers on the border, and its importance lies in the fact that they were the first to start demonstrations in southern Toulouse, France, last January.” “Which led to the outbreak of a wave of anger in the rest of Europe.”
Sironi continues, in an interview with Al Jazeera Net, that “The National Federation of Agricultural Operators Unions (FNSEA), which is the most important in France, does not support this move, but the agricultural policy in federal Spain is implemented in every province, such as Catalonia and the Basque Country, which are part of This movement.
It is noteworthy that the negotiations between the French government and the most important farmers’ union regarding the agricultural guidance law have not yet ended, and it is supposed to be voted on in the National Assembly and then the Senate next week.
Therefore, the agricultural engineer Sironi considers that the lack of support for this mobilization by the most prominent union in France is linked to these negotiations, explaining, “You cannot demonstrate too much, but I expect the peasants’ anger to return again this fall, if attempts to reach satisfactory solutions fail.”
Influencing voting
The protesting farmers are seeking to influence the vote in the upcoming European elections on June 9, by demanding common regulatory rules across the European Union on the issue of pesticides and energy prices, including diesel fuel not used on roads.
Agricultural expert Jean-Marie Cerrone believes that things “have not changed much in France for farmers. At the European level, there is a decrease in environmental obligations in the common agricultural policy, but the effects of this are still unclear.”
In his reading of the election campaigns, the spokesman says, “The Renewal Party, the Republicans, and the National Rally have provided only a few general guidelines in this regard, which remain somewhat vague, while the Green Party program goes into relatively more detail. But the one thing that all of these programs have in common is “Rejecting free trade agreements, especially those supported by Spain, which is strange given today’s Franco-Spanish mobilization.”
Regarding whether today’s mobilization will succeed in bringing about any pressure or tangible changes a few days before the European elections, the French expert does not believe that this demonstration will have much benefit or effectiveness, stressing at the same time that the issue of farmers will be discussed, because this sector represents a third of the European Union budget. .
In an attempt to calm the anger of farmers across the continent, European Union countries gave the final green light to conduct a legislative review of the Common Agricultural Policy in mid-May, to reduce the administrative burden that was strongly condemned.
The text also allows member states to completely cancel the obligation to leave at least 4% of arable land or non-productive areas, as well as exempting farms with an area of less than 10 hectares from penalties and controls related to environmental rules, which represents 65% of the beneficiaries of Common Agricultural Policy.
What is the relationship with Morocco?
While the issue of unfair competition remains at the forefront of European farmers’ concerns, some agricultural parties in particular condemned competition from Moroccan products, which the Moroccan Agricultural Confederation considered “false accusations,” stressing that all its products “comply with European standards.”
In this context, Sebastian Barbuto, a Spanish farmer and one of the organizers of the packaging, explained in an interview with France Bleu Radio, “We do not aim to target Moroccan products specifically, but rather to attack all products that arrive from outside the European Union and do not respect the application of environmental, health and social standards.” “.
Commenting on this, agricultural economics expert John Marie Cerrone told Al Jazeera Net that, “When talking about Moroccan fruits, vegetables and exports, we will of course find a big difference in terms of labor costs, and this is extremely important, and may pose a problem and difficulty for Spanish farmers, especially in southern Spain.” “.
The agricultural engineer is not surprised that the Kingdom of Morocco is Spain’s first supplier outside the European Union, “because there are distinct trade agreements between this North African country and the European Union.”
Recent data from the Spanish Ministry of Customs and Special Taxes has indicated that Morocco is strengthening its position as Spain’s main supplier of fruits and vegetables from countries outside the European Union.
