15,000 police officers are supposed to prevent the farmers’ blockade of Paris

Armored cars, helicopters and thousands of officers: the French police want to use a large contingent to prevent the blockade of Paris threatened by farmers. The government’s aid promises do not go far enough for farmers.

France’s police want to prevent the blockade of Paris threatened by farmers with a large contingent. As Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said on Sunday evening, 15,000 officers as well as armored vehicles and helicopters will be mobilized. You should ensure that the capital as well as the two Paris airports and the Rungis wholesale market remain accessible. Images from the Paris police prefecture showed on Sunday evening how armored vehicles had already taken up positions.

In their fight for better working and living conditions, farmers had threatened to blockade Paris from today. All main axes that lead into the metropolis should therefore be interrupted. Farmers also want to block the Rungis wholesale market. This is a huge transshipment point for fish, meat, poultry, dairy and delicatessen products.

Interior Minister wants to prevent looting

The Interior Minister emphasized that it was not about a showdown, but rather an orderly conduct of the protests. The police will not intervene at blockade posts themselves. Public buildings should be protected and foreign road trains should be guaranteed safe travel through France. What should be prevented is that, as has already happened in isolated cases, trucks from Spain or Portugal are stopped and looted by farmers.

Protests by farmers demanding better payment for their produce, less bureaucracy and protection from cheap imports have spread across the country in recent days.

Prime Minister promises help to farmers

French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal had already made far-reaching promises of aid to farmers on Friday. On Sunday he followed up during a visit to a farm and promised additional measures against unfair competition from other countries.

“We will put agriculture above everything else,” he assured. In addition, the state will drop the plan to gradually increase the tax rate on agricultural diesel. Traders who extract unfairly low prices from farmers should also be pursued more persistently and punished more severely.

Attal announced that he wanted to simplify rules and processes in order to save farmers bureaucracy and long waiting times. There will be 50 million euros in emergency aid for organic farmers and President Macron will continue to oppose the Mercosur free trade agreement at EU level in order to protect French farmers from unfair competition. So far, the promises have not gone far enough for farmers.