As of: 06/29/2022 4:21 p.m
Burning hay bales, roadblocks made of manure, liquid manure in front of the Environment Minister’s house: protests by farmers in the Netherlands are escalating. Their anger is directed at new nitrogen reduction regulations.
It all started peacefully – with a large demonstration in the middle of last week in the agricultural region of Gelderland. But in the days that followed, protests by Dutch farmers escalated. First highway blockades by dozens of tractors, then burning hay bales on the roadside, roadblocks made of stinking dung and dangerous tractor maneuvers in the center of The Hague. That’s not all: yesterday evening, an angry mob marched in front of the house of Environment Minister Christianne van der Wal.
This is a new dimension of the protests, says police chief Willem Woelders: “What we have seen in the past two days is that the actions are no longer organized. Farmers’ organizations say: ‘Anything can happen, but we are not responsible for it’. ” The police can then only react to what they find.
Many farmers demonstrate peacefully – like these men with their cattle in front of the parliament in The Hague.
Image: AFP
“You do not do something like that”
The predominantly young farmers broke through a police cordon in front of the minister’s apartment. They demolished emergency vehicles and left behind bales of hay and a slurry tank.
The politician herself was not at home, but her family was, explained Prime Minister Mark Rutte on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Madrid. The protesters clearly crossed a line:
I am convinced that most farmers are making an effort to show that they are also interested in discussing how we are dealing with the nitrogen issue. But you’re not blocking roads, marching in front of ministers’ houses, setting off firecrackers or spreading manure, or frightening children and families. You do not do something like that.
Farmers feel disadvantaged
According to a ruling by the highest court, the Dutch government must significantly reduce nitrogen emissions, in some areas of nature that are particularly worthy of protection by up to 70 percent. It is precisely in such regions that the farmers feel under pressure. They only have the choice of switching to organic farming, moving with the farm or giving up the business completely, says Caroline van der Plas, who represents farmers in parliament with her “Boer Burger Movement”.
“We are on the verge of the entire agricultural sector in the Netherlands being as good as swept away from this country,” she fears. “And of course that has consequences for the citizens.” Van der Plas understands the farmers’ displeasure, but not the escalating protests.
Parliament majority for reforms
Groups calling themselves “Farmers Defense Force” or “Agractie” are behind these actions. Bart Kemp, one of these agricultural activists, warned of a further escalation in a video message to the minister just a few days ago.
“Back out of these disastrous plans, talk to us about a fundamentally different policy, don’t continue on the path you’ve taken,” he said. “Don’t let the peaceful peasant actions escalate into a peasant uprising.”
Parliament supports the government’s agricultural policy. A clear majority is in favor of the measures to reduce nitrogen emissions – even if this forces many livestock farmers to give up their farms. According to the cabinet, a third of the farms in the country could be affected. An end to the protests is therefore not in sight.