On 20 February, thousands of farmers from all over Greece, who have set up more than 50 roadblocks at the national road for a month now, arrived in Athens with dozens of buses and tractors and held a large march, which ended with a rally outside the Greek parliament.
The poor farmers were warmlyreceived in the Greek capital by trade unions, university students’ unions, unions of the self-employed of the city, the Federation of Women of Greece and other mass organizations.
Giannis Tasioulas, president of the Federation of Builders, addressed the rally on behalf of the Attica unions, which contributed to its preparation. “We are on your side. The workers stand shoulder to shoulder with the farmers, the farmers stand shoulder to shoulder with the workers, because we share common interests. Because we are the ones paying the consequences of the anti-labour policy, the anti-farmers policy of the CAP and the EU. Because we have to face the same problems that are given rise to and exacerbated by the same causes. When it comes to our needs, there are budgetary constraints. But when it comes to the interests of the few, they are free to trample on our lives for their profits”, he stressed.
During the rally, the farmers highlighted their main demands, which include the reduction of production costs; that the New CAP should not be implemented and should be renegotiated; the replacement of lost income from disasters at 100% of the actual damage; measures to stop the rebranding of imported plant, animal and bee products as Greek products;minimum guaranteed selling prices of agricultural products that cover the cost of production; infrastructure projects for flood protection of the country.
