David Vigario Merida

Merida

Updated Saturday, February 10, 2024-02:15

  • Analysis of the farmers' strike in Spain: why they are protesting, what they are asking for and how long it lasts

Farmers and ranchers do not give up in their protests. The fourth day of mobilizations bore the hallmarks of the last ones: pickets, roadblocks and some confrontations full of tension, such as in Mérida (Badajoz), where riot

police intervened with tear gas to dissuade protesters from blocking traffic on the A -5,

to which some farmers responded by throwing stones at the agents. And while the tractor units keep the pulse, the traditional agrarian organizations and the Government have frozen any type of negotiation that could unblock the mobilizations, which continue indefinitely.

Specifically,

the meeting next Tuesday between the Minister of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration, Elma Saiz,

and the official representatives of the agricultural sector, was suspended according to the ministry itself, which had issued the invitation 24 hours before.

Schedule problems

The goal was to address "the labor problem" in the countryside, which has caused the loss of 10,000 jobs in the last decade. The organizations postponed it:

«Due to agenda reasons on the part of the three agricultural organizations -COAG, ASAJA and UPA- it is impossible for us

to hold the meeting on the proposed date. We would be grateful if you could propose new dates. "We are waiting," read his response. Sources from the organizations have indicated that

"it is very complicated to sit down to negotiate in the current circumstances."

Other leaders claimed that they had a visit to an agricultural fair in Zaragoza.

Tractors on the N-232 towards the entrance to Zaragoza, this FridayJavier CebolladaEFE

The Government reacted angrily:

"We regret not finding the same predisposition on the part of our interlocutors, since we firmly believe that dialogue tables are the best framework for reaching consensus." The next meeting between both parties is scheduled for Wednesday the 14th with the meeting of the Food Chain Law Observatory.

Threat of boycott at the Goya

Meanwhile, messages are multiplying in the WhatsApp groups of 'independent' farmers' platforms with the intention of boycotting the Goya gala in Valladolid:

"The guests will not arrive at their party," they predict.

Faced with this threat, the Delegation of the Government of Castilla y León confirmed an "unprecedented" police deployment so that the event can be held normally.

More than 1,300 agents will be on the streets today with the intention that the tractor-trailer - without an official call - does not reach the gates of the Valladolid Fair.

"This year the Goya festival will be celebrated in the street," you can read in the chats. Another message warns that "on Tuesday there were traffic jams in Valladolid and many people arrived late for work. On Saturday, the ones who won't make it to your party are you.

This year the Goya Gala will be remembered for a long time.

If we all unite... Let them tremble. "It's enough to drown us!" Local leaders of the 6F platform say they are not behind this latest call.

The vice president of the Junta de Castilla y León,

Juan García-Gallardo (Vox), did confirm that he will be at the gala,

although he also left his message in advance: "the young men are those who

want to make a living by producing cinematographic works that they do not later see." "No one

at the expense of millions and millions of euros that Spanish taxpayers pay with great effort."