Muzaffarnagar (India) (AFP)
Tens of thousands of Indian farmers gathered near the Indian capital New Delhi on Sunday, demanding the repeal of new agricultural laws they say threaten small producers.
"Farmers, workers, it's unity!" Sang the demonstrators, wearing green and yellow scarves, symbols of the harvest and the mustard fields, and waving the flags of India and the farmers' unions.
The demonstrators, gathered in Muzaffarnagar, in the state of Uttar Pradesh (northeast), were some 50,000, according to an AFP photographer on the spot.
Indian farmers demonstrating near the Indian capital, in Muzaffarnagar, in the state of Uttar Pradesh (northeast) for the repeal of new agricultural laws on September 5, 2021 Money SHARMA AFP
Since the end of November, these farmers have been camping on the roads leading to New Delhi, a move that has been one of the biggest challenges facing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government since taking office in 2014.
They once again reaffirmed their willingness to continue their protests until the government revokes the new farm laws, calling for a nationwide strike on September 27.
"It's as if the whole city is there and the roads are full of farmers," one of the protesters, lawyer Amit Chaudhary, the son of a farmer, told AFP.
"We farmers are not the type to let ourselves be discouraged. We work morning and evening, rain or shine. We will not give up until the laws are repealed," he said. -he adds.
Indian farmers demonstrating near the Indian capital, in Muzaffarnagar, in the state of Uttar Pradesh (northeast) for the repeal of new agricultural laws on September 5, 2021 Money SHARMA AFP
Several attempts at negotiation have failed and the standoff continues.
The reforms passed in September 2020 allow farmers to sell their produce to buyers of their choice, rather than turning exclusively to state-controlled markets which provide them with a minimum support price (MSP) for certain commodities.
Many small farmers now feel threatened by this liberalization which, according to them, risks forcing them to sell off their goods to large companies in order to sell them.
The weight of the agricultural sector is considerable, ensuring the subsistence of nearly 70% of 1.3 billion inhabitants, and contributing to around 15% of the GDP.
Since the start of the demonstrations, a solidarity network has been set up.
Every day tractors with carts loaded with wood and food leave the villages for the camps on the outskirts of Delhi.
Farmers and their families accompany them.
© 2021 AFP