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Paris -

Three months before the European elections and in the heart of the peasants’ revolution that has not subsided, this year’s edition of the agricultural exhibition in Porte de Versailles is the annual meeting that politicians cannot miss, starting with French President Emmanuel Macron and his ministers, all the way to party leaders. .

It is clear that the area of ​​mistrust between the executive authority and farmers is expanding.

At the invitation of the Rural Coordination Syndicate, dozens gathered yesterday, Friday, on the Champs-Élysées Avenue in the capital, Paris, to call for “saving French agriculture” and to honor their colleagues who committed suicide.

Tractors and bales of straw blocked traffic near the Arc de Triomphe before security forces arrested more than 60 people, according to the Metropolitan Police.

The Paris Agricultural Exhibition is a major annual event that attracts about 600,000 visitors over 9 days (Al Jazeera)

Popularity test

The atmosphere inside the International Agricultural Exhibition was divided into two groups. While French President Emmanuel Macron was subjected to boos and calls for his resignation during the opening day, the head of the National Rally campaign, Jordan Bardella, received a warm welcome on the second day of the exhibition.

After Macron described the “violence” of farmers as “ridiculous,” he met with representatives of agricultural unions and attacked the far-right party, especially Marine Le Pen and Bardella, because they “forgot that there is no French farm without Europe,” he said.

While politicians continue to flock to the exhibition halls to register attendance and meet with farmers, the head of the “Agitate France” party, Nicolas Dupain-Aignon, criticized the government’s handling of the farmers’ revolution, because its statements are different from what is said inside the corridors of the European Commission in Brussels, which contributes to weakening the credibility of the President of the Republic.

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, former presidential candidate Inion stressed the need to stop "plundering the country by the ruling minority," considering that the European Commission "has nothing to do with democracy."

For his part, agricultural economist Jean-Marie Sironi described the opening day as "an unprecedented failure of the Elysee's communications", which wanted to discuss the future of French agriculture with farmers and major retailers, "due to errors in communication between the government and farmers from the beginning."

A crisis of confidence

In a scene similar to presidential election campaigns, far-right leader Marine Le Pen took advantage of her visit to the exhibition to respond to Macron's attack by saying that "millions of French people, including many farmers, do not trust the president when it comes to European policy, especially agricultural policy."

Macron acknowledged the existence of a "crisis of confidence, income and appreciation," stressing that the agricultural crisis cannot be solved in one day or during the exhibition, and described this sector as "the main public interest of the Republic."

But despite meeting with a group of farmers, Macron could not quell their anger, directing - instead - his energy to criticizing the far-right party that encourages farmers to get rid of European restrictions, or “Frexit,” as he put it.

Sironi considered, in a statement to Al Jazeera Net, that the current crisis has gone beyond being a crisis of income and the fulfillment of demands, because it has become a "crisis of confidence" between the executive authority and farmers' representatives throughout the country, in addition to the consumer's unwillingness to pay exorbitant prices to buy products, especially since one of every 6 French people resort to food aid, equivalent to 30% of the French population.

The expert in agricultural economics believes that the French president did not realize the depth of the current crisis and its accumulation over the years, which ultimately led to scenes of anger and protests against his policies at the local and European levels.

Sironi recalled the famous saying of General Charles de Gaulle, “How do you want to govern a country in which there are 246 types of cheese?”, commenting on it by emphasizing the need to allocate more funds for assistance and create a bridge of dialogue to restore confidence.

The Paris Agricultural Exhibition is held amid protests by farmers demanding better income and reducing bureaucracy (Al Jazeera)

Electoral arena

The day after the chaotic reception given to the presidential visit, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal stressed, last Sunday, that the agricultural exhibition “is not a media or political circus, and is not an arena for an electoral campaign.”

This comes after European Parliament member Jordan Bardella’s statements in which he attacked the French president and described him as “paranoid,” while the elected National Rally party insists that Macron “no longer has sensors for the country he heads,” and that the country needs to change French agricultural standards. sharpaner.

Macron blamed the far right for exploiting farmers' anger against the backdrop of the European elections, saying, "There is a political offer to reform Europe and make it more sovereign and united alongside Ukraine and defending the Common Agricultural Policy. On the other side, there are people who thought they supported Britain's exit from the European Union, Today they want to leave the eurozone."

When asked about the government’s accusations that agricultural unions are leaning toward the extreme right, Remy Douma, vice president of the Young Farmers Union, considered that discussion with actors in the country is important, “but the delay in taking concrete measures will lead to mobilization again regardless of the supporting political parties.” for us".

Speaking to Al Jazeera Net, the Vice President of the Second Agricultural Union in France pointed out that Europe must impose the same rules of the game in all countries, because France today "faces the harshest standards on the environmental and social levels."

In turn, Enion stressed, "We are not in an electoral race, and the matter is not only related to the issue of France's exit from the European Union, but rather the demand for the presence of a government that does not lie to the French, and the right of farmers to defend their interests at all costs."

Source: Al Jazeera