For one more time, as usual towards the end of January, Greece’s farmers launch their traditional roadblocks to protest austerity measures. Dozens of tractors have been deployed on roads around Kardista in Central Greece since Monday, some 300 tractors are deployed on E65. so far they have not hindered traffic.
Farmers warn that the protests will soon spread across the country.
The next roadblock is scheduled to be launched on Wednesday, 24. January 2018, in Megalochori by Trikala, also in Central Greece.
Farmers in Magnisia Prefecture, in Imathia and Larissa are reportedly start their tractors’ engines as well, they will launch the roadblocks on Thursday and Friday.
Farmers on the island of Crete are preparing for roadblocks on Friday.
According to the scheduled, roadblocks will have been launched by the end of the week on national roads across the country, the Peloponnese and the West Greece included.
Top on the lists of farmers’ demands are: annual tax-free income of 12,000 euros, lowering the production cost with cheap fuel, power and water prices and lower social security contributions. They protest upcoming foreclosures of agricultural land for debts to the state and the social security funds, as they say. And they threaten that they will not move away until their demands are met.
As usual everywhere it is the people who suffer with the demonstrations. Why don’t they use their tractors to demolish the central bank or block access to the parliament building?
@Carl, I’ve often wondered myself why the protesters do like they do in the USA sometimes. Since they are not allowed to block roads and impose on citizens who just want to go to work, the authorities allow them to protest but they give them a large field to protest in that is away from the city as not to inconveinec anyone. I”m all for protests but maybe they do the protests on an island and make a fun weekend out of it too?