Around fifty members of the Confédération Paysanne (Farmers' Confederation) were taken into custody on Wednesday in Paris after entering an administrative building attached to the Ministry of Agriculture. The action took place in an annex housing the Directorate General for Economic Performance, a few dozen meters from the ministry building, in the 7th arrondissement.
The protesters, who entered in the mid-afternoon, unfurled banners inside and outside the premises to denounce several agricultural issues deemed priorities, including the management of bovine lumpy skin disease and the trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur. Delegations from overseas territories also participated in the demonstration.
The union denounces a “criminalization” of peasant anger
In total, 52 people were arrested, including several national figures from the union as well as overseas agricultural officialsThe Ministry of Agriculture filed a complaint and law enforcement cleared the premises without incident, according to the police headquarters, which reiterated that dialogue cannot justify breaches of public order.
The Confédération Paysanne (Farmers' Confederation) is demanding the immediate release of its activists and accusing the government of repressing agricultural protests, denouncing discriminatory treatment compared to other unions. This action comes amid persistent tensions between the agricultural sector and public authorities, against a backdrop of health, trade, and budget crises.
