[CCC]
Jan. 22, 2024 (EIRNS)—On Monday, Jan. 22, Italian farmers under the banner of the CRA (Comitati Riuniti Agricoli) marched with their tractors on numerous cities from Sicily to the Alps. In Bologna, center of the agricultural Emilia-Romagna region, over 300 tractors were reported gathering in the early morning. Tractorcades took place in following cities and agricultural centers: Modena, Reggio Emilia,Turin, Civitanova Marche, Pescara, Frosinone, Valsamoggia, Latina, Crotone, Lamezia Terme, Cosenza, Foggia, Altamura, Bari, Taranto, Noci di Puglia, Palermo-Sciacca, Agrigento.
Some farmers are complaining that the protest is too soft; tractorcades are not supposed to block highways like in Germany but they are converging along state roads. Sources close to the protest however, say that the tractorcades have nevertheless produced major traffic disruptions.
The Sicily-based farmers magazine Sicilia Agricoltura wrote: “The farmers’ protest that started in Germany a few weeks ago has also reached Sicily. From every corner of the island, farmers are mobilizing and organizing. The column of farm vehicles, moving at several major road junctions, aims to slow down traffic, a strategy aimed at capturing the attention of politicians and institutions. Farmers, who dedicate their lives to feeding Europe, have united in a protest to make their voices heard and get the recognition and support they need.”
Videos posted on FB show packed rooms of farmers on the eve of the mobilization. All interviewed farmers say that it is now a question of life and death. The EU demands from them to cut production, and the Italian government increases taxes. Farming is not rentable anymore because of the high costs. The elite has prepared the alternative: synthetic meat, synthetic milk, insects. People are supposed to eat feed instead of food. Farmers have been betrayed by their own organizations and there is only one way left: fighting.
