"French farmers have blocked roads around the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe with their tractors in protest at an imminent EU trade deal with South American countries that they say will create unfair competition. The farmers blockaded motorways outside Paris on Thursday and dozens of tractors overran police checkpoints to reach the city centre in a pre-dawn protest organised by the Coordination Rurale union against the planned trade accord."
"Blocking roads or attempting to gather in front of parliament with all the symbolism that entails is, once again, illegal, the government spokesperson, Maud Bregeon, told French radio. Surrounded by a heavy police presence, farmers also demonstrated in front of French parliament's lower house, heckling the National Assembly president, Yael Braun-Pivet, when she came out to meet with them. The Mercosur deal is backed by Germany and Spain but France, mindful of its powerful farming lobby, has long been fiercely opposed."
French farmers blocked roads around the Eiffel Tower and Arc de Triomphe and blockaded motorways outside Paris, overrunning police checkpoints to reach the city centre in a pre-dawn protest. The action was organised by the Coordination Rurale union against a planned EU trade accord with Argentina, Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay (Mercosur). If ratified, the deal would create a common market of nearly 800 million people and boost EU exports of vehicles, machinery, wines and spirits. Many European farmers fear being undercut by cheaper agricultural products; Belgian farmers also rolled over 1,000 tractors into Brussels last month. French authorities declared road blockades and attempts to gather in front of parliament illegal amid heavy police presence.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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