Feb 8, 2024. Posted by Balkan Periscope - Hellas
The
protests of the farmers in the country continued with full force today,
February 8. Burnt straw bales, dumped produce and key roads across the country
blocked by heavy farming machinery marked the third day of discontent.
Farmers from Stara Zagora blocked the Trakia motorway, the sub-Balkan road to Pavel Banya and the one to Dimitrovgrad.
Protesters
in Plovdiv dumped dozens of kilogrammes of fruit on the road to show that the
country's organic produce is going to waste because of lower prices of imported
goods.
"We
have 200 tonnes of raspberries and blackberries in stock because we cannot sell
them. The selling price used to be 6 BGN, now it is 2.50," said Ivan
Bakalov, a farmer.
In Vidin,
they blocked the road to Danube Bridge 2 and stopped the traffic for heavy
goods vehicles for seven hours. Grain growers do not agree with the
government’s proposal to prove losses in order to get aid.
"This
is like going to a credit institution to take a loan and getting no financing
when they see that you are at a loss," said Bisser Genchev, a farmer.
Traffic to
Romania via Russe was also suspended for four hours.
"We
want to get a long-term sustainability of the sector through legislative
changes! Not so much the financial demands, because the financial demands at
the moment is putting out a fire," said Deyan Zhivkov, National Sheep and
Goat Association.
The road to
Greece near Kresna was completely blocked at midday. Dissatisfied producers
from Blagoevgrad region also stopped traffic on the main road E-79.
"The
Minister of Agriculture should look for another job.This is our demand because
he does not understand the matter," noted Velin Georgiev, National
Association of Greenhouse Growers.
In
Pazardzhik, the protesting farmers stopped traffic on the approach to the
motorway and vowed not to allow tourists to Velingrad tomorrow. For a short
time, the motorway in Burgas region remained blocked to traffic in both lanes.
"We
have no political demands, we are just looking at how to save the sector,"
explained Kiryak Radev, a grape grower.
The
protests in the country continue tomorrow, despite the upcoming meeting of the
dissatisfied with the government.
bnt