Alt CampAlt EmpordàAlt PenedèsAlt UrgellAlta RibagorçaAnoiaAranBagesBaix CampBaix EbreBaix EmpordàBaix LlobregatBaix PenedèsBarcelonèsBerguedàCerdanyaConca de BarberàGarrafGarriguesGarrotxaGironèsLluçanèsMaresmeMoianèsMontsiàNogueraOsonaPallars JussàPallars SobiràPla d'UrgellPla de l'EstanyPrioratRibera d'EbreRipollèsSegarraSegriàSelvaSolsonèsTarragonèsTerra AltaUrgellVallès OccidentalVallès OrientalAlt CampAlt EmpordàAlt PenedèsAlt UrgellAlta RibagorçaAnoiaAranBagesBaix CampBaix EbreBaix EmpordàBaix LlobregatBaix PenedèsBarcelonèsBerguedàCerdanyaConca de BarberàGarrafGarriguesGarrotxaGironèsLluçanèsMaresmeMoianèsMontsiàNogueraOsonaPallars JussàPallars SobiràPla d'UrgellPla de l'EstanyPrioratRibera d'EbreRipollèsSegarraSegriàSelvaSolsonèsTarragonèsTerra AltaUrgellVallès OccidentalVallès Oriental
CA|ES|EN

Diari de Catalunya

Catalan farmers resume protests in Barcelona demanding Mercosur rejection

Hundreds of Revolta Pagesa farmers camp on the Gran Via with 62 tractors, paralyzing traffic and demanding concrete measures from the Govern.

Image of the large wheels of several agricultural tractors stopped on an urban avenue in Barcelona, blocking traffic.
IA

Image of the large wheels of several agricultural tractors stopped on an urban avenue in Barcelona, blocking traffic.

Hundreds of farmers, organized under Revolta Pagesa, camped this Friday on Barcelona's Gran Via with 62 tractors to demand the Catalan Government's explicit rejection of the Mercosur free trade agreement and the implementation of promised measures.

The mobilization, which began this Friday in front of the Ministry of Agriculture, cut off traffic on the stretch of the Gran Via running from Rambla de Catalunya to Plaça Universitat. According to figures from the Guardia Urbana (City Police), the protest gathered 62 tractors and 78 private vehicles arriving from various parts of Catalonia. The organizers, grouped under the collective Revolta Pagesa, intended to spend the night in the capital and lift the strike on Saturday afternoon.
This new action comes less than a month after an intense day of road closures. On that occasion, the farmers agreed to call off the strikes after the Minister of Agriculture, Òscar Ordeig, and the President of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, committed to addressing their demands. Now, the sector believes that no significant progress has been made and is demanding concrete actions from the Govern.
“

"We sent a message to the Department of Agriculture and Presidency: you committed to giving us some tangible measures by the end of January and there has been nothing, so we come here to celebrate the anniversary of Revolta Pagesa."

Jordi Ginabreda · Spokesperson for Revolta Pagesa
Among the collective's main demands are the reduction of bureaucratic burden and the outright rejection of the Mercosur agreement, which is currently paralyzed pending a verdict from the Court of Justice of the European Union (TJUE). Ginabreda insisted that they seek the suppression of this pact, as well as others with non-EU countries like Morocco. Farmers lamented the contradiction that Ordeig and Illa promised support, yet their parliamentary groups voted against raising the agreement to the TJUE.
The agreement with the South American bloc (Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay) has served as a catalyst for the accumulated problems facing the sector, such as the increased environmental requirements linked to the new Common Agricultural Policy. Those gathered organized activities such as urban garden workshops, speeches, and live music concerts. As of the close of this edition, neither Minister Òscar Ordeig nor his team had provided any assessment of the mobilization.

Related News