🚜 This week, dawn broke on Paris with an unusual sight: dozens of tractors rumbling through the streets, pausing at the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe. French farmers are making their voices heard in style!
Organised by the Rural Confederation union, the protest aims to draw attention to the EU’s new trade deal with the South American bloc Mercosur. One tractor even carried a giant banner that read No To Mercosur, sending a clear message: local farms feel threatened.
The EU-Mercosur agreement, set to create one of the world’s biggest free-trade areas, promises easier exports of vehicles, machinery, wines and spirits from the 27-nation EU to countries like Brazil, Argentina and Uruguay. Supporters say it will boost business, but many farmers see unfair competition on the horizon.
“We said we’d come up to Paris—here we are,” said Ludovic Ducloux, co-head of one union chapter. Farmers worry that cheaper meat, soy and dairy from agricultural powerhouse Brazil will undercut their prices and endanger their livelihoods. 😡
The French government has warned protesters to avoid illegal actions, but the scene of tractors beside national monuments shows how far farmers are willing to go. As talks on the deal continue, this convoy of tractors reminds everyone that trade agreements have real faces—and real stakes—behind the negotiations. ⚖️
Reference(s):
Farmers enter Paris on tractors to rage against Mercosur trade deal
cgtn.com
