farmers complete a week of massive mobilization in Berlin

2024-01-15 13:51:59

By Le Figaro with AFP

Published 2 hours ago, Updated 1 hour ago

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For a week, the profession has been mobilizing against the plans to eliminate tax advantages decided by the government of Olaf Scholz.

Thousands of German farmers converged on Berlin this Monday to end a week of massive mobilization against plans to eliminate tax benefits for their profession decided by the government of Olaf Scholz. “Well over 5000 tractors» went to the capital, a police spokesperson told AFP, specifying that this was a provisional estimate.

From early on, concerts of horns were heard all over the city coming from the tractors of the demonstrators who were planning to go to the Brandenburg Gate in the center. During the night, the Berlin police posted a message on X (formerly Twitter), reporting congestion on one of the city’s main central arteries. “Dear farmers! There is no longer any room on the rue du 17 June for protests. On the Olympic Square (near the Olympic stadium on the outskirts of the city), parking spaces are still available», Wrote the police on the social network. The mobilization of farmers began last Monday in Germany.

Also read “Seen from Elsewhere” No. 133 – The anger of German farmers

A tax advantage removed

Their anger was provoked by the government’s announcement in December of its intention to cut subsidies to the sector due to a call to order from constitutional judges over Germany’s strict budgetary rules. Faced with the resistance displayed by the sector, the coalition formed by the social democrats, greens and liberals had backpedaled somewhat. She ultimately maintained the vehicle tax advantage for forestry and agriculture, which she planned to cancel. And it had decided to gradually and not suddenly eliminate the tax advantage for agricultural diesel “to give affected businesses more time to adapt».

But this step in their direction was not enough to calm the discontent of a particularly struggling profession. The far right, which is on the rise, particularly in the east of the country, has tried to infiltrate this revolt, even if most of the mobilized farmers say they want to dissociate themselves from this movement.

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