Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida said today he had met and was continuing to meet farmer protest groups. Agricultural Redemption earlier said they would allow their tractors to roam free in the capital Saturday unless the minister replied to their ultimatum by midday on that day.
Agriculture Minister Francesco Lollobrigida said today he had met and was continuing to meet protesting farmers’ groups.
“As for the farmers’ delegations, I have already met them and we are still meeting associations’,” he said.
“All associations in Italy have a dialectical relationship with the government.” “I do not have the problem of meeting, when I think they are good people”, I have met many delegations, or individuals or groups”.
The minister recalled that there is an “archipelago of (groups)”, but that ‘there are some who are evidently used as testimonials for positions that have little to do with representation”.
Last week, the EU withdrew its proposed pesticides law following farmer protests across Europe.
Agriculture Redemption threatens to unleash tractors on Rome
One of the main groups of protesting Italian farmers said they would unleash their tractors to roam freely on the streets of Rome unless Farm Minister Francesco Lollobrigida agreed to see them about their grievances.
The group, Agricultural Redemption, which has already agreed with Rome officials to hold a tractor parade in Piazza San Giovanni on Friday, said they would let their vehicles roam across the whole city unless Lollobrigida set up a meeting.
“If we don’t get answers our tractors will leave the garrison (on the capital’s outskirts) and go free around Rome,” said Andrea Papa, one of the leaders of Agricultural Redemption.
“We want a meeting with the minister but so far no one has contacted us,” said Papa.
“Tomorrow’s demonstration in San Giovanni is the only positive result of these days and tomorrow morning our ten tractors will move from the garrison escorted by the police.
“But if the minister does not respond to the ultimatum that expires on Saturday at 12 noon, the tractors will go free around the city.”
The biggest protest group, Farmers Betrayed, said on Wednesday that a planned tractor parade around Rome sometime next week would involve thousands of vehicles. The protest could see them roaming around the historic Circus Maximus.
