Farmers step up protests across Spain

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA) - Protesting formers cut traffic in key parts across Spain and drove tractors into city centers Thursday for a third day in a row.

More of the main farmers’ unions began to mobilize in dozens of cities in a notable escalation. Previously, the biggest protests had been organized by smaller platforms or by groups of farmers on social media.

Before Thursday, most of the biggest protests were unauthorized. The Interior Ministry told the El Pais newspaper that around 2,725 people are looking at fines for their activities. Another 19 have been arrested in three days.

Thursday saw more tension between police and protestors.

El Pais reported that the Interior Ministry mobilized 4,000 anti-riot police across the country to deal with the large number of protests and traffic cuts.

In the northern city of Oviedo, some farmers tried to cross police lines in tractors. In Navarra, protestors managed to manually move a police car off the road that was blocking them and in Badajoz, a police officer was injured after a protestor hit him with a stick.

Transportation Minister Oscar Puente said the government would “guarantee” the ability to drive on Spanish highways by enforcing the law. He added that for now, there is no problem with food stocks in supermarkets, though the government was monitoring the situation.

But with self-employed truck drivers threatening to join the protests in the coming days, supermarkets are already talking about a “perfect storm” in terms of food shortages, according to the La Vanguardia newspaper.

While the protestors' demands range from local problems to grievances with European bureaucracy, they agree that farmers are having to deal with too much bureaucracy, broken government promises and are not being paid enough for their hard work.