On Wednesday, March 20, Polish farmers will hold hundreds of protests across Poland. The strikers promise to block roads in more than 500 settlements by taking to the streets and highways with agricultural machinery. Everyone who is in Poland is asked to avoid using private vehicles and take public transportation if possible.
This was reported by RMF24. It is noted that, among other things, about ten of the most important highways leading to Warsaw will be blocked. “On Wednesday, Armageddon awaits us,” a Polish newspaper describes the farmers’ plans, publishing a map of the upcoming protests:
Map of farmers’ protests in Poland
“The farmers intend to protest on highways, national roads, and in city centers,” the newspaper reports. In total, more than 580 protests are reported, involving nearly 70 thousand people. farmers.
According to local authorities, road blocking will begin in the morning. For example, in Warsaw and the surrounding area, farmers will protest from 6 a.m. local time, and in Silesia Voivodeship from 5 a.m. They are going to strike until the end of the day.
However, in a number of cities, the strike will be shorter. Thus, in Gdańsk, the rally is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. and end at 4 p.m., while in the Lodz Voivodeship, traffic will be blocked from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
But Polish farmers are protesting not only within their own country. Truck traffic remains blocked on the border with Ukraine, and the blockade continues on the German border.
The slogans of Polish peasants are unchanged. The main topic is the EU’s environmental rules, which Poland wants to either significantly ease or abolish. Farmers from other EU countries are putting forward the same conditions.
However, the Poles have gone further and are also seeking financial assistance from the EU authorities. The third demand of the protesters is a ban on imports of agricultural products from non-EU countries. It is in this vein that Poles actively remember Ukraine. At the same time, farmers do not talk about imports of Russian grain, which is still actively imported both to Poland (unlike Ukrainian goods) and to other EU countries.
As Denys Marchuk, deputy chairman of the All-Ukrainian Agrarian Council, explained to OBOZ.UA, it was impossible to predict the protesters’ actions. According to him, the Polish government and European authorities are already actively working on the protesters’ demands. However, the blockades continue – and for purely political reasons.
“These are inexpensive PR events where you can remind yourself of yourself. Given that a significant number of politicians, including those from the opposition, lead these actions, it is also one of the methods on the eve of local elections (in Poland – Ed.),” the expert explained.
According to him, for the same reason, the Polish authorities and law enforcement agencies do not interfere with the protests. Because of the upcoming elections, the Polish coalition is afraid of losing part of the electorate that sympathizes with the protesting farmers.
