The farmers who left in convoy on Monday from Agen to Rungis were welcomed as
“heroes”
this Saturday during a final break in the Dordogne, before returning to their farms.
Shortly before 1 p.m., around fifty tractors from the Lot-et-Garonne Rural Coordination were welcomed by a concert of horns and applause upon their arrival at a roundabout in Bergerac, where the union organized a picnic with friends, relatives and supporters who were very moved and for some on the verge of tears.
“They are heroes
,” said several times the participants, who numbered around 400 according to the organizers.
“Bergerac is the last place where we are all together. Then everyone will take different routes to return home
,” explains Karine Duc, vice-president of the union.
“We were not sure that we would be followed but our requests were fair and honest and they were shared by the entire profession
,” she judges about this
“historic”
convoy which
“at least allowed a awareness of public opinion
.
“We would have preferred to come back with concrete measures because tomorrow nothing changes.
There have been many announcements of positive things, now we must be vigilant about the follow-up that will be given
.
Read also: Anger of the farmers: the convoy leaving Agen towards Rungis will “go back down” towards the South-West
No less than 91 people arrested
Leaving Agen on Monday with around thirty tractors with the aim of going to Rungis, the procession grew to reach between 400 and 500 people, according to the organizers.
The majority of tractors, however, were unable to cross the Loire, whose bridges were blocked by the police.
Only around thirty tractors managed to go back up towards Essonne on Wednesday after forcing passage through Gien (Loiret).
Several dozen farmers from the union entered a “storage area”
of the wholesale market late Wednesday afternoon on foot
, where damage
“was committed
,” according to a police source.
A total of 91 people were arrested after this incursion and 79 of them were placed in police custody for the night, including Serge Bousquet-Cassagne, president of the Lot-et-Garonne chamber of agriculture, who led the procession.
“We didn't destroy anything, we didn't come to blows with the police.
The treatment we received does not live up to our demands and our actions which were carried out without violence
,” criticized Karine Duc.