agriculture
A total blockade is coming: Farmers say Minister Glamočić is 'lying and manipulating'
The situation between farmers and the Ministry of Agriculture is becoming more tense and further from a resolution: While farmers have been blocking roads for two weeks and radicalizing their protests, demanding a temporary ban on agricultural product imports, Minister Dragan Glamočić states that this is not possible, but invites them to dialogue while simultaneously accusing them of manipulation.
TL;DR
- Farmers are protesting and blocking roads across Serbia, demanding a temporary ban on agricultural product imports.
- Minister Dragan Glamočić rejects the import ban, calling it impossible, and invites farmers to dialogue, but also accuses them of manipulation.
- Farmers have refused to meet with the Minister until concrete solutions are offered, citing past humiliating experiences.
- Key figures in the protest, like Zlatko Kokanović and Slobodan Brkić, strongly criticize the Minister, calling him the 'gravedigger of Serbian agriculture'.
- Protesters argue that temporary import restrictions are permitted under the Stabilization and Association Agreement (SAA).
- Farmers highlight that their current income is insufficient and they are facing losses, contradicting the Minister's claims of profitability.
- The protests are supported by various agricultural sectors, including livestock farmers, grain producers, fruit growers, and beekeepers.
- Farmers warn that if the situation is not resolved, protests will escalate to total blockades.
- The Ministry's actions and statements are viewed by farmers as serving import lobbies rather than domestic producers.