Protesting farmers drove tractors on several highways leading to Paris during yesterday’s morning rush hour, disrupting traffic.
Other farmers parked tractors in front of the National Assembly in the heart of the capital to denounce legislation that would roll back some environmental regulations on agriculture.
The stunts evoked disruptive protests by farmers last year.
Protesting farmers who had camped out the night before clashed with riot police in Paris on 24 February 2024 as President Emmanuel Macron arrived to open an annual agricultural fair.
The incident occurred as unions representing farmers pressed the government for concessions beyond those that on 1 February 2024 halted two weeks of protests in which major highways on the edge of Paris and cities across the country were blocked by tractors and bales of hay.
Tractor-driving farmers on 21 November attempted to block operations at the Garonne River port of Bordeaux by clogging access roads.
That action came at the end of a week in which tractor-driving farmers blocked highways outside Paris and other cities to protest a prospective trade agreement between the European Union and South America’s Mercosur trade bloc. No violence was reported but traffic was snarled in multiple locations.
At the best of times, demonstrations for various causes in Paris and other cities can be disruptive and have the potential to turn violent.
Personnel should steer clear of all demonstrations and under no circumstances should attempt to pass through protesters in a vehicle or on foot. Personnel should remain indoors if unrest erupts nearby. Multinationals should review and if necessary upgrade access controls and should have contingency plans in place for aggressive protest-related activity.
