Farmers' anger: Rural Coordination maintains planned actions despite ban on demonstrations in central Paris and Rungis

The authorities are banning from Sunday 6 p.m. "any undeclared gathering" in the center of Paris and the Rungis market area while the agricultural union Coordination rurale is calling for demonstrations "in Paris" and "everywhere in France".

The Paris police prefecture and the Val-de-Marne police prefecture are banning undeclared gatherings from 6 p.m. Sunday to noon Monday, “considering the calls to demonstrate on January 5, 2025 launched by an agricultural union with a view to blocking the capital and blocking the Rungis national interest market“, according to two decrees published Friday.

A large perimeter of central Paris, including the Elysée and the National Assembly, and an area including the Rungis market and the A6B, are concerned.

The “security system” put in place “aims to prevent all forms of degradation and violence and all shock actions”, indicated the Paris police prefecture.

According to a police source, “internal contradictions and those with other unions nevertheless reduce the risks of a large-scale mobilization”.

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On Saturday, the Rural Coordination (CR) again maintained its call, as it had the day before, to rally by car or tractor to the capital on Sunday afternoon to demonstrate on Monday. On Friday, Matignon indicated that the Prime Minister would receive “in turn” the agricultural unions on January 13, a date considered too far away by the second agricultural union, behind the FNSEA.

“The plans are maintained as planned”

“The plans are being maintained as planned and kept confidential so that these actions can take place as planned,” Véronique Le Floc'h, president of the CR, told AFP. “Several dozen tractors are already scattered, ready to position themselves”, according to her.

“We will be in Paris on Sunday evening. We have a meeting point in the 91 (Essonne, Editor's note), another in the 27 (Eure, Editor's note) and another that is being defined”, said Patrick Legras, spokesperson for the CR, who expects the presence of “several hundred farmers from Sunday”.

Accustomed to shock actions, the CR wants to obtain guarantees from the Prime Minister for the defense of agriculture focused on protecting small farmers, whom it considers to be crushed by free trade.

The union is expecting a commitment in particular on two points “which cost nothing”, on the one hand, “removing the over-transposition of European rules in France” and on the other hand, the implementation of “controls on imports”, said Mr. Legras.

The call to demonstrate was relayed at the end of December, a few days before the official launch of the campaign for the elections to the chambers of agriculture, which begins on January 7 and will determine the new balance of power between the agricultural unions.