On the morning of Saturday, November 23, Polish farmers began a strike at the Medyka – Shehyni border crossing. According to the co-organizer of the blockade, which started on the morning of November 23, the farmers are protesting for two reasons.
The first, as reported by journalists, is the failure to meet the demand to maintain the level of agricultural tax in 2024 at the same level as in 2023.
The second reason is “concern about the European Union signing a free trade agreement with the South American countries of MERCOSUR (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, and Uruguay).”
According to journalists, the farmers have blocked National Road 28. At a pedestrian crossing near the railway overpass at the entrance to Medyka, they are not allowing trucks coming from Ukraine to pass. On the other hand, trucks traveling from Poland to Ukraine are allowed to pass only one per hour. Passenger cars, buses, and humanitarian vehicles can travel freely in both directions. The police have stated that they will ensure smooth traffic on National Roads 77 and 28, as well as routes within the city.
Regarding the farmers’ demands, the representative of the Subcarpathian Voivodeship, Bartosz Gubernat, noted that a draft law is being prepared concerning the retention of the tax amount this year at the level of 2023.
“Due to a lack of funds in the state budget, the project has been removed from further procedure,” he explained.
He also mentioned that despite this, farmers who suffered losses from adverse weather events such as hail or flooding, with losses exceeding 30% of the average annual agricultural production, could apply for assistance from the Agency for Restructuring and Modernizing Agriculture.
“This assistance was equivalent to a third and fourth of the agricultural tax,” emphasized Gubernat.
He also reminded that when it came to the EU’s free trade agreement with MERCOSUR, Prime Minister Donald Tusk and the government “made it clear that this agreement would not be signed.”
As reported by journalists, the farmers state that if the agreement is not prevented, they plan to continue their protests around the clock until the end of the year.
