The field enters the campaign with the aim of creating its own political movement

Las anti-drought measures They barely have a little more than 48 hours to live and the Government is facing this Sunday the first major demonstration in the rural world, which will take place in the Plaza de Carlos V in Atocha (Madrid) where the Ministry of Agriculture is located, ending between the Paseo de Recoletos and Plaza Cibeles. With the presence of sectors as diverse as agriculture, livestock, fishing and hunting. This mobilization is organized by the platform you are rural, which seeks to become the voice of the Spanish countryside. One of his spokespersons, Victor Viciedo, explained to ‘La Información’ that the intention of Sos Rural is to “put pressure on political parties to change certain policies” although they rule out, for the moment, following the example of the Dutch Peasant Citizen Movement (BBB, in Dutch). That if, Viciedo points out, that they are “in contact” with similar European movements “and we will fight for political change.”

The representative of Sos Rural maintains that the existence of this demonstration and the platform is already producing “the first effects” in reference to the fact that the Ecological Transition renounces the demolition of the Valdecaballeros dam (Badajoz). In his opinion, along with the electoral process, it would also have given impetus to the recent anti-drought decree.

A National Hydrological Plan and another for Empty Spain

But, what do they propose from SOS Rural? Among the claims the elaboration of a “responsible” National Hydrological Plan that, in the words of its spokesperson, ensure “the rationalization of water in the face of increasingly recurring droughts”. In addition, they also propose ‘National Plan against Empty Spain’ which would include not only ensuring the connectivity of rural areas but also “guaranteeing the profitability of agriculture and livestock.”

“If trade agreements harm the industry, they are not made”, Victor Viciedo (SOS Rural)

In this line, they also include in their agenda the defense of local agricultural productions against imports from third countries. For Victor Viciedo in the free trade agreements signed in recent years “Community preference is flying.” In this sense, he asks to carry out an impact study on agriculture of these international treaties, especially in crops such as citrus fruits, olive groves, fruits and vegetables. The representative of SOS Rural is in favor of the revision of this type of agreement “to remove the most affected part of agriculture” and criticizes the existence of “oversupply” in some things. “We are not against trade agreements,” Viciedo stresses to this outlet, who believes that “if this type of agreement harms the industry, they are not made.”

The EU-Mercosur treaty, the “strawberry lace”

Asked about Spain’s intention to promote the signing of the EU-Mercosur free trade agreement and overcome France’s veto, the representative of the platform that will demonstrate this Sunday believes that his signature would be “the finishing touch for European agriculture and livestock”. In this regard, he recalls that the Latin American economic bloc happens to be the world’s leading exporter of meat and that the signing of free trade agreements is decided unanimously in the European Council where Spain has a voice and a vote.

Mirror? Dutch

In the background is the recent example of the Netherlands, where the so-called Citizen Peasant Movement (BBB, in Dutch), created in 2019 and which aspires to represent the interests of farmers and ranchers in this European nation, achieved on March 16 a resounding electoral victory in the Dutch Senate. Specifically, in a very fragmented plenary session, he won 15 seats out of the 75 seats in the chamber, beating Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s Liberals. Only the alliance between the Social Democrats (PvdA) and the Greens (GroenLinks) managed to match them in number of seats.

The BBB has grown rapidly under the lee of protests by farmers and ranchers since the only seat it won in 2021. In recent months, the primary producers of this European country have been leading roadblocks and highway blockades important to make clear their opposition to the intention of the Rutte executive to reduce nitrogen emissions (fertilizers, cattle manure…) by 50% by 2030. A measure that directly impacts a powerful sector, which represents 1 .5% of Dutch GDP. All this, ‘sweetened’ with an aid package of 25,000 million euros. Green policies that are promoted in a country that is among the world’s leading food exporters and, for this concept alone, exported a whopping 71,048 million euros in 2021 according to official statistics (Spain did so for a value of 60,118 million euros that same year).

The Citizen Peasant Movement (BBB, in Dutch) won the regional elections this spring winning 15 seats in the Dutch Senate

For Kees Blokland, former CEO of the consultancy Agriterra and expert in cooperativism, who has been closely acquainted with the evolution of Movimiento Campesino Ciuddano, it is the result of “an alliance between producers (about 50,000) and Dutch citizenswho are very proud of the countryside and agriculture, who know that it has been the source of the country’s progress”. In his opinion, what has caused the “mobilization” of a relevant part of public opinion in this country has been “the treatment given to the primary sector by the Dutch government and some parties of the ruling coalition”. In his opinion, “Spain is a bit far from this scenario” but he warns that “if he continues to harass producers”, and he cites the Mar Menor and the proliferation of solar panel fields, it could lead to a scenario similar to that of this country.