February 2, 2009

 

Protesting Greek farmers on Friday (January 30) ended a number of highway blockades that had sliced up the country since last week but refused to open the main crossing into Bulgaria, police said.

 

Most of the farmers agreed to leave after the government persuaded them to accept a EUR500 million compensation package.

 

But the offer failed to sway growers in the northern region of Serres, who said they would wait for the money to clear before freeing the Promahonas border crossing where hundreds of trucks have been immobilized for over a week.

 

"We want the money and we won't budge an inch until we get it," leading local farmer unionist Pavlos Arabatzis told Mega channel Friday.

 

Protesting farmers are also holding out near the central city of Larissa and on the island of Crete.

 

In contrast, access was restored to the secondary Bulgarian border post at Exohi and the Evros crossing into Turkey.

 

The farmer mobilization began January 19 over the low price of cotton, corn and wheat but quickly escalated with olive and peach growers joining the tractor ranks or setting up separate roadblocks of their own.

 

More than 50 highway junctions were occupied at the height of the protest early this week but the movement began to splinter with the departure of ruling party-affiliated farmer unionists on Wednesday.

 

The government has called on farmers to accept the funding as compensation for previously undeclared drought, disease and pest damage, and insists the EUR500 million package conforms to European Commission regulations.

 

Greek Agriculture Minister Sotiris Hatzigakis will travel to Brussels next week for talks with European Agriculture Commissioner Mariann Fischer Boel, the minister's office said.

 

Wednesday, the commission told France to recover more than EUR330 million of farm subsidies handed out to fruit and vegetable growers from 1992 to 2002.