“It can not go on like this”
Rukwied threatens to continue the protests
January 15, 2024, 12:08 p.m
Farmer President Rukwied is calling on the federal government to fully maintain agricultural diesel subsidies. Only then would the tractors disappear from the streets, he said at the rally at the Brandenburg Gate. At the same time, he significantly expands his criticism of politics.
At the farmers’ major rally at the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin, farmers’ president Joachim Rukwied called for “better politics, a new direction.” This is the common goal of farmers, freight forwarders and craftsmen, Rukwied declared in his speech as the goal of the rally. “It can not go on like this!”
Finance Minister Lindner (l.) was greeted with boos from the farmers. At the lectern, Farmer President Rukwied.
(Photo: dpa)
Rukwied again called on the federal government to completely reverse the cuts in agricultural diesel subsidies. The president of the German Farmers’ Association said that an attempt had been made to push the farmers’ protest “into the right corner.” This was not successful because the farmers were “upright democrats” who wanted to move the country forward “on a democratic basis”.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that there had to be a compromise at the end of the protests. Rukwied basically agreed with this. But that only applies if the compromise is fair. What the federal government is offering continues to burden farmers with half a billion euros. This compromise is not fair, but lazy. “If the federal government withdraws its tax increase plans, then we will take the tractors off the road,” said Rukwied. Otherwise the protests would continue.
Whistles against Scholz
When Scholz’s name was mentioned, the audience reacted with whistles and boos. Finance Minister Christian Lindner was also greeted with boos. The FDP leader will also give a speech at the rally later. On Sunday, at a New Year’s reception for the North Rhine-Westphalian FDP in Düsseldorf, he said that at the rally on Monday he “would not be able to promise that all areas of society will have to make contributions to consolidation – just not one.”
Rukwied claimed support from a majority of the population for the farmers’ protests. That’s because many people are of the opinion that “something has to change in politics.” “Politics must get out of the Berlin bubble and towards citizens and farmers.” Politics must relieve “working people” instead of putting more and more burdens on them.
“We are still willing to talk, we are willing to compromise.” But in the future we will “demand what is important for farmers much more confidently”.