Farmers block roads around Poland in protest at animal rights bill

Farmers angry at a proposed animal protection law that they say threatens their livelihood blocked around 100 roads around Poland today.

Last month, the proposed legislation, which includes a ban on fur farming and tight restrictions on ritual slaughter of animals for meat – both major export industries for Poland – led to protests outside parliament and caused splits in the ruling camp that threatened to bring down the coalition government.

Today’s protests, organised by national farmers’ association Agrounia and the All‑Poland Alliance of Trade Unions, took various forms around the country, including blockades, go-slows of tractors, and farmers slowing traffic by crossing the road, reports RMF 24.

The bill that upset the farmers, nicknamed the “five for animals”, has been championed by Law and Justice (PiS) party chairman Jarosław Kaczyński, a renowned animal lover.

It proposes to toughen animal protection laws, including a ban on fur farming. It also includes restrictions on the ritual slaughter of animals, banning the use of animals in circuses, tighter restrictions on the tethering of dogs, and more frequent inspections of animal shelters.

Last month, the legislation was passed by the Sejm, the lower house of parliament, and it will be debated by the upper-house Senate on 13 October.

In one place in Greater Poland Province, almost 100 farmers drove their tractors in a slow procession several times along a busy 12-kilometre stretch of road, according to RMF 24, which quoted one of the protestors:

“If the bill passes in its current form, it will kill us small farmers. It will take away any profitability from animal production. We are not here for pleasure, not because we are bored, not on a whim – we simply have to show society that there is a problem.”

Protests also took place in some cities. Farmers blocked a major roundabout in the centre of Lublin as protestors left several dozen vehicles and unfurled a banner reading “The entire countryside says no to Kaczyński’s Five”, reports RMF 24.

“We apologise to residents, we had to do this,” said one of the Lublin protestors through a megaphone. “If nothing changes, we’ll come back soon with our tractors.”

Michał Kołodziejczak of Agrounia blamed Kaczyński, who became a deputy prime minister in the new cabinet this week, but was already Poland’s most influential politician, for the protests.

“Jarosław Kaczyński should apologise to the Poles for the fact that farmers have to go out onto the road and fight for what is important not only for farmers, but for the whole society,” he said, quoted by RMF 24.

Szczepan Wójcik, a prominent figure in Poland’s fur industry whose company came under the microscope after secret filming revealed alleged abuses, told Wirtualna Polska: “We will protest until we are given a voice…Blockades will take place throughout Poland…until these harmful bills are withdrawn.” He added that blockades of borders were also planned.

Although today’s protests avoided Warsaw, farmers plan to congregate there on 13 October when the bill is being debated by the Senate, reports Gazeta.pl. There are also reports that they will block the PiS congress on 7 November.

In a separate protest yesterday, some farmers expressed their dissatisfaction with the new agriculture minister, Grzegorz Puda, placing a heap of hay in front of the ministry as well as a banner saying: “Puda? We don’t know him”, reports Radio Tok FM.

“The ministry of agriculture should not be destroying or limiting agriculture. We will never accept a minister who writes legislation fighting farmers,” Agrounia said in a Facebook post.

Puda took the place of Jan Krzysztof Ardanowski, who was removed from the government during the cabinet reshuffle, having openly criticised the “five for animals” and supported the protesting farmers.

“Polish farmers are embittered, they voted for PiS, but now the government is starting a war with the countryside, changing the law on animal protection, and no one even consulted its content with farmers’ organisations,” Ardanowski told Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.

He added Poland is the biggest poultry producer in Europe and one of the biggest in the world. He also noted that Polish farmers rely strongly on beef export, almost 60% of which comes from ritual slaughter and is sold to Islamic countries and Muslim communities in the European Union.

“I don’t understand how you can reject such a faithful electorate,” said Ardanowski.

During debates on the bill in parliament last month, farmers staged protests outside PiS headquarters and then outside the Sejm.

At the time, the president of the Polish Association of Beef Cattle Breeders and Producers said the demonstration was a “historic moment” and that the bill would lead to 350,000 farms losing 30% of their income.

After the legislation was passed by the Sejm, farmers placed 356 cabbages outside parliament tagged with the names of MPs who had voted in favour, to symbolise their “empty heads”.

Main image credit: Patryk Ogorzałek/ Agencja Gazeta

Ben Koschalka

Ben Koschalka is a translator and senior editor at Notes from Poland. Originally from Britain, he has lived in Kraków since 2005.