Students and farmers in Greece are continuing their ongoing protests and actions in resistance to government policies and attacks.
According to the Communist Party of Greece (KKE): Blocking dozens of traffic arteries with thousands of tractors, the poor and middle-sized farmers in Greece are fighting for their future. They struggle to prevent their total extinction, to be able to continue ploughing and cultivating their fields and producing good and cheap food for all the people.
On Thursday February 9, starting from the morning until late at night, Dimitris Koutsoumbas, General Secretary of the Central Committee of the KKE, visited 9 junctions in Central Greece and Thessaly, where farmers’ roadblocks have been set up. The farmers gave a warm welcome to the GS of the CC of the KKE.
Dimitris Koutsoumbas made many stops on his tour and spoke to the assembled crowd of farmers, wishing them strength, health and successful struggles. “You are waging a just struggle, with just demands. You know that, from the first moment, the cadres and members of the KKE, its MPs, MEPs, municipal and regional councillors have stood by your side and will continue doing so”. The GS of the KKE pointed out that “our country has rich soil and favourable climate conditions that can be utilized. It has farmers with experience, with strong hands and minds; young people who want to stay in their hometown, take over from the older generation and cultivate their land so that the people can enjoy quality and cheap produce. However, this is not possible, because the few have different plans. Big traders, industrialists, monopolies and energy cartels are to blame. All the wealth goes to them, who reap all the profits and get all the funding”.
D. Koutsoumbas also referred to the responsibility of all the ruling parties so far, who have adopted the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and praised the EU. “The EU has proven to be a snake pit. It is an obstacle to the development of Greek agricultural production, the Greek farmers, and the workers as a whole”.
“The real opposition is not expressed in the National or the European Parliament. The real opposition is expressed here in the roadblocks, in the streets of struggle. Because, after all, we can live without the blackmail of traders, middlemen and industrialists. The farmers can live without the constant harassment from the tax authorities or the banks. The farmers and our people can live without the restrictions imposed by the EU and the CAP”, noted D. Koutsoumbas.
Meanwhile the KKE reports that: Thursday 8/2/24, tens of thousands of students, who flooded the centre of Athens holding a mass nationwide student rally, showed the strength of the youth, who dare and fight against the bill on private universities, demanding public and free universities.
As stressed by the Press Office of the Central Council of the Communist Youth of Greece (KNE), university and school students, together with their teachers, “gave a strong response to the lies of the government that accompany this bill, but also to its attempt to slander, intimidate and suppress the student movement. The policy of the government and the EU, with the establishment of private universities and the further commercialization of education, has been met with the universal rejection of the youth! All that remains to do is to withdraw the bill and pay attention to the just demands of students for an increase in state funding for universities, for a substantial improvement of their studies, with safe and adequate infrastructure and teachers, free textbooks, the provision of meals, accommodation and transport, degrees that matter and not degrees that come with a price tag, and work with rights. Those who ignore them, misinterpret or distort the message that was heard today by thousands of voices will make a huge mistake. The struggle continues! The just struggle of the students will be victorious!”
The MPs of the KKE attended the rally and stood by the students’ side.
