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Hundreds of Tunisia farmers, fishermen protest high prices outside parliament

April 11, 2019 at 2:09 pm

Security officers stage a protest demanding compensation for their loss during the revelation and severance pay for those who take part in terror operations at Habib Burgiba Avenue in Tunis, Tunisia on 7 February 2019. [Yassine Gaidi – Anadolu Agency]

Hundreds of members of the Tunisian Union of Agriculture and Fishing yesterday organised a protest outside the parliament headquarters in the capital, Tunis, against the high cost of agricultural produce and fuel prices, the Anadolu Agency reported.

Protesters demanded the Tunisian parliament and government take measures to reduce the prices of agricultural products like grains and milk and to reverse recent increases in fuel prices.

They explained that the expensive production costs have increased their losses and accumulated debts, threatening to take escalatory measures by halting production if their demands were not met.

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“We organised a Day of Rage, because the farmer is no longer able to continue production under these circumstances and successive losses,” said Abdel Majed Al-Zaar, the head of the Tunisian Union for Agriculture and Fisheries.

“The protest aims to protect the farmers, the consumer and the country’s economy and to ensure the sustainability of food security and employment,” he added.

Al-Zaar explained that the high fuel prices is negatively affected fishing which depends on fuel. Petrol prices in the country were raised in March.

The agricultural sector plays a vital role in the Tunisian economy, providing 8.15 per cent of GDP and contributing 16.3 per cent of the job sector.