Berlin farmers protest gains wide support amid nation’s winter of discontent

BERLIN — Thousands of demonstrators descended on the German capital Monday as a week-long protest over subsidy cuts in the agriculture sector reached a climax at the city’s famed Brandenburg Gate. Behind the crowd, tractors, which last week blocked highways across the country, lined the avenue cutting through Berlin’s Tiergarten park.

Following protests in December, the government reversed a decision on axing a tax discount for agricultural vehicles, and announced that a diesel subsidy would be phased out over three years rather than being cut immediately. But the farmers association said the concessions didn’t go far enough.

“Without stability in the countryside, without agriculture our country has no future,” Farmers’ Union President Joachim Rukwied said from the stage. “That’s why we are prepared to take to the streets.”

While the protest was prompted by concerns in the agriculture sector, Monday’s demonstration was also an outlet for general dissatisfaction with the government, adding to the mounting pressure on Chancellor Olaf Scholz as he scrambles to fix a billion-euro budget blunder, which led to the subsidy cuts.

Eric Krems, 36, traveled four hours with other farmers from the Oberlausitz region, southeast of the capital.

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