Farmers Hold Their Ground as Holiday Protests Roll On

Greek farmers and livestock breeders spent Christmas Day not around quiet dinner tables, but on the roads, sending a clear message that their struggle will not pause for the holidays. Across the country, tractors remained stationed in symbolic protests that avoided blocking traffic, as demonstrators exchanged greetings with passing drivers, lit fires for warmth, and shared makeshift Christmas meals with their families scenes that underscored both determination and solidarity, according to AMNA and Kathimerini.

Source: thenationalherald

Protest leaders insist they will stay put throughout the festive period. Speaking at a press conference, the Coordinating Committee of the Nikaia roadblock  widely seen as the most significant mobilization so farm extended holiday wishes to the public while stressing that the demonstrations are about survival and the right to remain in rural areas. Committee representative Rizos Maroudas said continue struggle is the only option left, describing the demands as essential to the future of agricultural production. Attempts to weaken the movement through pressure or social division, he warned, will fail, adding that farmers will not leave without concrete answers.

Despite ongoing contacts, farmer groups say the conservative government has yet to offer firm guarantees that their demands will be met. Kathimerini reports that discussions about escalating the protests are now underway, reflecting growing frustration among demonstrators. Maroudas also pushed back against claims that farmers’ demands are “maximalist,” arguing that meaningful dialogue is impossible when their concerns are dismissed, especially while substantial funding flows to other sectors of the economy.

The Mitsotakis government maintains that progress has already been made, claiming that 16 out of 27 demands have been addressed, four are under review, and seven cannot be satisfied. Farmers, however, say partial responses are not enough, insisting on clarity, binding commitments, and genuine dialogue.

Voices from within the movement continue to sharpen their criticism. Coordinating committee member Giannis Koukoutsis said recent statements by the prime minister signal policies that risk accelerating the depopulation of the countryside, while farmers urgently need immediate solutions. Another committee member, Kostas Chatzis, called for stronger and more sustained mobilizations, warning that current policies are pushing small producers toward ruin and deepening hardships for working people more broadly.

Support for the protests has spread beyond agriculture. Panagiotis Perakis, president of the Magnesia fishermen, expressed solidarity, saying the demands raised by farmers seek solutions that benefit society as a whole and rejecting attempts to pit social groups against one another. Livestock breeder Christos Pappas from Ampelonas highlighted the dire situation facing animal farmers who lost their herds to disease and have yet to receive compensation, stressing the urgent need for vaccines, protective measures, and the chance to restart production.

Farmer representatives have made it clear that the protests will not end with the holidays. Decisions on the next phase including form and intensity — will be taken collectively in the days ahead.

Meanwhile, traffic disruptions have remained limited. The Antirrio–Ioannina motorway reopened near the Angelokastro toll station after protesters moved tractors and machinery to the roadside. Police in Aetolia have allowed vehicles to pass in one lane per direction, provided appropriate warning signs are in place. On the E65 motorway in central Greece, around 3,000 tractors were positioned along the route, but holiday travel continued largely uninterrupted, with at least one or two lanes remaining open.

Farmer representatives insist that this balance is intentional. “We are not blocking traffic,” they said, noting that vehicles have been passing normally throughout the holiday period even as their protest shows no sign of easing.