Violence erupts during a farmers' protest in Greece
On the Greek island of Crete, clashes broke out with police on Monday during protests by angry farmers. Footage broadcast by the state television station ERT showed dozens of farmers smashing police cars with stones and sticks, blocking the protesters' path to Chania airport. The protests are linked to investigations into massive fraud in the use of EU agricultural subsidies.
Police used tear gas and retreated, then protesters overturned a police car. Meanwhile, near Heraklion airport, farmers tried to bypass a police roadblock and clashes broke out there as well.
Since the end of November, Greek farmers have been demonstrating, first in the central part of the country and then in the north, demanding the swift payment of EU subsidies. The delay in the payment of the aid is due to an ongoing investigation into fraud.
An investigation by the EU prosecutor's office has revealed that thousands of suspects have been claiming agricultural subsidies for years for land they did not own. According to official Greek figures, the fraudulent claims for EU aid amount to more than €30 million.
The Greek government has stressed that no legitimate farmer will lose money when the investigation is over. Government leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis said on Wednesday that the government was open to dialogue with farmers' representatives, while warning against "blind" protests that could lead to dissatisfaction with farmers among some members of the public. Mr Mitsotakis' home island of Crete is at the epicentre of the scandal.
The corruption scandal broke following changes to the rules of the EU's Common Agricultural Policy in 2014. Since then, subsidies have been paid mainly on the basis of the area cultivated. But at the time, many ownership relationships in Greece were unclear and land registers were riddled with loopholes. As a result, farmers could declare land as their own in order to receive subsidies. According to the researchers, many people with political connections took advantage of this opportunity to receive money from Brussels.
