Pleas for farmers to stop dangerous protest actions; Multiple highways still closed

On Wednesday afternoon, four security regions in the east of the country, Rijkswaterstaat, and the Oost-Nederland police appealed to farmers’ activists to stop unsafe actions. The police are investigating who set hay bales, waste, and asbestos-containing materials on fire on Wednesday morning. Several highways are still closed.

“By deliberately setting fire to straw bales, dumping waste, including materials containing asbestos, and spreading manure, several farmers have created unsafe situations,” the authorities said in a joint statement on Wednesday. “Such actions can lead to life-threatening situations for road users. It can cause accidents and fire.” According to the services, fire is currently a major risk due to drought and can have far-reaching consequences.

A car hit a hay bale on an on-ramp to the A32 near Meppel-Noord on Wednesday morning. As far as is known, no one got hurt, a police spokesperson said. Rijkswaterstaat savlaged the car. Rijkswaterstaat said the car hit several beams and rubbish.

By Wednesday afternoon, several highways and slip roads were still closed due to the farmers' actions. Rijkswaterstaat said it is working to clear the roads. “In some places, heavier material is needed to clear up the mess or repair the road.”

Op de #A1 ter hoogte van Voorst wordt ook hard gewerkt. In beide rijrichtingen kan het verkeer daar via de vluchtstrook versperringen op het wegdek passeren. In de richting van Hengelo wordt de weg nu schoongemaakt. Actuele verkeersinformatie: https://t.co/AkieH72Pmg pic.twitter.com/WoKXqGWSPI
— Rijkswaterstaat Verkeersinformatie (@RWSverkeersinfo) July 27, 2022

The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature, and Food Quality said farmers’ actions around the highways had gone too far. “Protesting is only allowed within the limits of the law. That is not this. This is also not the way to progress together,” a spokesperson said. The Ministry believes the farmers would be better off coming to the discussion table.

On Tuesday, Johan Remkes, who was appointed to mediate between the government and farmers, invited farmers’ representatives to have a discussion, the spokesperson noted. “Come and have a conversation. That’s the place to share concerns, ideas, and suggestions and move forward together,” the spokesperson said.

The Ministry of Justice and Security is also critical. “Demonstrate, take action, speak up, but keep it calm, stick to the rules and the laws that apply.” Blocking roads is not part of that, a spokesperson said. “This can have consequences. Then the police have no choice but to intervene.”