The farmers of the Peloponnese are in despair, as they are disappointed and angry that the two basic and traditional crops of the region, the olive tree and the raisin, excluded from the compensation of Measure 23, which concerns support for farmers affected by natural disasters.
The measure, with a total budget of EUR 178 million, covers damage caused by extreme weather events such as drought, frost and heatwave - phenomena that have particularly affected the Peloponnese in recent years. However, the official list of the Ministry of Rural Development does not include nor the olive tree, nor the raisin.
The regional councillors Makaris, Siatos and Mermigis they speak of gross injustice and call on the Ministry and the Peloponnese Region to give immediate and public explanations:
- Have files been submitted by the IACS for these crops or not?;
- If they were submitted, why were they rejected or ignored?;
- If not, who is responsible for the inaction?;
- Was there political intervention or an order to exclude them?;
In addition, they call for an investigation into whether a bureaucratic omission or deliberate decision, while stressing that any political expediency the exclusion of these two crops would be a challenge for producers and for the whole of rural society.
The request is clear: that a supplementary dossier be submitted immediately and to to include olive and raisin crops in Measure 23, so that injustice is redressed and the affected farmers receive the support they deserve.
The agricultural economy of the Peloponnese cannot take any more failures - the time of responsibility is now.
