Six arrests in north during protest by angry farmers

Six people were arrested in the north during simultaneous protests by the union of livestock farmers and breeders outside the ‘presidential palace’ and the dairy industry company on Thursday.

CNA reported that the president of the livestock farmers and breeders union, Mustafa Naimogulari was among those arrested.

Naimogulari had earlier in the week announced that they would go ahead with plans to dump manure outside the ‘presidential palace’ if their financial problems regarding sharp rises in the price of animal feed had not been solved by Thursday.

At both demonstrations, the protesting farmers wanted to shed manure that they had brought with them on the back of their tractors.

The six were arrested on charges of throwing manure on to the streets, causing concern and nuisance and taken to “police headquarters” before being released.

The arrest of Naimogulari took place while journalists were broadcasting live what was happening outside the “presidential palace”.

According to these reports by the Turkish Cypriot press, the farm vehicles carrying manure had not approached the external gate of the ‘presidential palace’, which was closed, while police were in the vicinity, CNA reported.

The start of protests was announced by Naimogulari with statements to the Turkish Cypriot news agency saying they did not have an interlocutor to solve their problems and noted that the biggest issue for them was yet another rise in the price of animal feed.