Argentine Farmers Resume Export Tax Protests

Buenos Aires, Argentina (AHN) - The farmer's strike over a tariff hike for soybean exports in Argentina resumed Sunday after police arrested 19 protesters, including a farmer's union leader while clearing road blocks the night before.

Farm leader Alfredo De Angeli and 18 others who were manning road blocks to prevent the delivery of food and raw materials to neighboring Uruguay, Brazil and Paraguay, were arrested by police Saturday. The Argentine government had ordered a crackdown of road blocks across the country.

However thousand of supporters were said to have demanded the release of De Angeli. Local reports said residents in Buenos Aires held a noise barrage - banging pots and pans - to condemn the arrest.

The protesters were released several hours later, but the development prompted farmers to reinforce roadblocks and call for a resumption of the strike which had already crippled Argentina's food supply.

In a joint news conference late Saturday, Argentina's farm worker's unions announced that the new strike will last until Wednesday, June 18, with a huge protest march.

The original farmers strike had barely ended last week after almost 100 days.