The ravers settled on a sheep grazing site in Hures-la-Parade with around 4,000 vehicles, according to the mayor André Baret. Demonstrations or gatherings of more than 5,000 participants are currently banned in France until 31 August.
Baret explained that the participants cut the barbed wire on the ground, and that their presence will have completely ruined the site for its owner.
Speaking to AFP, Alain Pouget, regional manager of agricultural coordination, expressed his frustration with the government: “I am very angry with the state. When I see the constraints imposed on farmers who can no longer even move a stone without risking being fined, and then these 15,000 people simply do what they want without even wearing a mask, then I tell myself that this must change.”
On Sunday afternoon, according to the Interior Ministry, “less than 5,000 people” were still present at the scene. “The state is mobilising gendarmes to block access to the site. 60-80 arrived at midday and another 60-80 will arrive at the end of the day,” a ministry spokesperson said.
The government will attempt to “find the organisers of this totally banned event, which is moreover in a protected zone and in a period of drought”, in order to sanction them.
Mayor Baret for his part asked the population to stay away and not intervene, as well as properly lock houses and barns. There had already been a “previous edition” in 2000. There had been a surge in burglaries and thefts of diesel.
