Animal activists have been arrested on Monday after occupying and protesting against a pig farm in Boxtel, reports NOS. More than a hundred occupied the farm to draw attention to animal suffering in the Netherlands. Farmers gathered to counter-protest, as well.

Activists who refused to leave or could not identify themselves were detained. Due to the administrative effort these arrests require, information on the number of arrests is still unavailable. This should be provided by this afternoon.

De tientallen aanhoudingen vanavond in #Boxtel vereisen een behoorlijke administratieve inzet. Wij verwachten dan ook dat we niet eerder dan dinsdagmiddag een volgende update over de aanhoudingen en de exacte aantallen kunnen geven. Updates delen we via dit account. — Politie Oost-Brabant (@politieob) May 13, 2019

The activists who occupied the farm belong to Meat the Victims, an international group of animal activists. They were demanding the media have access to the stable to cover what was happening. They were also looking to remove sick animals from the stable and take them with them to take care of.

They tell NOS, “Animals are dying here. If they do not get help, they will die within one or two days. We can take them with us and give them the care they need and we offer them a place where they can spend the rest of their lives in freedom life.”

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The municipality was unhappy with the animal activists and decided to evacuate the farm at around 10 p.m. By 11:30 p.m almost all demonstrators were removed.

The mayor says invading the space of residents and occupying their businesses is unacceptable.

De burgemeester van Boxtel vindt het onacceptabel dat mensen binnendringen bij onze inwoners en hun bedrijf bezet houden. In overleg met OM en politie wordt de bezetting nu beëindigd. — Gemeente Boxtel (@Boxtel) May 13, 2019

Reactie Minister Schouten op actie bij boerenbedrijf in Boxtel. pic.twitter.com/vheiHz7urK — Ministerie van Landbouw, Natuur & Voedselkwaliteit (@minlnv) 13 mei 2019

The two protests began peacefully and with no altercations, but after a few hours, farmers had tipped cars into a ditch that belonged to animal activists. It is still unknown whether farmers were also arrested.

Maar ook dit is verschrikkelijk hoor. Waarom? Ik snap de boosheid, maar dit is echt niet nodig mensen. Echt niet! #Boxtel pic.twitter.com/n4t5fRUcZV — Caroline van der Plas (@lientje1967) 13 mei 2019



Dutch livestock farmers are upset with “smear campaigns” against their businesses by animal activists. Marc Calon, chairman of the agricultural organization LTO Nederland tells RTL Nieuws that “the (animal activist) campaigns are polarizing and are aimed at blackening an entire professional group that we desperately need in the Netherlands.”

Calon argues that years of campaigns by extremist animal organizations against farmers should come to an end. He is looking to consult with ministers about the issue. He says, “At a given moment it is enough. And that moment has been reached. It is downright outrageous what happens.”

Featured image source: Pexels/Matthias Zomer

What are your thoughts? Do you support Meat the Victims or the farmers? Let us know in the comments, below!