Gabriela Liberato
news reporter
During institutional visits, Portuguese ambassador Luís Faro Ramos, who was in Rio Grande do Norte in the last days of April, believes in the State’s potential to attract more investments in renewable energy. “Despite competing with Ceará, there are scientific studies that show that Rio Grande do Norte is a potential champion for the production of clean energy, so I believe that there will be even more companies competing for the energy issue here in RN”, says the diplomat .
During a brief stay, the ambassador met with the rector of UFRN, José Daniel Diniz, and with the governor of RN, Fátima Bezerra, in discussions about future energy and academic investments in the State. In an interview with TRIBUNA DO NORTE, the ambassador revealed initiatives to further promote rapprochement between Portugal and Rio Grande do Norte and new Portuguese investments in Rio Grande do Norte lands. Ramos also discusses the increase in immigration following the mobility agreement between Portuguese-speaking countries, signed in 2021, which facilitates mobility in situations of short stays, temporary stays, residence visas and residence permits. The ambassador also recognizes the facts of the past between Portugal and Brazil, and reveals interest in inaugurating new units of Instituto Camões Chairs in more Brazilian Universities. The diplomat also revealed that he will return to RN in June, for a meeting at the geopark in Currais Novos. Check out the interview.
Portugal has invested in Rio Grande do Norte, especially in the area of renewable energy. How did this interest arise?
The interest in investment was due to Brazil having great potential for the production of clean energy, which is the future. Here we have the ideal location for the development of energy such as solar and wind, and I think this is what attracted the attention of companies like EDP and Galp, state and private companies, respectively. Companies saw the potential that Brazil presents energetically, and also socially, as clean energy is the future, large investments are needed in it. Despite competing with Ceará, I know that there are scientific studies that show that Rio Grande do Norte is a potential champion for the production of clean energy, so I believe that there will be even more companies competing on the energy issue here in RN.
Portugal is a popular destination for Brazilians, including those from Rio Grande do Norte, whether to visit or to live. How is the presence of a high number of Brazilian residents in the country viewed by the Portuguese government?
This is a reflection of the strong relationship between Portugal and Brazil, which is increasingly stronger. The Brazilian population in Portugal is growing, and I’m not just talking about tourists, because there are a lot of Brazilian tourists visiting our country, but I’m talking about people who live in Portugal, work and study there, there are already more than half a million , I believe. It is a statistic that is done from the bottom, as there are still people who are in the process of regularizing themselves. And all Brazilians are welcome. It is also important to highlight that new legislation was recently approved that allows mobility within Portuguese-speaking countries, and Brazil and Portugal are countries that benefit greatly from this.
Brazilians often visit Portugal. From here in RN we have a regular flight directly there. Are there expectations to increase the number of flights on the Natal/Portugal stopover?
I know that TAP, at this moment, is investing very heavily in Brazil. I can’t speak for TAP, because TAP has its own activities, but I know that for us, and for you too, it is very important that this company invests heavily here in Brazil. At the moment, which is a time of low demand in Brazil, there are six flights, and from October, which is the high season here, there will be seven flights, one flight per day only to Rio Grande do Norte. We cannot forget that there are more than 90 flights per week to various cities in Brazil, with an occupancy rate between 80% and 90%. So, there is no country in the world where TAP flew so regularly and so frequently, so I imagine that betting on Brazil is a bet worth continuing.
This year marked 50 years of the Carnation Revolution, which led to the end of a dictatorship in Portugal. What vision of democracy does the country have today?
Fifty years later we must understand that democracy and freedom are not taken for granted. There can always be a setback, and that would be very bad, wouldn’t it? I was there with students from the International Relations course, and there we emphasized to young people the importance of understanding what the Carnation Revolution was, because young people, who have never experienced anything like that, don’t know what it’s like to be deprived of freedom, not being able to go for a coffee, having the police knocking on your door… It’s good to remind young people that these things existed. So that we are always alert, and so that we can value what it means to live in freedom and democracy.
Drawing a parallel between Portugal and Brazil, do you think there is a democratic state in Brazil?
I think Portugal and Brazil are countries that have had ups and downs regarding democracy in their respective countries, but at this moment when both countries are living in democratic states, it is very good for our relationship which, because of this, is at an excellent level. Now, it is important to emphasize that unfortunately democracy can be threatened by different ideals. As in Portugal, and in Europe in general, which have political parties that defend values that are not at all democratic, that defend ideas such as xenophobia, inequalities, prejudices, discrimination based on race, sex, everything… So we must be attentive. Fortunately, both governments are democratic, so we now have an intense and good relationship, as they are two countries that share freedom values.
During a visit to the rectory of the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte, you discussed the expansion of cooperation agreements in the academic area. What can we expect as a result of this meeting?
Between Portugal and Brazil there is an exchange of students and teachers, there are already hundreds of agreements between not only Universities, but also between polytechnics, such as the Polytechnic Institutes of Bragança and Setúbal. Here in Brazil there are also the Camões Institute Chairs, and yesterday, talking to the rector of UFRN, I challenged him, I told him to think about whether the university is interested in having a Camões Chair here at UFRN, so who knows if in On my next visit we may be inaugurating a Chair here at UFRN.
The Brazil/Portugal relationship is historic, but also controversial. The government even recently spoke out about the colonial past, compensating former colonies for excessive exploitation and slavery, for example. How do you evaluate this past and what do you believe your position should be from now on?
When we look at this past, we have to look at the whole past. If we think about these 524 years, almost half have been with independent, sovereign Brazil. Therefore, this past is not just a colonial past. When we talk about these issues, we have to look at them in an inclusive way. And in this inclusive way, more than 200 years have been with independent Brazil. It is a complex issue and one that has been talked about for several years. It is finally necessary to assume that there were historical errors, to assume that the development of a given society was impacted by all of this, because all of this is true. Now, how are we going to solve this? How are we going to reckon with our past together? The country that is today a different country, in the case of Portugal, is not only in relation to Brazil, it is also in relation to the colonies in Africa, which have been independent for 49 years, in a different time frame. I think these are issues that must be faced responsibly, seriously and, above all, in a very inclusive way, with everyone having the opportunity to speak out. And I think this is the most important thing, it is a path that has yet to be taken.
There is a theory that Brazil was discovered here in Rio Grande do Norte, in the city of Touros, and not in Bahia as it is historically said. Do you believe in this possibility? From a Portuguese perspective, is there any evidence that supports this thesis?
I can’t get involved in this. (laughs) In Portugal what is said is that in 1500 Pedro Álvares Cabral arrived in Porto Seguro, which was in Bahia. I know there is this theory, but I am neither a historian nor an academic, what I know is that, wherever I go in Brazil, the affection I see being shown towards Portugal is enormous. Whether in Rio Grande do Norte, Bahia, or Rio Grande do Sul. I think that’s what matters. It could have been here, it could have been there. Let’s not discuss this because I don’t know either. I have neither science nor history for this. Now, having entered here or there, what I know is that when we celebrated 500 years with the Treaty of Porto Seguro, 24 years ago, we were there, and this marriage between the two countries is already old and is great.
