Portugal will control immigration, warns new prime minister

Lisbon — The new Prime Minister of Portugal, Luís Montenegro, made it clear, in his inauguration speech, that the government will restrict immigration to the country. According to him, the flow of foreigners into Portuguese territory must be regulated, a position very similar to that which the extreme right has been preaching.

“We want a humanist and welcoming country, which has neither closed nor wide-open doors,” he stated.

In Montenegro’s assessment, migration policies must prioritize qualified professionals, be proactive for students and capable of reuniting families, improving their integration into the local community. With this, he believes, it will be possible to guarantee the security of the country’s citizens and their assets. There is a portion of Portuguese society that attributes the increase in insecurity to the presence of immigrants in Portuguese lands.

“We want a humanist and welcoming country, which has neither closed nor wide-open doors”, stated the prime minister
AFP

Brazilians form the largest community of foreigners in Portugal. More recent data indicate that there are 400,000 citizens from Brazil living legally in the European country, that is, 40% of all immigrants. Another 150,000 are waiting for the immigration system to access their documentation. There are still at least 200 thousand Brazilians with dual nationality, who are not included in these statistics.

The good news for Brazilians is that the new prime minister reinforced the importance of strengthening ties with the countries of the Portuguese Speaking Community (CPLP). It is not known, however, how the government sworn in this Tuesday (02/04) will deal with the mobility agreement reached between the country and this group of nations. Since last year, at least 200 thousand CPLP citizens have obtained a residence permit in Portugal in an easy way. The problem is that these titles are expiring and there is no prospect of renewal.

In the specific case of Brazilians, more than 170,000 are threatened with returning to illegality if nothing is done quickly to facilitate residence permits by the CPLP. There are already several cases of citizens whose documents have expired and who have been dismissed from their jobs. So far, no one in the public administration can say what will be done with these titles, which are contested by the European Union.