“What the government did was increase illegal immigration in Portugal and that will have consequences,” said Mariana Mortágua at the Marxa Cabral scheduled for this Saturday.
The coordinator of the Left Bloc accused the government on Saturday of “brutal irresponsibility” in ending “the only mechanism that existed to regularize immigrants who were already in Portugal” and considered that the current law increases “clandestine immigration.”
“What the Government did with the immigration law was brutally irresponsible by ending the only mechanism that existed to regularize immigrants who were already in Portugal. What the Government did was increase illegal immigration in Portugal and this will have consequences“Illegal immigration means immigrants who work for less pay, with fewer rights and fewer opportunities to be included in society. Illegal immigration means that there will be no family reunification,” said Mariana Mortágua.
BE coordinator spoke to journalists in Lisbon during the first Marxa Cabral in Portugal organized by the Black Movement.
In June, the government amended the immigration law and, among other measures, abolished the expression of interest, a legal recourse that allowed immigrants who had arrived in the country with a tourist visa to legalise their status in Portugal.
For Mariana Mortágua, “The way the government is dealing with migration will only make the problem worse.”
“Instead of facing the problem of racism, xenophobia, instead of providing conditions and making the country look with different eyes at the immigration it needs,”Just like including people, it is doing the opposite, it is pushing them underground and, therefore, it ends up giving rise to other phenomena that are fueled by the extreme right,” he explained.
Regarding the importance of this demonstration, the BE coordinator said that it has “a double importance”, not only to “remember and celebrate Amílcar Cabral, who is a central figure of Portuguese democracy”, but also to “read the present”.
March in honor of Amílcar Cabral scheduled for Saturday
“We have witnessed the growth of racist and xenophobic movements in Portuguese society, driven by far-right groups, neo-Nazi groups and also by far-right parties, such as Chega. Therefore, it is necessary to respond,” he stressed.
The BE coordinator also considered that “these demonstrations have historical importance”with “much to do in Portugal to combat racism”.
“The phenomena of violence that we have witnessed in recent times in Portugal, never seen before in Portugal, attacks on immigrants, attacks on schools, are related to this resurgence of hatred and these manifestations of hatred, which we want to combat,” he concluded.
Hundreds of people of various races, genders and ages are taking part this afternoon in Lisbon in the first Marxa Cabral in Portugal organised by the Black Movement.
This march is taking place on the International Day of Peace and will go along Avenida da Liberdade, culminating in Rossio (Largo de São Domingos), where a declaration will be read according to which September will be, starting this Saturday, the month of Marxas. Cabral in Portugal.
Source: Observadora
