Portugal celebrates 50 years of democracy // Middle class with most to gain from tax break plan
Portuguese news in English on April 24, 2024.
Portugal celebrates 50 years of democracy
Tomorrow Portugal celebrates 50 years since the Carnation Revolution with military parades, music and culture, Expresso reports. Commemorations begin in Lisbon at 9am in Terreiro do Paço with a military parade featuring hundreds of soldiers, Air Force flyovers and Navy vessels. The historic coup on 25 de Abril, 1974, freed Portugal from its decades-long dictatorship, almost without bloodshed. It will also be marked in parliament and on the streets, with a 3pm procession from Marquês de Pombal to a wide range of celebrations in Rossio. Festivities actually kick off tonight, with the Uma Idea de Futuro event featuring an orchestra, videomapping and fireworks at Terreiro do Paço.
The organisers of one regular April 25 event are furious after cancelling their celebrations in Lisbon’s central Largo do Carmo, blaming the council for refusing to support them, Público reports. The Arraial dos Cravos has run regularly in the space but not every year. The organisation Abril é Agora said Lisbon City Council refused its request for 16 tents, urban hygiene and sound. The council said the request for help came in only two weeks ago and there were already events planned to use the space and resources on the day.
If you’re interested in diving deeper into the history in English, the BBC has a half-hour podcast with journalist and former Channel 4 news presenter Jon Snow, looking back on his coverage of the moment in his younger days.
Middle class with most to gain from tax break plan
Those earning €2500 to €3000 a month have the most to gain from the new government’s proposed tax breaks, Diário de Notícias reports. The cuts by the Social Democratic Party, which went to the election promising relief for the middle class, would put an extra €500 a year in the pockets of those earning €2500 and more than €800 for those bringing home €3000. The savings for someone earning up to €2000 would be about €100 or much less, depending on their circumstances. The tax changes would bring reductions of between 0.25 and 0.75 percentage points up until the eighth tax bracket, with 3 percentage points hacked off the sixth bracket. They cost an extra €463 million on top of what the former Socialist Party (PS) introduced.
PS has since put forward its own revamped tax plan, which would cost €348 million, Díario de Notícias reports. The “fairer” changes would focus on reductions for those earning from €1000 to €2500 but were criticised by the government as “opportunism”.
PM promises action as pressure on migrant agency grows
Pressure on the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) is mounting as it approaches six months in existence amid complaints about a lack of vacancies, delayed documents and more, Diário de Notícias reports. The newspaper reports the SEF replacement currently employs only 70 public-facing workers at its service counters throughout the country and many of those have asked to be moved somewhere else. The president of the workers’ union said the agency needed to have come into existence with less pressure to give it time to grow and develop.
Last week, the agency left two migrants, aged 15 and 16, alone to spend a night on the street after interviewing them, in breach of regulations, Diário de Notícias reports. The Senegalese boys’ lawyer said she’d “never seen anything like it”.
Prime Minister Luís Montenegro promised “more agile solutions” to the unrelenting delays facing migrants dealing with Portuguese bureaucracy, Diário de Notícias reports. Speaking to his counterpart in Cape Verde, he signalled plans to make things easier for residents of countries that speak Portuguese but also generally recognised the problems facing the agency and promised “respect for the dignity” of people in the visa process. There’s no dedicated secretary of state for migration in the new government.
More than 200 people turned up to another AIMA protest this month in Lisbon — and echoed around the country —, holding their papers and sharing more stories of hardship in the long wait for a response, Diário de Notíciase reports. The problem also extends to visas for students, some of whom arrived with a visa in August and still haven’t managed to get an appointment, Diário de Notícias reports. Brazilian masters student Thamy spoke about sitting with two phones from 8am to 8pm in an attempt to contact the agency. One time she made 300 calls, she said. Other students have been granted permission to stay after an interview but left waiting more than four months for their residence permit.
In brief
Massive majority wants democracy but almost half would support 'strong leader’ without elections. In a survey linked to the 50th anniversary of Portuguese democracy, 70% said a “government of experts” would be good or very good while 47% would support a “strong leader who doesn’t have to worry about parliament or elections”. That figure was 97% for democracy, which 87% said was better than any other system. (Público)
Porto’s oldest mercearia to be replaced by an Ale Hop. The owner of Mercearia do Bolhão, which opened in 1880, blamed “rampant capitalism” for his decision to rent out the space to the Spanish chain. (Público)
Agriculture minister wants ‘brake’ on planting help for vineyards. Portugal already has a problem with offloading excess wine stock and the minister says a rethink is needed unless the government wants to be throwing money away. (Público)
Twenty measles cases confirmed in Portugal. The director-general of health said there was a high level of vaccine coverage but appealed for anyone who hadn’t been jabbed to do so. (Público)
On lighter note
The new work from prominent street artist Bordalo II seems perfectly timed to cause plenty of discussion. The social critic covered up former dictator António Salazar’s grave with a giant box of pills with the brand name “Liberdade” (Freedom), identified as an “anti-fascist probiotic”, Expresso reports. “Your daily dose of democracy” and “Combats oppression”. “Freedom is fundamental for all of us and for the wellbeing of everyone,” Artur Bordalo wrote in the Instagram caption.