Police to warn tourists that Portugal "may not be safe"

Posted by portugalpress

on April 29, 2014


Police to warn tourists that Portugal "may not be safe"


Holidaymakers flying in to Portugal next month are in for a bizarre surprise.

A protest organised by the National Police Union SINAPOL will see groups of police officers handing out pamphlets in arrivals halls warning that the country’s security is at risk due to government-backed austerity measures that have affected salaries.

The pamphlets will be handed out in every airport throughout the mainland, as well as on the islands of Madeira and Azores, although no official dates or schedules have been announced.

“What we want is for foreigners to know the great difficulties Portuguese police are going through,” Luíz Paz, SINAPOL’s vice-president told Público newspaper.

"In fact, we want them to know that the way the government treats police officers here is very different from the way police officers are treated in their countries. It might jeopardise the quality of our services and homeland security.”

According to SINAPOL's president Armando Ferreira, the protest is the perfect way to reinforce the police service's growing discontent with national policymakers.

“The union’s struggles have died down a bit lately, and the Ministry of Internal Administration has not given us any more attention,” he said. "This decision seems appropriate to get us back to protesting.”

As Público highlights, the plan is certain to cause red faces in the government.

Overseas, Internal Administration minister Miguel Macedo is pushing the image of Portugal as being a "safe" country to visit.

Indeed, in July last year, he said it was a “strategic” move to deem Portugal “safe".

"Portugal is one of the safest destinations in the world," he said.

However, when contacted by Público to comment on the police plans, the ministry remained tight-lipped, refusing to say anything at all.

SINAPOL's president stressed that the police wants to make it clear that “it is not the police who are jeopardising the country’s security.

"We just want citizens to know – and tourists as well – the way the government is treating us.”

Ferreira confirmed that similar high-profile demonstrations may be in the making.

“We are going to contact other unions to decide what to do. Everything is on the table: demonstrations, symbolic protests, even strikes,” he said.

Nonetheless, there is controversy surrounding the whole subject of police strikes.

Público reports that Lisbon's Central Administrative Court is studying whether they are even legal.

This far, police protests have stopped short of strike action, although tensions have been escalating since off-duty officers stormed the parliamentary building in November last year in the first major demonstration against ongoing austerity, and the effects on pay and conditions.


http://portugalresident.com/police-to-warn-tourists-that-portugal-may-not-be-safe#sthash.M6dfYqUK.dpuf

it is good to know this, but, it should have been done through police before the abduction of Madeleine.

A lot of people have NO idea how badly the EU's austerity measures have hit Portugal, or how precarious the economy is.

Morais, Guedes, Luz and co never tell the truth about Portugal.

the prime minister Passos Coelho is the true responsible for it, which includes also Cavaco Silva.

Algarve Tourist Board boss calls on police not to mess things up


Created: 09 May 2014

Desidério Silva is not happy. As head of the Algarve region’s tourist board the last thing he needs is for members of the police to hang around the airport handing out leaflets to tourists informing them they are not safe.

This of course is exactly what is planned and Silva, as chairman of the executive committee of Tourism of the Algarve, formally has called for the National Union of Police to desist in its protest lest its actions spoil the carefully created image of safety that the Algarve has been promoting in the recent past, backed up by statistics showing this indeed is the case.

Silva sees the police action as “jeopardising the recovery of tourism, which already shows positive indicators, and threatening expected job growth.”

“Despite the difficult national financial situation and the enormous effort required from the Portuguese in recent years, the Police Union 'SINAPOL' should not be undermining the country's recovery and spoiling tourism, a sector that is seen as the engine of our economy particularly in the Algarve” reads the terse press release sent to media this afternoon.

“This police action would have a devastating effect, destroying years of work and investment in the image of Portugal and the Algarve as one of the safest tourist destinations in the world. The repercussions would be incalculable for the region's economy.”

The Tourist Board’s executive committee publicly recognises the commitment of the various services and security forces in the Algarve, but appeals to the common sense of law enforcement officers to preserve the best interests of the region through dialogue and consultation, and not by handing out leaflets to tourists.


http://algarvedailynews.com/news/2275-tourist-board-boss-calls-on-police-not-to-mess-things-up

Desidério Silva is not happy.

Tough sh*t. The Algarve Tourist Board should have thought about all this before it swept so much under the carpet - children being attacked in their beds, women stoving their own heads in with axes, holidaymakers being killed by muggers.

And of course, children being abducted and their parents smeared and framed.

A good few of the Team Gonzo mouthpieces are associated with the Algarve Tourist Board, aren't they?

Yes they are involved there, Bonny.

So that's behind this present go around of the Portuguese police saying they will stop the investigation etc?

We all know what the best thing is for calming tourists minds.