Pedro Duarte, the presidential candidate for the Social Democratic Party (PSD) in Porto and former Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, expressed being “shocked by the lack of empathy” and described the behavior of Chega’s president, André Ventura, as “indefinable” after he mentioned the names of some foreign minors in Parliament—students attending a school in Lisbon—during the debate on changes to nationality and immigration laws last week.
“I am shocked by the lack of empathy of people and this rush towards populism, towards demagoguery that probably makes these people forget all the values and principles, which I still believe they profess deep down. But, in fact, there are no limits. This is absolutely unacceptable, it is indefinable,” he stated on CNN Portugal’s comment segment ‘Princípio da Incerteza’.
Pedro Duarte further emphasized that “it does not serve as an excuse that the names were not fully stated in Parliament,” explaining that “what is at stake is that there is a manifest subjective impact on people and what is the individual context of each person.”
The former minister noted that “what is at stake” was “very serious,” considering it is neither “reasonable nor acceptable.”
“I just add another point for everyone’s reflection regarding Chega’s behavior because I think this ends up proving a certain self-destructive tendency of Chega. We were discussing a matter—nationality and immigration law—that perhaps could even be seen as Chega’s first effective victory in parliamentary terms, they could sell it that way. It could show that there is a path that is in a good direction,” he said.
He added: “The truth is that what is verified is that they end up destroying the debate of such nature themselves.”
“Shameful, inhuman, and dangerous,” says Alexandra Leitão
Notably, last Saturday, PS candidate for Lisbon City Hall, Alexandra Leitão, also criticized André Ventura’s behavior after the incident during the parliamentary debate on nationality and immigration law.
The socialist stated that the episode exceeded “what is acceptable in a democracy,” noting that “instrumentalizing minors to fuel hate speech is shameful, inhuman, and dangerous.”
Notícias ao Minuto with Lusa | 11:43 – 06/07/2025
It should be remembered that when André Ventura began mentioning the names of foreign children in the Assembly of the Republic, several deputies from the Left groups intervened and tried to interrupt Chega’s president’s speech. However, the person directing the proceedings did not do so.
For instance, the parliamentary leader of Livre even became emotional, requesting “humanism.”
On Sunday, Chega’s president wrote on his social network X (formerly Twitter) that “a part of the country was uncomfortable with the reading of Islamic and Indian names in Portuguese schools” and attacked the Left: “Curiously, I never saw them worried about the use of children and young people in LGBT propaganda or in the pamphlets of the Left Bloc and the PCP.”
Notícias ao Minuto with Lusa | 11:43 – 06/07/2025
Recall that the Government’s initiatives to amend the nationality and immigration laws were sent to the special stage without being voted on in general, as well as Chega’s bills on the same subjects.
The Government’s bill to amend the nationality law, which will now be discussed in committee, seeks to increase the period of stay in Portugal required to obtain citizenship (from five to either seven or ten years, depending on whether they are Lusophone or non-Lusophone citizens).
The Government also foresees the possibility of losing nationality for those naturalized for less than ten years who are sentenced to a prison term of five or more years for committing serious crimes. Concerning the attribution of original nationality to descendants of foreigners residing in Portugal, legal residence for a period of three years is now required.
Chega’s bill, which also moved to the special stage, proposes “the loss of nationality acquired by naturalization or when they have dual nationality in cases where the individual commits acts that seriously violate sovereignty, national security, or the essential principles of the Rule of Law.”
In the foreigners’ law, the Government intends to restrict the job-seeking visa “to highly qualified activities,” limit access to family reunification, and change the conditions for granting residence permits to citizens of Member States of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP).
Chega presents a bill that “restricts the rules on entry and stay in national territory,” imposing entry quotas according to labor needs identified by the authorities.
