The far-right group Reconquista’s congress, scheduled to take place at the auditorium of Colégio Luso-Francês in Porto, has been canceled just a day after its location was revealed.
Prior to the report, the venue for the self-styled III Congress was known only to the organizers and those responsible for renting the space.
The movement filled out a form to use the auditorium, describing the congress as a “cultural event,” as the venue does not allow political activities.
Previously, in June, the political group Livre attempted to reserve the space but was denied for this same reason.
The event, in reality, was ideological, devised by a group advocating for ‘remigration’—the forced expulsion of immigrants—and subscribing to the “great replacement” theory, which suggests that African and Middle Eastern immigrants are gradually replacing the European population.
Because of the true nature of the event, Nuno Santos, responsible for the auditorium built three years ago, chose to retract the decision. In a statement, he mentioned that the event was canceled “because it was a political event, without complying with the applicable regulations” and contrary to what was “contractually agreed” with the organizers.
Previously on Thursday, Nuno Santos told the same publication he would not cancel the event “due to the signed contract,” emphasizing his “obligations.” He stated the congress would be “behind closed doors” for “ticket holders only.”
“We have no affiliation or link with this organization. But we are in a free country and are just trying to make the space profitable,” he said, admitting he did not recognize the name of the movement renting the space nor did he know their ideals. “We only learned it was them a week ago. And we didn’t have time to analyze.”
Ultimately, it is now known the event was canceled.
The congress, set for Saturday, November 8, included notable names from the far-right in the United States, Germany, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and France.
Among the Portuguese speakers was former deputy and Secretary of State for Culture under Cavaco Silva, António de Sousa Lara. He is known for vetoing José Saramago’s book “The Gospel According to Jesus Christ” from a literature prize, citing it as an affront to Christian morals.
Last year, due to a similar session, some controversy arose when Reconquista rented the Forum Lisboa, the seat of the Lisbon Municipal Assembly (AML), for its congress. The AML later stated the group posed as a collective of young members from Chega, organizing a conference on “the relationship between modernity and collectivism and its effects on Portuguese society.”
The group’s founder and president, Afonso Gonçalves, denied this accusation, asserting the AML realized it was a mistake to approve the event too late and was using this reason to legitimize their position.
Gonçalves asserted that the movement is “nationalist, traditionalist, and futurist,” rejecting the “neo-Nazi ideology that was falsely attributed to the movement.”
The ultranationalist group Reconquista denied today posing as a collective of young Chega members to rent the seat of the Lisbon Municipal Assembly (AML) for their congress, which hosted neo-Nazi guests.
