Porto City Council denounces removal of stamps at Stop and lodges complaint with MP

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The Porto City Council will report a crime of disobedience to the Public Prosecutor’s Office after 38 stamps were removed at the Stop shopping center, the Economy councilor told Lusa, saying that the attitude shows “lack of respect”.

Speaking to the Lusa agency, Porto City Council Economy Councilor Ricardo Valente said that in 38 stores in the Stop shopping center there are “broken seals” and that the Municipal Police are currently sealing and reporting to the Public Prosecutor’s Office (MP) the crime of public disobedience.

More than a hundred stores in the Stop shopping center were sealed a week ago by the municipal police for “lack of licenses to operate”.

The councillor considered the breaking of the seals “a lack of respect” for the effort that has been made by the municipality to reach an agreement with the musicians.

Contacted by Lusa, the president of the Cultural Association of Musicians of Stop, Rui Guerra, said he did not know who removed the stamps from the stores and that the situation, “which is very serious”, would be analyzed in the meantime.

Also the president of Alma Stop, Bruno Costa, said he did not know who removed the stamps, but was sure that no musician would remove the stamps to disobey the law.

On Friday, the mayor of Porto, Rui Moreira, admitted that the space could reopen as long as safety measures were met.

In order to return to operation, the Stop will have to have a fire engine permanently, with five operatives, but no more than 12 hours. The municipality is willing to invest in safety means (hoses and nozzles) and provide training to users of the space so that, in case of fire, they know how to act, said Rui Moreira at a press conference.

To Lusa, Ricardo Valente said today that, so far, the decision of the musicians has not been communicated to the municipality regarding the agreement to temporarily reopen the Stop, where for more than 20 years several fractions have been used as rehearsal rooms or studios.

“These are the conditions,” said the councillor, saying, however, that some measures “can be fine-tuned”.

Porto council imposes security, opening hours and full agreement to reopen Stop

A proposta de reabertura do centro comercial foi recebida com cautela pelas duas associações que representam os músicos, que ainda estão a deliberar quanto à viabilidade da solução e o futuro do espaço.

The administrator of the Stop condominium, Ferreira da Silva, signed the municipality’s agreement on Monday that commits the administration to “adopt and enforce safety behaviors and self-protection and fire risk mitigation measures”.

Respecting and enforcing the Stop’s 12-hour opening hours, ensuring the correct use of the electrical installation and collaborating with the sappers’ regiment and the council are also part of the commitment and responsibility term signed.

Closure of Stop in Porto “deserves reflection” and Ministry of Culture “willing to help”

Ferreira da Silva told reporters that he was confident that the Stop would reopen soon, adding, however, that the presence of firefighters at the door 12 hours a day “may imply one or two corrections”.

After the closure that left almost 500 artists and shopkeepers with “nowhere to go”, hundreds of musicians occupied Rua do Heroísmo for about five hours in protest, forcing police to divert car traffic to other arteries of the city.

As an alternative to the shopping center, the Porto City Council presented two solutions: the Pires de Lima school and the last floors of Silo Auto.

For the musicians, both spaces “lack the conditions to house the entire Stop community” and do not consider them as a solution for their relocation.

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