The Mayor of Porto, Rui Moreira, stated on Sunday that the violent protests occurring in the United Kingdom are “a very concerning matter” and that “it could also happen in Portugal.”
During a commentary segment, Rui Moreira explained that the far-right protests began after a young man with “psychiatric problems” stabbed several children in Southport. Three ended up dying, including a Portuguese child.
Moreira explained that the attacker “was born in England” and comes from “a Catholic family, apparently practicing.” Nevertheless, there was “an explosion of violence in England against immigrants, which he naturally is not, but worse than that, against Muslims, which he never was.” “Social media acts as the propagator of this news,” Moreira stated.
The Porto mayor emphasized that these protests “in a society as tolerant as English society is a reason for great concern.” “This constant attempt to associate violent crimes with immigration ends up resulting in these explosions of hate and nationalist hatred,” he considered.
Rui Moreira also recalled Brexit and the main reason why the English chose to leave the European Union. “Everyone thought it was Brussels’ bureaucracy, they said it was immigration policy,” he pointed out, highlighting, however, the “very old tradition of immigration.”
“There isn’t just Islamophobia here, it’s a reaction against all those who don’t have white English skin,” Moreira stated.
