In a letter to the Prime Minister dated Friday, José Luís Carneiro expressed concern about young students receiving notifications regarding the cancellation of their international protection status, urging them to leave the country. Carneiro indicated that he has met with a group of these students, who described their difficult situation and confusion over the sudden review of their status.
The Secretary-General of the Socialist Party (PS) has called on the Prime Minister to ensure that the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) handles these cases with due care and compassion.
Carneiro has requested that an assessment be made to find a suitable status for these individuals when the criteria for international protection are not fulfilled. He emphasized the importance of collaborating with educational institutions to avoid disruption in their academic pursuits, in which Portugal has already invested significantly.
He highlighted the successful integration of many students into the academic life of the institutions and cities that have hosted them since 2022. These students, fluent in the language and progressing in their studies, could contribute to the national health system if they were to remain in the country.
Towards the end of his letter, Carneiro expressed hope that the Prime Minister would work to ensure fair and humane treatment of these young individuals, honoring Portugal’s traditions of dealing with similar situations.
The situation involves young students in Portuguese universities who have received international protection following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, where they were previously studying.
Carneiro noted that while the students’ circumstances vary, many are in the final years of their medical studies. They have relied on the expectations set by their reception in Portugal, renewing their registrations without any indication of the precariousness of their status while they continue their studies.
The PS Secretary-General argued that while each case should be evaluated under the applicable laws, Portugal must not disregard the expectations created or act abruptly toward these students, who are in a fragile position.
Carneiro criticized any actions that might surprise students with notifications at the start of the academic year, potentially ending their chance to finish their studies and forcing them to seek new institutions once more.
