Prime minister accused of “failing to lead or show his face”

Politicians of all colours are reacting in a form of stampede to the scenes of violence in Lisbon and Porto last night – but the overall focus is on the prime minister’s “failure to lead or show his face”.

CHEGA leader André Ventura has been the latest to react to the violence that played out at the end of right to housing demos in the capital, and in Porto, in the early hours of this morning, through a video posted on social media.

Coming down “unconditionally” on the side of police – and labelling the protesters as a “minority of vandals” and “troublemakers”, he said that “the police had no choice but to do what they did: restore law and order. Those parties – including the PS, with its irresponsible behaviour – which sided with (the demonstrators) were provoking the situation and are causing enormous damage to democracy.”

But, “where is the prime minister?” He queried. “At a point where it is necessary to resolve such an important cause, we haven’t heard a word from him for a week…”

Amnesty International – Portugal too, has brought its opinions to the fore, highlighting what it sees as the “excessive and disproportionate” use of force by the authorities.

In a statement sent to newsrooms, executive director Joâo Godinho Martins said his NGO is “deeply concerned that the use of force by the police was excessive and indiscriminate, and that the police operation – and, in particular, the excessive and disproportionate use of batons and other equipment by the police – resulted in dozens of people being injured (…) The injuries inflicted by the police on peaceful protesters in the early hours of this morning, and the increasing use of excessive and disproportionate force in recent weeks, represent a new low for the right to protest across the country”.

Martins believes the “situation must be investigated as a matter of urgency”, arguing that the police have a duty “to disperse protests and use force only as a last resort and in a manner proportionate to the situation”.

“The authorities must act immediately to prevent a repeat of the shocking damage and rights violations we witnessed,” he stressed.

This is the trouble with what happened in the early hours of today: Portugal is not used to scenes in which police come down hard on demonstrators, particularly at a time when scenes of police brutality in other countries, not least the United States, have started raising concerns over the direction governments are taking.

Source: Observador