Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 23rd April 2025
Good afternoon everyone. We start this weekly news report with the death of Pope Francis on Easter Monday 21st April 2025 aged 88 years.
The wake for the Supreme Pontiff will take place between Wednesday and Friday, in St. Peter’s Basilica. The funeral will take place on Saturday 26th April and in Portugal there will be 3 days of national mourning from 24th to 26th April. The President of the Republic will travel to Rome, after the April 25 session of the Assembly of the Republic, to attend the Pope’s funeral, accompanied by the President of the Assembly of the Republic, the Prime Minister and the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
In a statement by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, President of the Republic he said: “Pope Francis was, perhaps, the most courageous voice among the spiritual leaders of the last twelve years, in the defence of Human dignity, Peace, Justice, Freedom, Equality, Fraternity, dialogue between cultures and civilizations, preference for the disinherited of the peripheries, for the poorest, most fragile, suffering, sacrificed, excluded and exploited, rejected and forgotten, in this time of old and new masters, interests and selfishness, which combat the values by which he has always been guided”.
“On behalf of all Portuguese people, believers and non-believers, whether in agreement or disagreement, I thank Francisco for the affection he has shown Portugal, but above all, for his presence alongside those who die as victims of the daily denial of Human Rights, of abuse and arrogance of all kinds, of forced migration and refuge, of the primacy of war and the unjust crushing of individuals, peoples and legitimate dreams for the future”.
We continue this week’s news with the publication of the legislation listing the priority areas for land cleaning i.e. fuel management. This year there are 988 parishes, a slight reduction from last year. The priority parishes for inspection comprise 34% of the total number, covering 2,871,924 ha [hectares] of total area (32% of the surface area of mainland Portugal) and encompassing 1,988,232 ha of forest areas (37% of its total area). The criteria adopted since 2022, which incorporate the components of current danger of rural fires and the value of ecosystems, were maintained.
Earlier legislation published on the 16th April deferred the deadline for land cleaning until 31st May. We recommend that those in rural areas monitor the fire risk closely, and not to leave it too early to clean land as a high fire a very high risk and above prohibits the use of mechanised garden equipment including strimmers and chain saws etc., in cleaning risk Cleaning conducted too early however means that vegetation can still grow. It’s a fine balance.
On the point of “cleaning”, it means exactly that. It does not mean that everything has to be “cleared” i.e. everything within a 50 metres radius and the use of terms such as is misleading. Basically clean (fuel management) is the REDUCTION of vegetable and woody materials to make it difficult for fire to spread vertically (from the herbaceous layer to the shrub layer and, in turn, to the crown) and horizontally (throughout the various layers). In short, it means cutting weeds, shrubs and pruning trees in some areas.
A complete guide to land cleaning, including the latest updates for 2025 can be found on our website page here: https://www.safecommunitiesportugal.com/find-information/fire-prevention-and-protection/land-cleaning-protection/
A report released a few days ago revealed that one-third of wildfires in the EU occurred in protected Natura 2000 areas, Europe’s most valuable and threatened species and habitats. 2024 was the worst year for forest fires in Portugal since 2017, with 147 000 hectares of land affected. Critical fires occurred early in the wildfire season on the isle of Madeira. Then, around mid-September, a number of large fires broke out simultaneously on the mainland. Over 110 000 hectares burnt in just one week – around a quarter of the total area burnt in the EU in the 2024 season. We have to work hard to ensure that this year does not see a repetition of last year.
A reminder of yet another scam using the name of the Tax and Customs Authority (AT). They are aware that some taxpayers are receiving email and text messages supposedly from the AT, in which they are asked to click a link. These messages are fake and should be ignored and reported. AT address displayed in a browser is https://www.portaldasfinancas.gov.pt or https://www.acesso.gov.pt (the “s” in the word “https” means that the connection between your computer and the Tax and Customs Authority – AT server is encrypted). ANY different address is a scam.
To avoid becoming a victim of such scams: Be wary of links and files sent via email or text message; Confirm directly with the source through text messages or websites, any action or interaction is requested; If in doubt, do not reply to messages, click on links, or download or open files and importantly do not provide or disclose your credentials to access the Finance Portal.
Our team at Safe Communities with you all the best for the week ahead
News
Fight against corruption receives the largest number of 113 new PJ inspectors
Lisbon, 22 April 2025 (Lusa) – The National Anti-Corruption Unit (UNCC) of the Judicial Police (PJ) will receive the largest number of the 113 inspectors who took up their duties today, announced the institution’s national director, congratulating himself on the “generational renewal” underway.
According to Luís Neves, of the 113 individuals who completed the 46th Inspector Training Course at the beginning of April, 38 will be placed, during the experimental period, in the UNCC, 24 in the National Unit for Combating Cybercrime and Technological Crime, 19 in the Lisbon and Tagus Valley Directorate, 17 in the National Counterterrorism Unit and 15 in the National Unit for Combating Drug Trafficking.
“The fight against corruption and economic and financial crime is the highest priority and concern and consequently the target of the largest investment that the Judiciary Police has ever made in this area, both in the recruitment of specialized human resources and in equipment and training”, stressed the national director of the PJ, when speaking today at the acceptance ceremony of the 113 inspectors, at the institution’s headquarters, in Lisbon.
Heading the PJ since June 2018, Luís Neves recalled that, when he took office, the institution had a total of 968 investigators, having today “largely surpassed the 2,000 barrier”.
The average age also dropped from almost 50 to close to 40.
“It is obvious that generational renewal is here, with the perfect crossover between the highly specialized knowledge that the PJ has and the valuable contribution that you all bring us through your academic training and your professional experience”, he highlighted, addressing the new inspectors.
Of the 113 who took up their duties today, 78 have a degree, 34 a master’s degree and one a doctorate, from 50 different courses, and 40% have previous experience in other criminal police bodies.
The ceremony was also attended by the Minister of Justice, Rita Alarcão Júdice, who reminded the new inspectors that, in addition to investigating, their mission is to “honour democracy through a commitment to the truth and the uncompromising defence of legality.”
Thousands of residence cards issued by AIMA remain uncollected: 8 thousand documents with no specific destination
The Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) currently has around eight thousand residence cards issued that have not yet been collected by their holders, revealed the organization’s president, Pedro Portugal Gaspar. The situation represents a new challenge in the complex management of migration processes in Portugal, at a time when the service system is still trying to respond to the high volume of pending applications.
According to Pedro Gaspar, most of these documents did not reach their recipients for simple but recurring reasons: “There must be around 8,000 cards issued that have not been collected, at least in general or in general terms”, said the person in charge. The problem, he explained, is mainly related to the absence of the holders at the indicated addresses, which leads to the documents being returned to AIMA’s facilities.
Despite multiple attempts to contact the agency, many immigrants remain unaware that their cards are ready for collection. Speaking to Lusa, the president of AIMA assured that several efforts have been made to communicate the existence of the cards: “AIMA insists several times to communicate, but the cards continue to accumulate”.
These documents largely concern processes initiated under the old system of provisional residence permits. In total, around 440,000 people passed through the so-called “mission centres”, created to deal with the delays inherited from the former Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF). At the moment, AIMA is focused on assisting citizens from the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPLP), who are exchanging their old A4 paper permits for new plastic cards.
Where to collect cards and what to do
Immigrants who have been to mission centers and whose cards were returned are now being summoned by email to collect them in person. In Lisbon, the process takes place at the Mahatma Gandhi mission centre, while in Porto, the collection takes place at the Local Support Centre for Migrant Integration (CLAIN), upon presentation of a valid passport and after electronic notification.