The protest against the entry of refugees into Portugal “Care for our own first” included representatives from various social network groups, “with different interpretations, some more radical than others”, but whose general view was that “in the current conditions in Portugal they (refugees) are not welcome”, said Nelson Dias da Silva, one of those who attended.
Nelson Dias da Silva said that, Portugal “cannot afford not to shelter (the Portuguese) and not resolve its problems first”.
“If we are talking about migrants, then we should accept them. That is what civilized countries do. They look at their economy, at their economic sector and choose the people they need, the qualifications and also the culture”, adding that there were “people from divergent cultures who, because of their nature, it is harder to integrate”.
The protestors waved placards with slogans like “Refugees not welcome”, “Sharia = primitive law”, “Portuguese against Islam” and “No to the invasion of Europe. Immigration only serves capitalism”.
“Portugal for the Portuguese”, “Two million in poverty waiting for social equality”, “Our own first”, “More support for the Portuguese” were other protest messages.
João Martins, one of the participants, also said that one group of demonstrators would deliver a letter of thanks to the Hungarian embassy about them closing their borders to the wave of refugees and migrants, mainly from the Middle East.