Elements of security forces announce week of WYD protests

Cesar Nogueira, secretary of the permanent coordination commission of the service and security forces, announced this at a press conference in Porto.

The head of the structure that brings together the GNR, PSP, maritime police, the Food and Economic Security Authority (ASAE) and the prison guard, said that they will be present when Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa receives Pope Francis on August 2, “positioning himself next to the official residence of the President of the Republic , with a concentration of professionals in law enforcement agencies and services.

“Of course, even His Holiness will know how the security forces are treated in Portugal, and we hope that he will convey this to the President of the Republic,” said César Nogueira.

The head of the Catholic Church will be in Portugal from 2 to 6 August during the World Youth Day (WYD), which will bring together thousands of young people in Lisbon.

“We will carry out actions at the national level, also because we want citizens who come to our country to know how they treat the security forces and services. We will distribute brochures with this information. We will be at the airports of Porto, Lisbon and Faro, at the port of Lisbon, at Gare do Oriente and at some borders, we still do not know which ones, because it depends on what the government plans for these places. This will be done on the 24th, 25th and 26th. [de julho]”, He said.

In addition to public actions, the secretary of the structure also announced “some surprises” for the period from August 1 to 6, when the WYD will take place, arguing this with the need for “creativity”, because not “everyone has the right to strike.” “. in an attempt to demonstrate “what the government considers the security forces to be, that is, the disrespect and neglect that has led to [que haja] increasingly demotivates security forces and services.”

At the heart of the structures’ complaints is “the renewal of salaries through the remuneration charters of various institutions, some of which have not been updated since their inception, that is, since 2009, with the exception of small adjustments due to inflation,” the spokesman explained.

Added to this are health support claims reminding César Nogueira that “within a year they deduct 13.5% for 14 months”, a situation they want to reconsider as “there is a large ‘surplus’ in all subsystems”. [de saúde] and there are conditions for reducing this percentage,” regretting that the government, however, did not change it.

“Our country is considered safe not because of the rulers, but because of the use and abuse of its professionals (…) whose salaries have not been updated for 10 years. No one can live with salaries that are 10 years old. Inflation be that as it may, everything has increased, including the price of housing, and people have expenses, and they must do without this problem in order to be able to do service with a thought focused on service,” he said.

However, Cesar Nogueira warned that what was outlined “does not end with the WYD, so future action depends on the ‘response or no response of the government’ (…) when it comes to discussing the state budget. “, in which they plan to hold a “big street action” because they want to “see that the issue of salaries is being considered.”

Returning to the WYD, they promise to be in “every possible place” in protest and that among the “50 thousand professionals, between PSP and GNR, some will be able to adjust their schedules and participate in actions,” the secretary said. permanent coordinating commission.

“Our intention is to involve the citizen because he trusts the police (…) we don’t want to put WMD at risk,” Cesar Nogueira assured.

WYD was born at the initiative of Pope John Paul II after the success of the meeting organized in 1985 in Rome as part of the International Year of Youth.

The first meeting took place in 1986 in Rome, having already passed, in its current form, in Buenos Aires (1987), Santiago de Compostela (1989), Czestochowa (1991), Denver (1993), Manila (1995), Paris. (1997), Rome (2000), Toronto (2002), Cologne (2005), Sydney (2008), Madrid (2011), Rio de Janeiro (2013) ), Krakow (2016) and Panama (2019).

This year’s edition, which will be closed by the Pope, was originally scheduled for 2022 but was delayed due to the covid-19 pandemic.

Pope Francis was the first to register for WYD Lisbon 2023 on October 23, 2022 at the Vatican.