The association that reported the attack on the Nepalese child said it had informed the authorities

The Padre Alves Correia Center (CEPAC), which reported the alleged attack on a Nepalese child at a school in Amador, assured this Thursday that it has already provided the authorities with “accurate information” to monitor the situation.

“Accurate information was transferred to the competent authorities to establish the alleged facts,” the department said in a statement, without specifying when the information was transferred or which authorities were involved.

Lusa attempted to contact CEPAC and its executive director Ana Mansoa this Thursday, but was unable to obtain further clarification.

The case was reported on Tuesday by Radio Renascença, which spoke to Ana Mansoa “about the perception of Catholic organizations about the rise of hate speech.”

“In the telephone conversation, which was conducted in good faith, the case in question was mentioned as an example, from memory, according to the article and recorded statements that were partially made public,” the statement said this Thursday.

CEPAC added that it would not make any further statements on the matter, about which the Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation (MECI) has already admitted it has no knowledge.

“We are fully prepared to cooperate, but we believe that media coverage will only harm the well-being of the child,” he concluded.

This Thursday, Minister Fernando Alexandre confirmed that he is not aware of a case of alleged attack on a Nepalese child in a school in the municipality of Amadora, and stressed that all cases of violence must be reported to the authorities.

“When the news was published, the ministry tried to find out. The services were provided to schools and, in fact, with the contours that were described in the media, we do not have an establishment of the fact,” he said.

Radio Renascença reported on Tuesday that a 9-year-old Nepalese boy was “the victim of a lynching” at a school in Lisbon, with Ana Mansoa believing that “the motives of the other minors were xenophobic and racist.”

In response to questions from Lusa and other media about the case, MECI said Wednesday that CEPAC “initially refused to cooperate” and that only “after persistent demands” it was able to identify the school where the attacks took place.

“Upon contacting the concerned school in Amador, management was informed that the only students of Nepalese nationality attending the group were pursuing secondary education. It also stated that it was completely unaware of the alleged episode or any similar situation and did not even record any disciplinary incidents,” the ministry added.