A group of Syrian immigrants housed in a remote village are staging protests over the way they have been disrespected. They say that Senhor da Serra is too far from the town of Miranda do Corvo, and they have to get up too early to catch the bus. “There is no respect,” one has told national tabloid Correio da Manhã. “They are playing with us and our situation in Syria.”
One of the members of the group has already left the country, while another is sleeping in the entrance to the local GNR police station in protest.
The others, say CM, are demanding transfer from the care of ADFP foundation whose president Jaime Ramos has nonetheless explained that, as far as he is concerned, the group has been treated with “a lot of dignity and respect for their cultures”.
Ramos has confirmed that the refugees do indeed want to “change organisation” and “have already sent requests for help to other institutions”.
One of the group’s main complaints is that they do not like Senhor da Serra – quite apart from the village being 10 kms from the nearby town.
This is not the first instance of immigrants not liking the place or conditions offered them after their arrival in Portugal, but it is also not the norm. There have been many positive stories coming out of the 500 or so refugees who have entered the country under European protocols from centres set up in Greece and Italy.
