By Frederick Philander
WINDHOEK
Urgent intervention by the Namibian Government to amicably resolve an ongoing diplomatic issue between expatriate Portuguese citizens and their government was made over the weekend during a peaceful demonstration in the capital.
Some 200 expatriate Portuguese citizens from an estimated 2 000 living in Namibia on Saturday peacefully demonstrated in front of Portugal’s consulate in the capital over their government’s decision to shut down the office.
“The recent decision of the Portuguese government to close its consular office in Windhoek, after closing its embassy a mere three years ago is an issue which is not being taken lightly by the Portuguese community, estimated at 2 000, living in Namibia,” said the spokesman of the demonstrators, Manuel Coelho.
According to Coelho, an adviser to the Portuguese government on emigration issues, his government is undergoing a major reform in its diplomatic missions worldwide.
“The closure of the Windhoek office is due to the fact that there are not enough consular acts performed, without releasing numbers to be examined. My government claims that for the past three years all consular acts have been performed in Johannesburg and not at the consular offices in Namibia,” he told the demonstrators, many of whom were fittingly dressed in traditional costumes for the demonstration.
The unhappy expatriates also demanded the Portuguese government to make public the numbers of consular acts practised in countries such as Gabon, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia and Morocco, where Portugal maintains diplomatic missions and has no communities of significant numbers.
“Economically Portuguese companies have invested a lot of money in the Namibian economy specifically in the area of telecommunications and transport. This closure is taking place now that the economic relations between Namibia and Portugal are starting to consolidate. This is inconsistency in the extreme form,” said Coelho.
He said a mere five years ago, Portugal invested 550 000 euros in the construction of the Diogo Cao’s Portuguese Culture and Language Center in Windhoek, which currently teaches 4 000 adult and children students.
“If the Namibian government decides to act on our behalf, it is our wish that it brings the Portuguese government to its senses by resolving the issue, which started last Thursday when we actually temporarily took over the consular offices. We hope the Namibian government succeeds in convincing our government to re-examine its decision not to continue with its plans to shut down the consular offices in Windhoek,” he said.
He claimed that Portugal has a number of historic links with Namibia in the sense that the Portuguese were the first Europeans to touch Namibian soil.
“Diogo Cao landed at Cape Cross and Bartholomew Diaz at L??????’??