Deccan Herald Tuesday, July 15, 2003 Portugal to tighten citizenship rules for former colonies
>From Devika Sequeira DH News Service PANAJI, July 14 Portugal could soon tighten laws that have made it so easy to attain a Portuguese passport with fake documents from its former colonies. This move comes in the wake of pressure from other European Union members and criticism by its media for blithely overlooking a citizenships racket operating in the heart of Lisbon's registrar's office. Portugal deputed its Secretary of State for Portuguese Communities (the position is the equivalent of a minister of state) Jose de Almeida Cesario to Goa last week to look into the functioning of the the consulate general here. Mr Cesario is said to have been shocked by the extent to which agents in Goa have taken control of processing applications for Portuguese nationality, turning it virtually into a business. Huge hoardings at the entrance of Margao, and advertisements in the classifieds of local dailies flaunt with confidence the services of the passports agents. Their charges range from Rs 30,000 to Rs 40,000 to only process one's entry papers. For 5,000 euros, one can have a Portuguese passport within three months. Thousands of poorer applicants here are known to have taken loans to pay off the agents' fees. The agents, incidentally, do not operate through the consulate here which has very little powers, but are directly linked to Conservatorio dos Registos Centrais (central registrar) in Lisbon. Mr Cesario told the media his government is aware of the falsification of documents in citizenship applications, particularly from Daman and Diu. "The issue of nationality cannot be turned into a business," he is quoted as having said by a local newspaper. It is estimated that nearly a lakh Gujaratis from Daman and Diu have settled in Portugal, compared to the 25,000 from Goa. But Portugal has done little so far, to put an end to the illegalities. All that could change now, as the Portuguese government works on modalities to clamp down on an extremely porous system that extends across half the globe. "It is not clear how they will reorganise things, but we expect they will take serious steps to set matters right after Cesarios's visit," sources in the consulate said. The racket is said to be far larger in Brazil (Portugal's biggest former colony) and equally extensive in Angola, Mozambique, Timor and Macau. Portugal's move would have a direct fallout on Goa, Daman and Diu, where those born before 1961 (when Goa was liberated), and their descendants up to a third generation, are still entitled to Portuguese nationality. Those aspiring for nationality must first register their birth in Portugal, after which one is entitled to an ID card, and finally a passport. Thousands of genuine applicants from Goa have been waiting for years (some upto ten years) for the Portuguese ID. Following complaints of mismanagement, the consulate here has put a ban on accepting entry documents till 2004, and nationality applications till 2005. Any attempt to streamline the system therefore, could only work to clear the backlog. Seen as the key to enter any European Union country, a Portuguese passport allows one to work in England as well. Copyright, 1999 The Printers (Mysore) Private Ltd., 75, M.G. Road, Post Box No 5331, Bangalore - 560001 Tel: +91 (80) 5880000 Fax No. +91 (80) 5880523 ########################################################################## # Send submissions for Goanet to [EMAIL PROTECTED] # # PLEASE remember to stay on-topic (related to Goa), and avoid top-posts # # More details on Goanet at http://joingoanet.shorturl.com/ # # Please keep your discussion/tone polite, to reflect respect to others # ##########################################################################
