Jorge Moreia is determined to thwart those Ria Formosa islanders who are fighting for their homes and way of life, and is to appeal against the Loulé court judgement that the demolition crews must cease their work.
Moreia has instructed the Polis Ria Formosa Society to come up with a new study on the 'positive environmental impacts for nature' that will be achieved after 800 houses have been demolished and the land cleared of inconvenient humans.
The Minister for the Environment said on Saturday that he does not agree with the court decision and the new evaluation will show that by removing these properties, nature will better be served.
This truism fails to combine human activity with the natural landscape as any landscape devoid of its inhabitants will revert to a natural state.
The Minister still regards the islanders with jealousy and as an obstacle to his overall plan to kick them all off their islands with the icreasingly mistrusted excuse of 'so everyone can enjoy them.'
According to Jorge Moreira da Silva, the Ministry for the Environment will soon show in an additional study that it is in the right and the removal of 800 properties is 'in the public interest' despite the islanders being members of the that public and disagreeing, and the rest of the population either 'really not bothered' or pro-islanders.
The Minister already knows what his newly commissioned study will conclude, adding that it will be carried out within 90 days and “clearly will demonstrate the benefits to nature of the renaturalisation of the Ria Formosa islands.”
"The Government cannot replace the courts, but I hope that the decision of the courts can confirm the evaluation we are doing," added Moreira da Silva whose determination to prove he is right and the islanders are wrong has become messianic and he now lacks scientific, moral, social and legal weapons with which to combat the well laid out arguments of the islanders.
Moreia da Silva has stood up in parliament and assured the assembly that the island demolitions will be completed but so far has only managed to destroy about 300 properties.
He says the demolitions were approved a long time ago, but fails to explain that it is this delay by the inefficient and badly run Polis company that has pushed him to the time limit.
Polis is to be wound up this autumn and any work left undone will remain undone.
The minister assured the press, erroneously, that not one of the demolitions was of a primary residence but all were just "holiday homes or second homes."
Moreira da Silva added that in the case of "first homes, demolitions occur only when there has been prior resettlement of citizens," a statement that he may actually believe to be true now that he has repeated this untruth so often.
The minister and Polis are out of control and the last minute demolition programme has failed to remove the targeted communities and properties despite the use of a variety of increasingly flimsy excuses ranging from health and safety to the environment.
In May this year, the demolition programme was halted due an inspired injunction fronted by Olhão mayor António Pina who argued that as Farol island's chameleon was in danger of being disturbed, it is a protected species, the demolition programme should be halted.
The judge agreed and the minister and Polis were thwarted.
Moreia da Silva remains embarrassed that his plan to clear the island of what he sees as inconvenient, poor, lower class yet vociferous citizens has been met with spirited resistance by islanders with well-presented arguments, appearances on national TV, clever use of social media and a deep-rooted determination to stay in their ancestral homes.
What Moreia da Silva failed to mention in his latest press release was his stated plan, once selected houses have been torn down, to demolish the remainder as "it would be unfair on those who have lost their properties if others remained." His talk of "only second homes" is nonsense, Moreia da Silva wants them all gone.
The minister may also be in a difficult realtionship with the murky world of business as once the islands are cleared of the great unwashed, developers are set to be given permission to develop these beautiful islands for high class tourist resorts, a scenario that the government denies while at the same time applying to Brussels to classify the area as a 'special tourism zone.'
By failing to deliver on his 'ground zero' promise, Moreira da Silva may be making some powerful enemies. Learing when and how to retreat is a politcal skill he has yet to master.
Comments
If you feel they should be wiped off the earth to provide "positive environmental impacts for nature" how about you start with a 10km circle around your house? That will revert to nature just as quickly.
This is the European Certification of Sustainable Tourism in Protected Areas,
See:
http://destinet.eu/who-who/market-solutions/certificates/fol442810/european-charter-for-sustainable-tourism-in-protected-areas
and the Europarc scheme which "...has long recognised the need to take care of both the land and the people who live and work there, and often derive their livelihoods from those who come to appreciate these special places."
Portugal's government intention is different: demolish 800 properties, get rid of nearly everyone and then make the islands into a tourist zone.
This would benefit from expansion. In the developed EU this might mean eco-friendly tourism like scuba diving; seal and whale watching. Making Nature Reserves with bird watching hides and building manufactured burrows for viewing underground dwellers. Any camping or caravaning done under very strict rules. Most roads closed to motorised traffic and limited to cycling or horse drawn carriages.
Keeping put those locals who have 1st homes to service the tourists. And to help in replanting of natural scrubland; re-duning; renovating shingles; and any grazing marshland.
Sounds great ! And a good income generating asset to the region.
But shifting the indigenous population just so Algrave's Mafia tourism owners can spoil these islands as they have already done their coastline .... NO!
It is impossible to imagine, however, that this is the motive for the present actions.
The report will say that the chameleons will thrive when all the humans have gone.
Any environment will become more natural if humans are eradicated or displaced. Moreia da Silva wants people gone from these islands so concessions can be sold. 'Environment' is an excuse. He has no real care for the environment. Look at the destruction of environment at Dona Ana beach for example, it's all about money.
The islanders should waste no time, and commission their own ecological study.
I think your last sentence is good, Ed. Hitler used to dismiss generals who did not perform. In Soviet Russia, Stalin had bad performers shot. In Portugal in 2015, perhaps Silva is waving goodbye to his career.