Portuguese MP Isabel Pires (Bloco de Esquerda) has recalled the Catalan "political prisoners" in a speech as part of the commemoration of 25th April. "Today, as we celebrate freedom and pay homage to the thousands of men and women who were political prisoners in Portugal, we have to be able to look at the world with the weight of our history and our solidarity," she said. The 25th April is the anniversary of the Carnation Revolution which overthrew the Estado Novo authoritarian regime.
Pires said that "there are political prisoners next to" their country. "A political solution is needed for Catalonia", she added, before criticising that "the most elemental guarantees of the rule of law are being violated" in Spain. According to the deputy, the EU has raised "a wall of silence" to "rob" Catalans of their voices, who, in her opinion, are suffering "persecution by the Spanish state".
Hoy, en la sesión conmemorativa de la Revolución de los Claveles, la diputada del Bloco de Esquerda @isabelruapires denuncia el muro de silencio de la Unión Europea con Cataluña, que legitima la agenda persecutoria del Estado Español. "Aquí al lado hay presos políticos". pic.twitter.com/3VXX8orDy2
— Jonathan Martínez (@jonathanmartinz) 25 de abril de 2018
The Portuguese deputy expressed her "solidarity" with "all those who are, at this time, prisoners for defending the right to decide their future".