"AIMA, as a result of being inundated with so many regularisation cases, seems to have missed the "I" in integration," Rui Marques said during a colloquium on migration, considering that the institution "has a long way to go" on this issue and "its responses could be stronger and more comprehensive."

In addition, there is a lack of local strategies, accused the coordinator of the Immigration Consensus working group, which organized a colloquium at the University of Lisbon, noting that "integration and inclusion are played out in the realm of proximity."

"Less than ten percent of municipalities have migrant integration plans," the leader emphasised, considering that the Ministry of Education's failure to renew the hiring of cultural mediators for schools is an example of this lack of attention.

"It was not possible to hire mediators for our schools, [perhaps] due to bureaucratic issues," but the consequence is that the school year is starting without mediators when there are "more than 150,000 children of immigrants" in schools.

In this context, the Immigration Consensus aims for a "positive, realistic, and humane vision of immigration in Portugal," seeking to "anchor this issue in respect for human dignity."

"One of the most urgent missions these days is combating polarisation and committing to debate and consensus," countering the "engineers of chaos that operate in Portuguese society" who feed on "anger multiplied by algorithms."

"Hate is a poison that kills us all and represents the victory of those who want to see us at war with each other," said Rui Marques, reaffirming the "defense of family reunification as a fundamental right" and the search for "a compromise around changes to nationality law."

Serious risks of injustice

Portugal needs "good integration and inclusion policies for immigrants," because without them, there are "serious risks of injustice and social disunity," he added.

At the opening of the colloquium "Immigration: In Search of Consensus," a message from the President of the Republic was read, praising the "organised action of civil society," with a "focus on the values ​​that truly matter."

Endorsing the principles of "informed consensus" and "human dignity" that define the working group, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa called for "broad collaboration between the different spheres of society" in Portugal, giving "priority to evidence over emotions."

"Immigration is a topic that challenges us, and will continue to challenge us as a society with collective responsibilities," said the head of state, defending the "need to build an informed consensus regarding immigration, nationality, and integration."

In turn, the rector of the University of Lisbon, Luís Ferreira, recalled that "migration is an inescapable reality of human life."

"There are no societies frozen in time; the ones that are frozen are extinct societies," he emphasized.

Created in mid-June, the Immigration Consensus group includes four former high commissioners, former Secretary of State Catarina Marcelino, researchers Lucinda Fonseca and Catarina Reis Oliveira, and association leaders Eugénia Quaresma, director of the Portuguese Catholic Migration Work, and Paulo Mendes, president of the Azores Immigrants Association.