The petition contesting the name of the Cardeal Dom Manuel Clemente pedestrian cycle bridge, between Lisbon and Loures, has already collected more than 7,800 signatures and can be discussed in the plenary of the Republic.
The growing following of the petition “is not surprising”, said today to Lusa Tiago Rolino, one of the initiators of the initiative that aims to debate the decision of the chamber of the capital to appoint the cardinal in the Assembly of the Republic Patriarch Manuel Clemente to the new bicycle-pedestrian bridge connecting the municipalities of Lisbon and Loures, which was built in the context of World Youth Day (WYD).
The tribute to the cardinal is disputed by the promoters of the public petition, who consider it an affront to the good name of victims of sexual abuse by the Catholic Church, whose number has been estimated by the independent commission that studied the abuse at around 4,800 .
In less than 24 hours, the number of subscribers to the public petition has risen from about 1,000 on Saturday afternoon to 7,817 at 6 p.m. today.
“We’re not surprised by the scope, because we know it’s a fair fight, it’s not personal, it’s not against anyone, but it’s about protecting the good name of the victims. It’s a fair fight for everyone,” said Tiago Rolino.
On the day Jornal de Notícias revealed that 93% of WYD contracts were concluded by direct agreement, the promoter of the public petition accused Lisbon Mayor Carlos Moedas (PSD) of “a direct adjustment of the image and the political declaration” at the expense of an infrastructure connecting two municipalities and the name of victims of abuse by the Catholic Church.
“We are not surprised by the accession, because society has recognized the importance of these movements. It is a matter of protecting the most basic human rights. Carlos Moedas wanted to make a direct adjustment of image and political affirmation here”he claimed.
Entitled “Petition to change the planned name of the Lisbon/Loures bridge to Parque Tejo”, the petition was launched on Saturday via the social network X (formerly Twitter) by Telma Tavares, author of the posters in memory of victims of sexual abuse by members of the Catholic Church placed in Lisbon, Loures and Algés during WYD, which took place early this month.
The petition invokes “the alleged secularity of the state” and asks whether the attribution of Manuel Clemente’s name to the bridge “can even be seen as an insult and/or disrespect to the more than 4,800 victims of Sexual Abuse by the Church in Portugal”. .
“Since the bridge is one of the pieces of equipment paid for with government money, which all Portuguese will pay for with remarkable effort, the minimum requirement will be to pay tribute to those who have actually made a difference or were the authors of achievements. deserve a prominent place in our municipality”, read in the text.
The petition is addressed to the City Council of Lisbon, but has already collected more than 7,500 signatures and can be appreciated by deputies in the plenary session of the Assembly of the Republic.
On Friday, the Lisbon City Council announced that the new bicycle-pedestrian bridge connecting the municipalities of Lisbon and Loures, over the Trancão River, in the eastern part of the city, will be called Ponte Cardeal Dom Manuel Clemente.
“It is a fair tribute from the city to a man who has given so much to Lisbon throughout his life,” said Carlos Moedas, quoted in a statement from the municipality.
In a message to Lusa, Manuel Clemente thanked “the generosity” of the municipality and said that he had included in his name “all those who worked on World Youth Day”.
According to the Lisbon City Council, the name of the bridge was communicated to the mayor of Loures, Ricardo Leão (PS), who considered it “a good option and fair recognition”.
Source: DN
