Fish&Chips

What has Great Britain’s national dish to do with Portugal? A dish whose ingredients Winston Churchill called the nation’s ‘good companions.’ A dish described by George Orwell as the ‘chief comfort of the working class’.

It all began hundreds of years ago (www.eatmyglobe.com). During the Moorish occupation of the Iberian Peninsula Jews, Muslims and Christians in Portugal lived in relative peace. This all changed at the end of the 15th Century when King Manuel I of Portugal married Isabel of Spain, who made one of her marriage conditions the expulsion of Sephardic (meaning Spain in Hebrew) Jews from Portugal. Their religious practices had already been banned from her country in 1494.

King Manuel, who was not pleased with this prerequisite, came up with an alternative, that Jews would be allowed to stay if they converted to Christianity. Some did and became New Christians (Conversos), others fled up north to Amsterdam, from which they spread across Europe and even to the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam – nowadays New York – becoming the first Jews in the New World.

When they left, the Sephardic Jews not only took their religion with them but also their culinary habits. ‘Peshkado Frito’ (fried fish) was one of them. A selection of white fish – typically cod or haddock – deep fried in a light flour coating. It used to be prepared on a Friday in order to be eaten cold on the next day – the Sabbath – as religious laws prohibited cooking on Saturday. This ‘fried fish in the Jewish manner’ became very popular in England.

But how did fish and chips ended up being served together? There are many claims about who created the pairing. Most trace it back to the early 1860s when Joseph Malins, a Jewish immigrant, opened up a fish and chips shop in London. Other theories point to John Lee, a man from Mossley, near Manchester, who ran in 1863 a ‘chipped potato’ restaurant that sold the popular combination.

Whoever came first, what cannot be disputed is the rapid rise to success of a meal that was sold primarily to members of the working class. A nutritious and cheap dish that wouldn’t have existed without pogroms in Portugal.

Aproveite sua semana                      Enjoy your week            (pic Observador)

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Memorial

When you enter a hospital at night and hear a sick man groan, approach his bed, and if you have nothing left to give him, give him a smile – Dr Sousa Martins


After climbing Lisbon’s second hilltop, you will encounter a curious phenomenon. In a cosy little park called Campo Santana arises, amidst sturdy crowing little roosters and slow belly rocking ducks, a very special statue.

In its back the former Medical-Surgical School – now the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the New University of Lisbon – at its feet an immense heap of marble plates engraved with thanks for graces and miracles performed. Remarkable is the complete absence of religious symbols on these ex-votes. Was the figure in bronze on the pedestal a prestigious doctor, a saint or both?

Born in a village of humble people some 30 km from Lisbon, he came at the age of 12 to the capital under the protection of his pharmaceutical uncle Lázaro and graduated in Pharmacy at the age of 21 and in Medicine two years later, both with the highest grades in his class. Became professor of General Pathology, esteemed for his professional skills, modest character and dedication to charity.

Dr Sousa Martins (1843-1897) gave special relevance to the doctor-patient relationship, teaching his students at the Hospital São José (St Joseph’s hospital) not only to treat but most of all to cherish the patients. One of his lessons was that if a doctor had nothing to relieve the suffering of the patient, he would still have a smile. Although famous as a pioneer in teaching, a brilliant scientist and doctor of the Royal Family, he never liked being credited with such notoriety and affirmed himself as ‘progressive and Freemason’.

He was especially loved for the generosity with which he served the less fortunate, earning him the nickname Father of the Poor. He charged the rich large sums for their medical appointments but his poorest patient nothing, and often left money on their bedside tables along with recipes for medicines.

Sousa Martins gained enormous prestige in his fight against tuberculosis – which at that time reached epidemic proportions in Lisbon – and his name will forever be linked to Portugal’s first sanatorium in the Serra da Estrella, a mountainous region in the centre of the country.

As a dedicated physician, he always was in direct contacts with his patients. The – at that time incurable – infectious disease he fought so hard during his medical career, coupled with a heart injury, eventually killed him.
At 54, he committed suicide with an injection of morphine after confining to a friend  ‘a doctor threatened with death by two diseases, both fatal, must eliminate himself.’
The brightest light in the kingdom went out, they said.

Enjoy your week                                                         Aproveite sua semana

 

 

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Climate-proof

‘There is no planet B’

Portugal prepares to vote in Sunday’s general election.
With thousands of youngsters filling the streets at Lisbon’s Global Climate strike, one wonders how ‘green’ in fact its political parties are?

The centre-right Social Democrat party (PSD) recognizes ‘the state of emergency the planet is in’ but only presents measures enhancing the country’s ‘adaptation to climate change’ by limiting urban expansion in risk zones and favouring garden roofs. The PSD argues the energy sector to adapt but doesn’t specify how.

For the ruling Socialist party (PS) climate change adaptation is also needed. But that isn’t enough. The party defines concrete targets for 2030 and others for 2050, such as carbon neutrality. The PS wishes to reinforce the capacity of wind farms and – faced with extreme weather – extend forecasting and warning systems. Empowering farmers ‘to adopt good practices’ is also called for.

The Left Bloc (BE) is in favour of a Climate Law, an Energy Base Law and a Ministry of Climate Action. The far-left party advocates the end of fossil fuel car production by 2025 and coal-fired power generation by 2023, in the meantime accelerating solar production. It also intends to ban cars from city centres and strives for free public transport, favouring investment in ‘rail mode’.

The Unitary Democratic Coalition (CDU) – an electoral coalition between Communists and ecologist Greens – rejects green taxation, the concept of user pays and CO2 licensing. Instead, the railway network should be modernized with ‘high-speed connections’ from Lisbon to Porto and the Spanish border. It also advocates a Forest Policy based on traditional ecosystems.

The millennium Animal and Nature party (PAN) – founded in 2009 – wants vegetarian meals at state-sponsored events, prevention of any exploitation of hydrocarbons and the closure of all coal plants by 2023. Furthermore financial benefits for cycling to work, measures to reduce car traffic, restrictions on night air traffic and the suspension of the construction of a new airport.

For the rightwing Christen Democrats (CDS) a Climate Law for carbon neutrality is warranted. The party wishes to materialize an energy transition with transparency in the energy market’. Other objectives include ‘green’ entrepreneurship, full electrification and expansion of the railways.

However, the level of commitment of all six major parties is far too low, argues a group of independent citizens, analysing the elections programs. None of the parties mentions sufficient steps to reach the 96 goals (metas) defined in the Roadmap to Carbon Neutrality.
The PS – with 40 targets – comes first, which is not surprising given that the Roadmap is an initiative of the current socialist government. The CDU closes the peloton with only 13 targets covered. PAN proposes the most CO2 reduction measures and BE is the party that most concretises the actions to achieve carbon neutrality.

The polls suggest António Costa’s Socialist party will win but fall short of an absolute majority in parliament.
If the climate were to choose, it would be a coalition of the Socialist party and the Left Bloc or the PAN- which is less ideologically fixed.

Bom fim de semana                Enjoy your weekend            (pic. Público/Sapo)

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Canned

‘They sat down, lit their cigars, were about to discuss a business deal involving cork or canned fish, we would know for certain except that Ricardo Reis is now leaving’
(José Saramago, 1992. The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis)

Prepared in azeite (olive oil) or tomato sauce, canned fish – the country’s original fast food – is not only cheap but also rich in omega-3, protein and calcium. Sardines account for nearly one-third of canned fish, the remainder includes mackerel, tuna, codfish, eel, octopus and mussels.

Tinned fish has been part of Portugal’s culinary heritage since 1853 when the national canning industry was born. The traditional production process of selecting, cleaning and cooking the fish to individually canning and wrapping the tins – in 90% still done by hand – hasn’t changed much over time. Sardines are processed and canned the day they are caught and age in the can for maximum flavour.

Locals eat it with everything, from bread to salad. For many years tinned fish suffered from a bad reputation as it was considered food for the poor. That has changed. Restaurants across Lisbon now include dishes made with tinned fish on their menus. ‘It has once again become a national icon’, says Victor Vincente, partner of the Can the Can, a restaurant located in Terreiro do Paço.


What started as a method to preserve fish in the mid-1800s has turned into art. Conservas de peixe makes the perfect souvenir, not only for what’s inside but for the art of the can itself. Fish tins can be found adorned in traditional and contemporary artwork.

The Conserveira de Lisboa in downtown’s Baixa is a third-generation family-run grocery store founded in 1930. It looks like an old-fashioned apothecary but its shelves are filled with house-brand labels like Trincana, Prato do Mar and Minor.

None other than the ANICP – Portuguese National Association of Canned Fish Manufactures – is behind the Loja das Conservas, which opened in 2013. There one can find a wide array of canned fish from more than the dozen canning factories spread throughout the country.

On the advice of Europe’s scientific body ICES ( International Council for the Exploration of the Sea), the capture of sardines has been considerably decreased. ‘If we don’t limit the fishing on our Atlantic coast, we won’t have any more sardines within a couple of years’, explains Ana Paula Vitorino, the Portuguese Minister of Fisheries.

Bom fim de semana          Enjoy the weekend          (pic Potter/Eater/Público)

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Choking

Contrary to what was hoped for, global CO2 emissions actually increased in 2018.

Every major city in Europe is warmer in the 21st century than it was in the 20th. In December 2015, 195 member states of the UN agreed in the Paris Agreement to limit the temperature increase to 1.5⁰C above preindustrial levels. For several cities on the Iberian Peninsula, this 1.5⁰C threshold has already been reached.

In Lisbon – situated on the Atlantic Coast – the average temperature increased 0.5⁰C and the number of hot days (24-hour average temperature above 24⁰C) nearly doubled since 2000.

Even limited temperature increases have severe consequences. A hotter atmosphere can absorb more water leading to severe floods between longer and dryer periods. Heatwaves lead to excess mortality and mosquito-borne diseases like dengue fever has been creeping North with epidemics in Portugal in 2012. Recent research shows that when the daily temperature increases above 22⁰C, cognitive abilities of schoolchildren decrease.

The expectations are that the Mediterranean will heat up more than the global mean, resulting in a substantial decrease in the production of hydroelectric energy of which Portugal is more dependent than the Northern European countries.

Although Portugal had in 2018 the highest reduction in CO2 emissions of all EU member states, CO2 emissions of its national airline TAP  skyrocketed in the last 2 years. This was mainly the result of an explosive 30% increase in the number of passengers.
Booming tourism has become the main money-spinner generating annually more than € 14 billion in government revenues but the downside is pollution.

Portela airport – with more than 650 flight movements per day – knows few restrictions for night flights with planes coming in just a hundred meters above rooftops.

Ultrathin particles are 20 times higher close to the airport than elsewhere in the city. Measurements of inner-city noise levels taken by the environmental group ZERO showed noise pollution for more than 400.000 people with levels above the legal limits of more than 16 dB at night and 10 dB during daytime.

About 300 giant cruise ships – with at least 600.000 passengers to embark – are every year docking at a brand-new (€ 50 million) terminal. Even though only 2 years old there is no portside electricity for the moored vessels.

Massive amounts of particulate matter and sulphur dioxide (SO2) have made Lisbon’s port the sixth most polluting in Europe.
SO2 emissions from those ships are 85% higher than those emitted by Portugal’s entire car traffic over a year.

Climate change can only be achieved by keeping hydrocarbons in the ground and capturing carbon from the atmosphere. Neither option has produced any result so far.

In order to prevent global warming catastrophe policymakers have to get serious about a carbon tax set high enough to price oil, coal and gas out of the market says William Nordhaus, one of the winners of last year’s Nobel Prize for economics.

Bom fim de semana          Enjoy your weekend          (pic Público/Observador)

 

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Drugpolicy

‘It is not just about administering methadone, you have to maintain a relationship’

In 2001 Portugal became  – under the leadership of prime minister António Guterres, nowadays UN’s  Secretary-General – the first country to ‘decriminalize’ the possession and consumption of illicit substances, even heroin, and cocaine.

Despite predictions at the time of an increase in drug use and drug tourism by opponents of decriminalization, the opposite happened with huge drops in drug use, overdose deaths, drug-related crime, and HIV infection. New cases of HIV among people who inject drugs (PWID) fell from 907 in 2000 – when the country had the highest rate of HIV among PWID in Europe – to just 18 in 2017.

The country’s policy rests on 3 pillars: (i) there is no distinction between so-called soft and hard drugs, (ii) an individual’s unhealthy relationship with drugs often masks unsatisfactory relationships with the world around and (iii) the eradication of all drugs is an impossible goal.

What did and what did the country not do?
It did not change laws on drug trafficking: dealers still go to prison. And it did not ‘legalize’ drug use but rather made the purchase or possession of small quantities (up to a 10 day supply) not a crime.

Methadone clinics, clean needle handouts, supervised injection sites, drug consumption facilities and a pan-ministerial network of support were set up and are still operational today.

There are currently two Threshold Mobile Units in Lisbon – attending approximately 1,200 people a day – and 170 recovery facilities in a country of 10 million people for treatment and education about the harmful effects of drugs.

This public health approach reflects the view that addiction is more a medical challenge than a criminal justice issue; a chronical disease that requires medical care rather than punishment. An additional benefit of the Portuguese model is that it’s far cheaper to treat people than to jail them.

While other states have developed various forms of de facto decriminalization – whereby substances perceived to be less harmful (such as cannabis) rarely lead to criminal prosecution – Portugal remains the only EU member state with a law explicitly declaring drugs to be ‘decriminalized.’

Bom fim de semana           Enjoy the weekend         (pic Público/NYT/Cato)

 

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Booze

If something bad happens, we drink to forget.
If something good happens, we drink to celebrate.
If nothing happens, we drink to make something happen        (Charles Bukowski)


Global consumption of alcohol will rise another 17% over the next decade, after a 10% rise in the last 25 years. Nowadays one-third of all adults drink alcohol, by 2030 half of them will. The highest alcohol intakes are recorded in Europe with Moldava claiming top spot with more than 15 litres of pure alcohol per adult per year.

While in most European countries alcohol consumption among 15-years-old has been halved in the last decade – in Portugal from 16% to 8% – the Portuguese consumption with 12.3 litres per adult per year is still far above the European mean (9.8 litres) and even higher than in Russia (11.7 litres). Three quarters of the Portuguese men and half of the women drink. Excess drinking is on the increase in adults above 45 years of age, especially in women.

What does this mean for the health of the Portuguese? Excessive alcohol intake is associated with road traffic accidents, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, domestic violence, and suicide attempts.
In 2017 more than one-third of the Portuguese drivers – who died on the road – had too much alcohol (>0.5 g/l) in their blood. The highest number in 5 years.


Drinking is an important cause of cancer in the over-50s, particularly in women. Research in the UK showed that one in 13 breast cancers are alcohol-related and a quarter of cancer deaths in women over 50 linked to drinking habits.


In 2018, the medical journal The Lancet concluded that although alcohol use among youngsters has declined, risky drinking behavior – like binge drinking – remains concerning high.

A more recent study analyzing alcohol consumption under 500.000 adults and published in the same journal, showed that alcohol increases the blood pressure and the risk of stroke. A finding that should ring bells in Portugal, that hasn’t only a substantial alcohol consumption but also the highest prevalence of stroke in Europe.

Given the fact that there is no safe level of drinking, the public health policy should be to prioritize measures to reduce drinking through increasing taxation, setting the price according to the strength of the drink, curbs on marketing and restricting the places where people can buy alcohol.

But the consumer also has the right to be informed about the dangers. Labeling of bottles of wine and cans of beer with ‘alcohol causes cancer’ – like the Irish government proposed last year – might help to inform the general public in a better way. How many women actually know that alcohol causes breast cancer?

One day someone mentioned to Fernando Pessoa ‘ You drink like a sponge’. Portugal’s most famous poet replied ‘Not like a sponge. Like a sponge shop, and with a storeroom attached.’ He died from booze at the age of 47.


Bom fim de semana                Enjoy the weekend            (pic Sapo/Público)

 

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Corruption

Portugal has no right-wing, left-wing parties, nothing, there’s a bunch of villains who come together to steal together  –  José Saramago

Perceived corruption in Portugal has for many years been just below the European average, according to the 2018 Corruption Index from Transparency International (www.transparancy.org).
This index ranks 180 countries on how corrupt their public sector is. The higher the number (0-100 scale) the less corruption. Portugal ranks 30 worldwide with a score of 64. Denmark and New Zealand rank first (score 88),  Somalia last  (score 10).

The reason for this standstill is the lack of political will and the ability to establish ethical conduct standards. This is reflected in the failure of the Parliamentary Commission on Transparency – established three years ago – to control members of parliament,  judges and attorneys. But also the government is to blame through its lack of vigilance in preventing abuse and unwillingness to punish corruption when it occurs.

The low number of convictions and the fact that 94% of the corruption cases are archived without trial, doesn’t help either to restore confidence in the authorities. ‘A national strategy to combat corruption – independent of the political colour of the government – is needed, believes João Batalha, president of Transparency and Integrity Civil Association (TIAC).

Former president Ramalho Eanes stated last month that corruption in the public service is a ‘complex problem that proliferates through society. Our civil society isn’t strong and autonomous enough against the state. The elected politician is more a delegate of the party than a representative of the voter and it is very difficult to change this culture.

Corruption costs the country at least 18 billion euros per year. That is about 8% of the GDP and more than the annual Health budget.
A recent inquiry by Eurostat under Portuguese civilians showed that more than 80% of the respondents were of the opinion that corruption is an essential part of the business culture.

It is therefore not surprising that Portugal is the least compliant of 49 European countries in the fight against corruption. A report from the Council of Europe’s anti-corruption group (GRECO ) by the end of 2018 revealed that nearly three-quarters of its recommendations – in particular on political parties and the judiciary – were not fulfilled.
(red bars in figure)

Not only the Council of Europe is dissatisfied. The Organisation for Cooperation and Economic Development (OECD ) concluded at the beginning of this year, that the judiciary system in Portugal isn’t functioning properly and calls for special courts to judge corruption and white-collar crime. It also recommends an electronic declaration of interest register for all members of the government and public administration employees.


Bom fim de semana          Enjoy the weekend     (pic Público/EsqNet/Expresso)

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Frogs

The Spanish company DIA, owner of the supermarket chain Minipreço recently announced the removal of any ceramic frogs at the entrance of its 530 stores in Portugal. The reason for his was the complaint of a customer, who sent photos to the newspapers of a frog at the entrance of a Minipreço branch in Várzeas, in the Leiria district.

The racist practice of Portuguese shopkeepers to use bright green ceramic frogs at the entrance of shops and restaurants is to scare away Roma, who consider frogs symbols of evil and bad luck. ‘I know that the Portuguese law forbids discrimination, but I’ am not forced to put up with people who steal and cause trouble’, admits an anonymous vendor from Porto.

Roma communities arrived in Portugal in the 15th century but were only accepted as citizens in 1822. Persecuted for centuries and subjected to repressive laws, they are discriminated in employment, education and housing.

‘Most Roma live below the poverty line and are not properly informed about their rights. There is a lot of resignation: many Roma don’t complain because they don’t think complaining will change anything’, says Marta Pereira, activist and SOS racism member (www.sosracismo.pt)

According to a report published last year by the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance, xenophobia and racism are prevalent in Portugal, in particular, aimed at gypsies and blacks. ‘Portugal’s ‘racial colour-blindness makes it impossible to prove institutional racism’, Pereira states.

Although the country adopted in 2013 a National Strategy for the Integration of Roma Communities, successful measures against exclusion and discrimination have not been implemented. ‘The Roma continue to lack access to housing and jobs. The Government’s plan is simply not good enough to address the structural problems Roma’s face’, Pereira explains. ‘On top of that minorities are often blamed for their own marginalization.’

‘It’s so common in Portugal to insult Roma, that it is seen as something normal. What scares me most, is how normalized the prejudice is.’   ( Maria Gil, Roma actress )

Bom fim de semana               Enjoy your weekend            (pic Público/JEcon)

 

 

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Dumping

“The planet is witnessing the appearance of new creatures, ones that have already conquered all continents. At first glance, they seem very delicate and frail but this is an illusion – they are long-lived, almost indestructible: their fleeting bodies won’t decompose for some three hundred more years.
These plastic bags are empty on the inside, and this historic foregoing of all contents unexpectedly affords them great evolutionary benefits”
( Olga Tokarczuk in Flights – Man Booker International 2018)

Plastic has proven to be indispensable in our global economy; most is used as packing material. Despite the fact that over 13 million tons of plastic are annually dumped into our oceans – every minute a truckload – the global production of plastic is still on the increase.

In Europe circa 30% of plastic is recycled.
If it is up to the Portuguese Parliament plastic bags – as well as plastic packing material for fruit, vegetables and bread – will be forbidden from June 2020.

Every Portuguese citizen produces about 480 kg of garbage per year (~ 1,3 kg per day), just as much as the average European. However, the separate collection of paper, glass and plastic in Portugal is still very limited and only 10-15% recycled.

Since the tourist boom some seven years ago, urban waste production in the capital has nearly doubled. Especially downtown – Cais do Sodré, Misericórdia and Bairro Alto, where most tourists stay and the nightlife takes place – garbage accumulates. It leaves no doubt that – besides separation of waste – the frequency of collection services has to be intensified.

Another major polluter is the textile industry, the second largest after the oil industry. Although one can nowadays buy a T-shirt and a pair of jeans for almost no money, few people realize the enormous footprint – of nearly 15.000 litres of water – it takes to produce them. The manufactory of clothing has doubled in the last 15 years, whereas its lifespan was halved. Fast fashion rules!

Each year the Portuguese throw away 200,000 tons of textile (~20 kg per person). Although in some places – e.g. Braga –selective collection of textile takes place, the majority of unwanted clothes end up in the incinerator or on the garbage dump.


Bom fim de semana              Enjoy the weekend            (pics Sapo/DN/Público)

 

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