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https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...-Portugal.html

Disturbing report in today's MAIL about not just one but two unprovoked knifing attacks on lone individuals at night. Same modus operandi so might be same person/s doing the attacks.

I have also seen reports of people being attacked in Lisbon.

I do realise that the number of such incidents is still far lower than is the case in the UK's cities.
However, I wonder if the local police are able to respond by detecting the criminals responsible, and does the court system cope with properly deterrent sentences ?

More generally, Portugal used to be considered an oasis of tranquillity compared not only with the UK, but also Spain, where such goings on on the costas have been run of the mill for years.

I wonder if the authorities should not do a lot more to stop such behaviour from becoming unremarkable.

I would have zero objection if they instituted online checks before granting permission to enter the country, the same as is done in the US. People who have committed violent criminal offences in their home country should just be refused permission to enter Portugal. If Spain wants them, let Spain have them.

Moses2013

I don't' know if it was ever considered an oasis of tranquility and it's just natural that smaller/less populated countries are usually considered safer (New Zealand vs Australia, Switzerland vs Germany, Rep of Ireland vs. England and so on). The more diverse the population becomes, the more problems you have and Portugal is just catching up. There are plenty of places in the UK/Spain that feel safer than the Algarve or Lisbon and it's another very tragic story.

Gang violence: triple number of homicides and attempted murders registered by PJ

https://www.portugalresident.com/gan...mpted-murders/

GrahamF

ETIAS should in theory stop some third country citizens with serious convictions from entering but of course doesn't stop other EU nationals from entering. May not be the cause in this case but ,all too often, violence is often linked to drunken stag parties.

chislenko

Excellently put Moses.

bitmanev

Yep, in the 90s I never locked my car while living in Faro
You could give the so called parking attended your car keys (again in Faro) and he will park it for a couple escudo's
Young girls could walk home early in the morning while being clubbing (Faro)

This is all changed and it's a no go these days, how sad but reality

GrahamF

Certainly not our reality. We're based most of the time in Faro, the boat's on a mooring off the town and we frequently walk around town late at night on way back to the marina where we leave the boat tender. Have never seen any trouble or felt threatened and the same applies where we have our apartment at Alges, near Lisbon.

Moses2013

But isn't that the same when people assume the whole of the UK/Spain is crime-ridden and equally there are people living in London or Madrid who never felt threatened. If you were in Alges 2 months ago, it might have felt different.

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe...an-2022-05-12/
https://www.portugalresident.com/man...ents-in-alges/
The Lisbon Metropolitan Command has admitted today that it could not dissuade an ‘aggressor’ which agents proceeded to shoot dead this morning in Algés (municipality of Oeiras).

If we feel safe or not, crazy people are everywhere.

GrahamF

Crazy people are, as you say, everywhere. Try some North Wales pubs in holiday season when the caravan dwelling drunken Mancunians and Scouses are doing battle . We have far more violent crime in the UK than Portugal, which is regarded as one of Europe's safest countries.

Having travelled South Africa and Mocambique (when there was a civil war on) in '69/'70, there's little here that worries me.

Moses2013

Have been to North Wales before and visited Snowdonia National Park, didn't seem that bad to be honest. Obviously the chances that you have more crime with a population of 67+ million (242,495 km2) vs. 10+ million (92,212 km2) in Europe are always higher. Personally I'm not bothered if a European country (civil war aside) is regarded as safer and it's always the location isn't it. Be it Manchester, Lisbon, Barcelona, Dublin, Berlin, Amsterdam, none of these places seem really safe to me and too many people for my liking.

chislenko

Another one here.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/w...-dead-24618338

toots sweet

"drunken Mancunians and Scouses are doing battle"...... so no-one from London ,Plymouth,Brighton ever have drunken fights?? Really!!!!

GrahamF

Obviously, but not many of them in N Wales. I still say the Algarve is a far safer place to holiday than many UK coastal holiday towns where for instance Rhyl (a few miles down the road from our home) alone recorded 2580 violent and sexual crimes in 2021. In comparison, very few reports of violent crimes in Albufeira involving citizens, most reports appear linked to drunken foreign tourists and stag parties at the cheapest end of the packaged holiday market here.

chislenko

Have to take exception to your comment about Rhyl. As someone who was born and brought up there Rhyl was fine until it was it was saturated with druggies released from prison in England. And of course because Westminster has the biggest say the locals get no say to stop it.

See Capel Celyn, a momentous moment in Welsh history decided by people not from Wales.

GrahamF

As you say, Rhyl "was" fine, I remember it well as a teenager 60+ years ago but times change. I wonder what nationality the landlords are (English or Welsh) who, with the demise of UK tourism, converted the holiday B & Bs to social security bed-sits and advertised in Liverpool and Manchester to come and spend benefits by the sea. Rhyl is not alone, east end of Colwyn Bay also has it's problems. The 10 neighbourhoods in North Wales with the highest crime rates - North Wales Live (dailypost.co.uk)

Whatever the reasons, I consider Portugal to be a far safer place than the UK overall, particularly when drunken antics of some tourists is taken out of the figures..

Moses2013

Of course you are right, the only problem is that you can't take tourists and non citizens out of the figures. In the 80's and 90's people in Germany also claimed that it was mainly foreigners who commited crime and today the foreigners have German children. One advantage of being in Portugal/ Spain is that many Brits don't understand the language, so even if the local is rude and shouting, many think they are just loud but friendly. Unfortunately we can't change people and no doubt there is more frustration in the UK overall, because there is more diversity with more people. Once Portugal attracts more foreigners and cities grow, Portuguese will also change and blame others for their own failure. You already see it happening in Portugal and racism was never mentioned. It was only mentioned in recent years that Lisbon police were being accused of racism and brutality against Africans. When I visit Achill, it feels safer than driving through France, Portugal or Spain and the reasons are obvious.