Portuguese prosecutor charges Albufeira mayor with discrimination and incitement to hatred over anti-Roma remarks [editar]

We at Fundación Secretariado Gitano wish to express our deep concern and condemnation regarding the statements made on 26 November 2025 by Rui Cristina, mayor of Albufeira (Portugal) and leader of the Chega party, for which the Portuguese Public Prosecutor’s Office has charged him with discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence. The charges were filed on 17 August according to the Portuguese news agency LUSA.

During a municipal council meeting, and in the context of a debate on housing and public land, Rui Cristina stated that the municipality, of its own accord, would not allocate housing resources to ‘a certain group of citizens’ belonging to an ‘ethnic minority’, in reference to Roma people.

These statements are particularly serious because they come from a public representative and explicitly link access to public resources and policies to people’s ethnic background. Excluding or singling out a community on the basis of its ethnic origin constitutes an expression of antigypsyism and undermines the principles of equality, dignity and non-discrimination. This is not the first time that members of the Chega party have made anti-Roma statements.

There is no political, economic or administrative justification that could make ethnic origin a legitimate criterion for deciding who deserves access to social housing or support from public institutions. Public authorities must guarantee rights for all, not establish categories of citizens based on their origin.

We therefore welcome the fact that the Portuguese public prosecutor’s office has brought charges against this public official.