“Regarding the process we inherited [of building a mosque in Mouraria], in this executive’s view it makes no sense to associate a religious temple, regardless of the religion it refers to, with a specific national community. We don't have that history. Never, I think, has any public authority been associated with the construction of a synagogue or for a church for a certain national community or for a mosque for a certain national community,” said Anacoreta Correia, referring to specific support for certain communities in a country and not to collaboration with different religions.

The mayor was speaking at a hearing with the 3rd and 6th committees of the Lisbon Municipal Assembly (AML), which oversee the areas of Urban Planning and Human and Social Rights, respectively, and which are evaluating the possible construction of a new mosque in Mouraria, a process that has been dragging on for more than a decade.

“We cannot help but be surprised by the very evident contrast between what was said and the expectations that were created and what was actually done, and when dealing with a vulnerable community, this contrast is even more shocking, it is quite shocking”, declared Anacoreta Correia.

To the municipal deputies, the mayor said that this process is “at the very least tortuous”, remembering that it began in 2009, with the then mayor Antonio Costa (PS), in which the first deliberation took place in 2012 regarding the creation of Praça da Mouraria and then, in 2015, there was a declaration of public utility for the urgent expropriation of three private buildings on Rua do Benformoso.

The deputy mayor also said he was aware of a protocol signed in 2013 between the municipality and the Islamic Center of Bangladesh - Baitul Mukarram Mosque for the installation of the mosque, within the scope of the Praça da Mouraria project, but stressed that “there was no deliberation” to approve it.

“It is not enough to have a role for it to exist institutionally,” he stressed, rejecting the chamber’s obligations to comply with this protocol.

According to the CDS-PP mayor, in 2016 the municipality was awarded ownership of two of the expropriated buildings, which belonged to Antonio Barroso, who challenged the process in court, and, according to the law, by 2018 the city hall would have to allocate these properties for the purpose for which the expropriation was carried out, but “nothing was done” until that date and also “nothing happened from 2019 to 2021”, a period in which the municipality was under PT management.

“Assuming that it is not a matter of incompetence, there was certainly a decision not to pursue this process,” pointed out Anacoreta Correia.

Contesting this position, PS deputy Pedro Roque considered that “there is no doubt about the validity” of the 2013 protocol, which includes a prior architectural study of Praça da Mouraria, arguing that there was “a lot going on”.

The socialist also accused the current executive, under PSD/CDS-PP management, of “deliberately” giving instructions for the process to be interrupted.

The vice-president of the city council said that there are currently six active mosques in Mouraria and reinforced that Lisbon is a plural city that respects the constitutional right to religious freedom.

“Since we took office [in October 2021], we have not had any formal request from a community about any council involvement in the construction of a mosque,” ​​he said.

Indicating that the city hall supports projects that fight for a “peaceful and respectful experience of this same pluralism”, but from a perspective “that is neither ghettoised nor specifically aimed at a certain national community”, Ancoreta Correia emphasised that “it will always be from of the communities where the projects should be developed”.

Regarding the possible mosque in Mouraria, the mayor also highlighted that “we cannot ignore the existence of the Central Mosque of Lisbon”, a place of worship for the Islamic community that “still has a capacity much greater than the current demand in terms of space.” frequency”, being at “1/3 of its potential capacity”.