Portugal, the Consuls, and the Jewish Refugees ... - Yad Vashem

of these refugees, the police had begun to apply Salazar’s orders and theverbal instructions transmitted by the minister of Interior. 31The purpose of the above stratagem, as applied by the PVDE, was to preventrefugee Jews from staying indefinitely in Portugal. From then on, andaccording to circular number 10 of October 28, 1938, addressed to consularrepresentations, settling in Portugal was forbidden to Jews; however, theywere allowed entry as tourists for thirty days. 32 Ansgar Schäfer, in apreliminary article, has discussed the various decrees issued by the ForeignMinistry during this period. 33 Patrick von Zur Mühlen has asserted thatPortuguese policy was not determined by antisemitic reasons but rather byfactors of Portugal’s internal and external policy. 34The above-mentioned decree became a basic guideline for the transit of Jewsthrough Portugal and Spain until the end of World War II. It is worth noting thatthe Portuguese and Spanish models relative to the entry of foreigners werevery similar; the difference between them was more noticeable in thetreatment offered the refugee. Portugal was, from the beginning, more liberaland less violent than Spain. 35 As permanent residence in Portugal wasforbidden, obtaining documents to enter and leave the country was a sine quanon condition for any refugee. Besides the money to buy sea passage, it wasfirst necessary to get an exit visa from Vichy French territory, an entry visa toan overseas country or countries, usually on the American continent, and aPortuguese visa, so that finally a transit visa through Spain could be received.31Letter from the Secretary-General of the Ministry of the Interior, Mario CaesEsteves, to the MNE on September 30, 1938, AMNE 2o. P. A-43, M-38.32This is the content of the letter signed by the Secretary-General of thePVDE, Jose Catela, to the Secretary-General of the MNE on October 27,1938, AMNE 2o. P. A-43, M-38.33Ansgar Schäfer, “Obstáculos no caminho para a liberdade,” in Aspectos eTendências de Estudos Germanísticos em Portugal, Lisboa, December 1992,pp. 85-94.34Mühlen, Fluchtweg Spanien-Portugal, p. 129. Had the book not been soclearly apologetic, presenting Portugal as a country welcoming refugees, wewould have had no reason to distrust the categorical tone of this statement.35Avni, SPAIN, the Jews, and Franco, pp. 72-79.__________________________________________________________________________10/31Shoah Resource Center, The International School for Holocaust Studies