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The MPPM took part in the National March called by the United Platform for Solidarity with Palestine, which led thousands of people to parade between Praça do Município and Assembleia da República, in Lisbon, on Saturday, November 18, demanding freedom for Palestine and an immediate ceasefire.

On the afternoon of Thursday 16 November, an artistic intervention in solidarity with Palestine took place in Coimbra's Praça 8 de Maio on the initiative of the local branches of MPPM, CPPC, MDM, Projeto Ruído, URAP, AAPC and the Coimbra Confederation of Trade Unions.

The initiative consisted in the collective painting of a cloth for the "An Embrace for Peace in Palestine" parade - scheduled for Tuesday 21 November - and was attended by Ana Biscaia and other artists.

The participation of a group of pre-school children from the 25 de Abril Kindergarten, located in Rua da Sofia, in this painting had a huge impact on passers-by.  Many people wanted to take a photo of this tender moment.

Everyone who asked was able to contribute to the painting, including a Palestinian student who painted on the cloth something written in his own language: "Free Palestine."

On Wednesday 16 November, at the initiative of the Beja Confederation of Trade Unions - CGTP, the Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation and MPPM, the city of Beja witnessed a beautiful citizens' action under the slogan "For Peace in the Middle East, For the Rights of the Palestinian People."

Starting from Portas de Mértola, two and a half hundred people, including many Arab and Muslim immigrants, marched through the central streets of the city holding banners and waving flags of Palestine and the promoting organisations.  During the vibrant parade, slogans such as "Peace yes, occupation no," "Gaza is not a prison, massacre and siege no" and "Palestine will win" resounded.

Beja demonstrates for Palestine - 16 November 2023
Beja demonstrates for Palestine - 16 November 2023
José Oliveira speaks at Beja demonstration - 16 November 2023
José Oliveira speaks at Beja demonstration - 16 November 2023

Hundreds of people took part in the four initiatives held in the Setúbal Peninsula on 15 November 2023 to denounce Israel's barbaric crimes against the Palestinian people, most notably the ongoing massacre in the Gaza Strip which has so far resulted in more than 11,000 Palestinian deaths (almost half of them children), a million and a half displaced people and immense material destruction, creating a humanitarian catastrophe of unprecedented proportions.

The participants particularly demanded an immediate ceasefire to put an end to the massacre.  They also drew attention to the danger of the war spreading to the whole of the Middle East and called for a fundamental solution to the issue, which necessarily implies the creation of an independent and sovereign Palestinian state.  The slogan "Palestine will win" was repeatedly chanted in solidarity with the struggle of the Palestinian people.

On 15 November 1988, 35 years ago, Yasser Arafat read out in Algiers the Palestinian Declaration of Independence, written by the poet Mahmoud Darwish and just approved by the Palestinian National Council, meeting in exile: “The Palestine National Council hereby declares, in the Name of God and on behalf of the Palestinian Arab people, the establishment of the State of Palestine in the land of Palestine with its capital at Jerusalem (Al-Quds Ash-Sharif).”

MPPM was present at Camões Secondary School in Lisbon on 13 November, with an afternoon session for the school's students and an evening session for the general public, showing the film The Land Speaks Arabic.  Both screenings were followed by a debate.

In the afternoon session, the students, who filled the auditorium to capacity, were very interested in the screening of the documentary How Palestine was Colonised, by Abby Martin, and three short films by Aljazeera.  This was followed by a Q&A with Jorge Cadima, of MPPM.

In the evening, for the general public, and as part of Camões High School's partnership with ABC Cineclube de Lisboa, the film The Land Speaks Arabic by Marise Gargour was shown.  The subsequent debate, which was well attended, was moderated by Carlos Almeida, of MPPM.

MPPM took part in the demonstration promoted by the General Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP-IN) which yesterday, 11 November, led thousands of people to march between Príncipe Real and Cais do Sodré, in Lisbon, "For increases in wages! Against the rising cost of living! For the right to health and housing!", thus emphasising the bonds of solidarity between Portuguese workers, fighting for their rights, and the Palestinian people fighting for peace and their national rights.

Responding to a call from the Algarve Confederation of Trade Unions (USAL-CGTP), the Portuguese Council for Peace and Cooperation (CPPC), and the Movement for the Rights of the Palestinian People and for Peace in the Middle East (MPPM), two hundred people gathered in Santo António Street, in the centre of the capital of Algarve, to demonstrate their repudiation of Israel's barbaric aggression against the Gaza Strip, which has already caused more than 10,000 Palestinian deaths (almost half of them children) and enormous material destruction, creating a humanitarian catastrophe of unimaginable proportions.

More than a thousand people marched in Porto on the afternoon of 5 November, between Praceta da Palestina and Praça D. João I, demonstrating for peace in the Middle East and for Palestinian independence, against the war and the massacre that Israel is carrying out in Gaza, for an immediate ceasefire, and for urgent humanitarian aid.

Presented by the young woman Ana Pedro, Tiago Oliveira, coordinator of USP/CGTP-IN; José António Gomes, of the National Board of MPPM; Manuel Loff, one of the promoters of a manifesto of solidarity with Palestine; the Palestinian student Nur Latif; and Ilda Figueiredo, president of CPPC's National Board, all spoke at Praça D. João I, .

The event ended with Palestinian music and dancing.

Palestinian music and dance at the end of demonstration in Porto
Palestinian music and dance at the end of demonstration in Porto

The Movement for the Rights of the Palestinian People and for Peace in the Middle East (MPPM) is shocked by the statements addressed by the President of the Portuguese Republic to the Palestinian Ambassador to Portugal and the media, last Friday 3 November 2023, inside the Palestinian space at the Diplomatic Bazaar held every year in Lisbon.

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