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HOME OFFICE REAFIRMS OLIVENÇA IS PORTUGUESE Portugal's Home Office which is entrusted with representing the Portuguese State in judicial matters, has just reaffirmed Portuguese rights over the Olivença territory. This declaration is reported after the appeal made by the Portuguese State in its intervention against the judicial decision of a Lisbon court, as a result of an injunction by the Grupo dos Amigos de Olivença, which prohibited the Portuguese State from ceding to Spain the right to rebuild the 'Nossa Senhora da Ajuda' bridge that linked Elvas to Olivença, and impeded IPPAR from issuing the respective authorisation solicited by the Dirección -General de Carreteras on the basis of danger of injury to the rights of sovereignty held by Portugal over Olivença. The appeal by the Home Office was based essentially on the alleged lack of competence by the Lisbon civil court to decide the case which in its view should have been considered by an administrative court. In the appeal it is asserted that Spain by soliciting IPPAR's permission to rebuild the bridge "put itself in a position of fragility" before Portugal, and so there is no danger of injury to Portuguese rights. To the Home Office "as such it is a clear demonstration that the Portuguese State does not abdicate from its sovereignty over the 'Nossa Senhora da Ajuda' bridge and over Olivença's territories, exercising de facto such sovereignty, in demanding and possessing the power to issue that authorisation". Sources linked to the Grupo dos Amigos de Olivença consider this declaration from the Home Office as one of the most relevant affirmations of the official position of the Portuguese State with regard to its sovereignty over Olivença. In a reply already sent to the Court of Appeal, this association praises the decision of the Lisbon court and opposes the allegation by the Home Office concerning the competence of the court, and bases its argument that the agreement reached between the governments of Portugal and Spain constituted an act of political nature and not an administrative act. The decision of the Lisbon Civil court had enormous repercussions in Spain and in Olivença. The "Ayuntamiento" of that district in a full meeting which took place on 25 July 2001 decided to declare the members of the Grupo dos Amigos de Olivença 'personas non gratas'. In addition the president of the "Junta de Extremadura" has asked the Spanish government to "defend the Spanishness of Olivença" and to take the dispute of Olivença to the next European Summit. (HoyDigit@l-Badajoz, 27 July 2001) Despite Portugal's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, through its mouthpiece Horácio do Vale having declared to the Público newspaper (20 July 2001) that it accepted the judicial decision, Spanish diplomatic pressures, reported by 'El Periódico-Extremadura' newspaper (27 July 2001) forced the Portuguese government to ask the Home Office to make the appeal. According to reliable sources, it was not a question of "pressures", but of "strong threats" that some individuals connected to the dispute of Olivença believe are linked to the Alqueva (dam) enterprise which will flood more than 1,000 hectares of the present borough of Olivença. Source of Information: Dr. Mário Rui Simões Rodrigues