UVF accused of bullying Portuguese families
Members of the Portuguese community in Northern Ireland are being bullied into paying protection money to a loyalist paramilitary organisation, it was claimed today.
Following the latest racist attack on a family in Portadown, Sinn Féin Assembly member John O’Dowd alleged members of the Ulster Volunteer Force were asking Portuguese families to stump up cash.
A petrol bomb was thrown at a Portuguese family’s home in Portadown’s Armagh Road at 8.20pm last night, causing scorch damage to the front window and wall of the house.
Witnesses saw a tall, thin man in dark clothing running away in the direction of Armagh Road and Church Street Junction.
Police have appealed to other people in the area who saw anything suspicious to come forward.
Mr O’Dowd described the attack as attempted murder and alleged there was an ongoing organised campaign of intimidation by the UVF.
The Upper Bann MLA (Member of the Legislative Assembly) said: “The Portuguese community in Portadown are facing physical attacks on a weekly basis. This latest incident is the third attack in seven days.
“They are being forced to pay protection money if they do not live in the right landlord’s house and some of those providing employment to the Portuguese in Portadown have been forced to hand over thousands of pounds to known UVF members.
“Unionist politicians will have to face up to their responsibilities and stop ignoring the elephant in the room. They must not only speak out on this issue but they must be proactive in bringing it to an end.
“Without the Portuguese members of the community in Portadown some of the main employers in the town would not be there, the Portuguese are hard-working members of and contributors to our society. We must show our appreciation for them and actively work to stop these attacks.”
Portadown has a number of Portuguese families living in the town, employed in local factories.
It isn’t the first time the community has been targeted.
In August, the homes of two Portuguese families were targeted when a number of people kicked and battered in the doors of their flats in Moeran Park in an early morning attack.
Members of the Filipino and Vietnamese communities have also been victims of racial attacks in the town.
