Luanda - The Brazilian ambassador to Angola, Rafael de Mello Vidal, asked the Angolan authorities to give a "balanced treatment" to the issue of his compatriots linked to the Universal Church of God Kingdom (UCGK) Angola) with irregular migratory situation.
Speaking to ANGOP, the diplomat asked that the issue be dealt with in "line with the principles that guide immigration issues on both sides".
According to the ambassador, more than 70 Brazilian citizens of IURD Angola are unable to regularise their migratory situation, which could eventually subject them to a deportation process.
"Some of them, as is known, have already received notifications from the migratory authorities to this effect," he said, stressing that the Brazilian Embassy in Angola is closely monitoring the situation.
Meanwhile, Rafael de Mello Vidal said that the decision on whether or not to grant residence visas was the sovereign responsibility of the Angolan government, as it is a state based on the rule of law.
"The Embassy's primary concern is with the migratory stability of these citizens, notwithstanding the reasons that may have led to the present situation," he said.
He said that the UCGK is an institution with a presence worldwide, but in Angola it is an Angolan church, subject to the regulations provided for by the Angolan state.
According to the spokesman for the Migration and Foreigners Service (SME), commissioner Simão Milagre, who was speaking to Angolan newspaper Jornal de Angola, the institution received from the UCGK Angola a list of 51 Brazilian missionaries with expired visas in Angola.
