sign in sign up
<<
Home , Beira (Portugal), Coimbra District, Costa (surname), Jorge Sampaio, Paulo Portas, University of Coimbra

9 November 2020 ISSN: 2560-1628 2020 No. 37

WORKING PAPER

Glimpses at the Possibilities and Challenges in a Post-Pandemic Europe: From a Portuguese Perspective

Cristina Zhou

Kiadó: Kína-KKE Intézet Nonprofit Kft.

Szerkesztésért felelős személy: Chen Xin

Kiadásért felelős személy: Wu Baiyi

1052 Budapest Petőfi Sándor utca 11. +36 1 5858 690 [email protected] china-cee.eu

Glimpses at the Possibilities and Challenges in a Post-Pandemic Europe: From a Portuguese Perspective

Cristina Zhou of

Abstract

Moving into a next phase of the coronavirus crisis, with an eased lockdown restriction to allow economies to reopen, the EU is showing steady and positive signs of recovery, having recently injected a significant stimulus to its state-members. Although uncertainties are still lurking, aggravated by a serious second wave of infection in the main urban centers, as well as by an increasing weariness of the general public, after months of strict control. Undoubtedly, the coming Winter will be extremely important for combat against the pandemic. Meanwhile, it is a time to rethink and to readjust. In this paper, firstly, we will observe ’s plan to tackle the social and economic problems caused by this global health crisis, underlining its valuable insights. Secondly, we will present, with first-hand information, the main ideas and inspirations encountered by the Chinese community in Portugal, facing the challenges and hope of a post-pandemic world. In the end, we propose to review the Sino-Portuguese relations during the pandemic, up until now, stressing the obstacles and ambiguities, as well as some potential opportunities.

I. Portugal’s vision and plan: between realism and futurism Located in the southwestern extremity of the European Continent, Portugal, whose economy has been strongly affected by the health crisis, is arguably not among the countries most severely hit by the pandemic, such as and . Looking back at Portugal’s reaction to the pandemic from the beginning of this year up until now (mid-October), we can basically divide its respondence in four phases: 1. Media coverage (January to February); 2. Strict control (March to April); 3. Gradual relaxation (May to August); 4. Dealing with a second wave (September to October).

During the first stage, Portugal, like other European countries, gave constant media coverage concerning the evolution of the COVID-19 epidemy in China. In early February, Portugal evacuated its citizens from Wuhan. Meanwhile, clusters of cases were also detected in

1

Italy, especially in and , regions with vibrant commercial activities and directly connected with Portugal by frequent flights. On 2nd March, Portugal confirmed its first two cases: one 60-year-old doctor returned from his holidays in Northern Italy, one 33-year-old worker who had been in Valencia, Spain. Facing the drastic spreading of the cases, Portugal was reasonably prompt to take actions: on 15th March, circulation on the frontier with Spain was cut, allowing only cross-frontier workers and goods to pass; on 18th March, the state of emergency was declared. Only on 2nd May was it eased to a state of calamity. During March and April, compared with neighboring Spain, Portugal managed to control the death tolls of the pandemic with significantly more success. This relative victory earned Portugal a general admiration of international society. For instance, both “” and “Der Spiegel” reported and applauded Portugal’s success, giving this phenomenon an enviable name of “Portuguese Miracle”.

However, during the months of May and June, the “Portuguese Miracle” seemed to evanescent. As was pointed out by the commentator and former Minister of Foreign Affairs Paulo Portas, Portugal was left behind by most EU countries, in its failure of preparing a COVID-tracking application. was considered as unsafe (archipelagos and remain on the list of safe destinations) by the British government and was excluded from the UK air corridor. As a country that relies heavily on seasonal business such as tourism, Portugal was deeply affected by this exclusion, since it has been the destination of more than 2.5 million British citizens, which accounted for almost 20% overnight stays from foreign visitors (in 2019). Only during the period from 20th August to 10th September did the British Government temporarily lifted the exclusion, allowing UK residents flying from Portugal not to comply with a 14-day-quarantine. As a result of this restriction, in the peak tourist season of August, Algarve, which is traditionally dependent on British visitors, registered a regional hotel occupation as low as 60.5%.

Entering in September and facing the threat of a second-wave infections, Portugal declared a state of contingency from 15th September and on, putting forward specific preventive measures, especially for and Oporto metropolitan areas, preparing the return of teachers and students for the new school year. However, due to steep surge of new cases, the state of calamity was declared on 14th October. As winter is coming, Portugal is facing another surge of new cases and is liable to enter a new emergency state, which was already being discussed between the Portuguese leaders.

According to the DGS daily report on 18th October, Portugal, a country with a population of 10.28 million (2019) and a territory of 92.212 km2, registered a total number of 99,911

2

(which is almost 1% of the population), confirmed cases (1,856 newly confirmed), among which 39,449 in the North, 47,412 in Lisbon metropolitan area, 8,214 in the Central Region, 2,199 in Algarve, 1,991 in Alentejo, 318 in Azores and 328 in Madeira; a total number of 59,000 recovered cases, 2,181 deaths; the recovery rate is around 59.1% and the fatality rate around 2.2%. Regarding the actual situation, please see the table below.

DGS latest COVID-19 report: 18/10/2020

Total confirmed cases 99,911

Active cases 38,730

Total cases (men) 45,484

Total cases (women) 54,427

Total deaths (men) 1,100

Total deaths (women) 1,081

Under surveillance 54,851

Recovered 59,000

Deaths 2,181

Currently admitted to hospital 1,086

Currently admitted to ICU 155

Having gathered a chronological and updated view of the country under the impact of COVID-19 pandemic, we are going to take a close look at Portugal’s plan to recover its economy. The task is definitely huge: according to European Stability Mechanism (ESM), in the first months of 2020, Portugal’s economy deteriorated greatly due to the negative influence of the pandemic; uncertainties are still high, for the duration and magnitude of the impact are still unsure, neither can we speculate the moment and speed of recovery. In the last year, ESM recorded a deacceleration of Portugal’s GDP increasement: 2.2% in 2019, compared to 2.6% in 2018. As a country that has finally recovered from the 2008 financial crisis, albeit still has to tackle the severe problem of “non-performing loans”, Portugal has to be extremely cautious and creative to elaborate and execute its plan, making full use of the EU funding for post-pandemic recovery (about 15.3 billion euro) as well as EU loans on favorable terms (5.9 billion euro of

3 support within the EU framework of “SURE”, a mechanism to help member states preserve jobs).

In this context, according to Minister of Foreign Affairs , Portuguese government wanted to be one of the first countries to submit the recovery plan to EU Commission, as early as mid-October. It is interesting to note, in our opinion, that the tremendous task of drafting a full-range recovery plan was conferred on one person only: by invitation of the Portuguese government, António Costa Silva delineated, in July, his “Strategic Vision for the Economic Recovery Plan of Portugal 2020-2030” (“Visão Estratégica para o Plano de Recuperação Económica de Portugal 2020-2030” in Portuguese); and this “strategic vision” was open for public discussion in August. António Costa Silva is an Angola-born, 68- year-old petroleum engineer, alumnus of Imperial College in the UK, alumnus and professor at the School of and Technology of the (Alma-Mater of António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations), former executive director of the Compagnie Générale de Géophysique (CGG) and former CEO of Partex Oil and Gas – property of the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation (FCG) until 2019 (now belongs to the Thai state-owned enterprise PTTEP). It is worth noting that the highly lucrative Partex Oil and Gas was sold to PTTEP in 2019 in alignment with “the vision for a sustainable future which FCG shares with other great international foundations”. Not surprisingly, the same concern for a “sustainable future” is omnipresent in Costa Silva’s plan, in which the author envisaged a “re- industrialization” for Portugal, based on decarbonization and “electrification”. In this ambitious and futuristic plan, the author also advocates for a reorientation of foreign policy in Portugal, as well as in Europe, in terms of avoiding the crossfires of the ever fierce competition between the USA and China, while constructing a “balancing platform” with other “great democracies as Canada, India, Japan and Australia” (Silva, 2020:9). It is interesting to observe the political dimension of this plan for economic recovery, which, in our opinion, is making its impact upon Portugal’s policy making in the time being, as well as in the near future.

Let us take a closer examination at Costa Silva’s proposal for economic recovery after the pandemic. The author begins by admitting the certainty of a profound and all-involving global post-pandemic recession, which implicates a reorganization of society and individual life-style, opening up for a transformation of national , taking into account the limits of the natural resources. He then calls for a “new geopolitical cycle” (Silva, 2020:4) for Portugal, stressing the importance of exploring, simultaneously, the country’s continental relation with Europe and its maritime relation with the world.

4

In the continental aspect, Costa Silva advocates a strong investment, using the considerable financial resources injected by the EU, in infra-structure construction and in national railway connection in particular. It is understandable, and praiseworthy, to promote a better connection between the inland Portugal and its coastal region, as well as to strengthen the connection between Portugal and Spain along the frontlines, making an Iberian “hinterland” and exploring the great potential of mineral resources in the inland regions. It is well recognized that Portugal is in need of a better connection with Spain, both by road and by railway. Costa Silva proposes a construction of a railway line to connect Sines Port to Madrid, as well as a renovation of the railway line in Alta region (inland Central-Northern Portugal). However, compared with its neighbor Spain, country with a world-class motorway network (Spanish autovías and autopistas were constructed and have been maintained in excellent condition; autovías being the toll-free alternatives for autopistas), Portuguese motorway network urgently needs to be requalified. To make matters even more complicated, Portuguese motorway network charges heavy tolls (a lot of toll gates were added in the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis, and are still functioning) and the price of diesel and gas in Portugal is considerably higher than Spain. Considering the fact that the Portuguese motorway network is still of crucial importance for a lot of ’s daily life, as well as for Portuguese economics, at least at this stage of development, Costa Silva shows conspicuously little, if any, concern for users of Portuguese motorway network. In our modest opinion, there are many places in Costa Silva’s plan in which its futurism outweighs its realism, making it more a “vision” than a “plan”, putting in question its feasibility in a near future.

In maritime dimension, Costa Silva calls for a strong investment in the blue economy. In this aspect, both continental and insular Portugal holds great potential, for it possesses a vast continental platform, as well as the 3rd largest EEZ (Exclusive Economic Zone) in the EU, which is also the 11th largest EEZ in the world. The author proposes a profound study of the maritime ecosystems and biodiversity, by creating a great “Atlantic University” in the Azores archipelago, to better involve international partners in combating together against the negative effects of the climate change and in advancing the decarbonization of the economy. The idea of establishing an international “Atlantic University” is undoubtedly attractive, although it appears to us that as a “university” it should be all-embracing, not only centered on engineering, geological and biological , but also on maritime culture and on international and especially on law of the sea.

Costa Silva reflects upon the series of problems that emerged during the pandemic and calls for a “reindustrialization”, canalizing more public resources to biotechnological

5 innovation and creation of other equipment to protect the country from future pandemics, catastrophes and other attacks (including cyberattacks). The core of this “reindustrialization”, as we have mentioned before, lies in the decarbonization, in alignment with the aim settled by the European Ecological Pact, the 2030 National Plan for Energy and Climate, the 2050 Guide for Carbon Neutrality and the 2030 National Strategy for Conservation of Nature and Biodiversity (Silva, 2020:7).

Based on this central vision, we are going to observe Costa Silva’s proposals for different regions of Portugal and try to figure out how he assigns each region its position in the grand strategy of “reindustrialization” in a post-pandemic Europe. The author considers Portugal’s capital Lisbon an “immense cultural laboratory” (Silva, 2020:31), ideal for promotion of cultural and creative industry, projecting the image of Portugal as a secure and peace-making country (Portugal is considered as the 3rd most secure country in the world). According to the author, Portugal should follow the examples of Norway and other Nordic countries, in playing an important and active role in conflict mediation and participating in international organisms.

As for Oporto, center of the second largest metropolitan area in Portugal, Costa Silva proposes constructing a high-speed railway line to connect Oporto and Lisbon, beginning by connecting Oporto and Soure (in the Central region, a town of ), to be extended later to (Oporto -Vigo) and to the rest of Spain. He also proposes a new bridge to expand the metro network of the Oporto metropolitan area.

In alignment with the author’s tendency in stressing the Atlantic characteristic and maritime resources of Portugal, he advocates a strong investment in Sines (port in the South, in the Setúbal District) and Leixões (port of Oporto), to modernize and to expand these ports, as well as to implement the 5G technology to create more conditions for the development of blue economy. He also suggests constructing a terminal port in Sines to export strategical mineral resources, such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, manganese and polymetallic sulfides, which can be found in the EEZ, More than this, he suggests transforming the port of Praia da Vitória, Azores, into a “bunkering” in the heart of the Atlantic Ocean, providing liquefied natural gas to ships (Silva, 2020:73). Costa Silva also calls for a new port in Portimão (important touristic city in Algarve, with an international circuit and has the agenda of holding Moto GP and Formula 1 competition this year) to better connect Algarve to Casablanca and Tanger; requalifying the port of Faro mainly for recreational navigation (Silva, idem). The “standstill” of port of Lisbon, however, remains a problem to be tackled, which the author leaves in open. He stresses the importance of constructing a new airport for the great Metropolitan area of Lisbon. Nevertheless, he doesn’t specify where this new airport should be, obviously omitting polemics

6 concerning the construction of a new airport in Montijo, which not only could endanger precious species of birds, but also put the safety of air passengers in question.

For cities of medium dimension, such as Braga, Guimarães, Aveiro, Coimbra, , Évora and Faro, the author suggests improving and promoting public transportation. Again, the author finds Costa Silva’s stress in the Atlantic side and port cities. In promoting the “interconnecting Europe” mechanism, it seems to us that only port cities like Lisbon, Aveiro and Oporto are the true beneficiaries of his envisaged Atlantic corridor of the European transportation network: Sines/Lisbon – Madrid – Valladolid; Lisbon – Aveiro – Leixões/Oporto; Aveiro – Valladolid – Vitória – Begoña – Bilbao/ Bordeaux – Paris (Silva, 2020:74). Curiously enough, the author, who rightly calls attention to the soft-power of and culture, conspicuously pays little, if any, attention to Coimbra, home of the 730-year-old University of Coimbra, Alma-Mater of all the in Portugal, a cultural heritage classified by the UNESCO for its unique role in spreading the Portuguese language and culture in the world. Such omittance is inexplicable, considering the “reindustrialization” plan definitely needs the intellectual support from the academia. We hope, in a revised version of this plan, gaps such as this could be filled up.

As a country in which about 4% of GDP is created by the agricultural sector, Portugal needs to promote a modernization of its agriculture. Costa Silva advocates an ecological and local agriculture across the territory, in combination with the industrial agriculture, optimizing the water usage. He also calls for more investment in the and innovation projects for agriculture, making the primary sector the “center of combat against the climate change”. Portugal is also heavily dependent on its wood and especially the cork products, with about 35% of its territory covered by forest. However, the country, especially in Summer and in the inland regions, is also frequented ravaged by the forest fires. How to mobilize the private owners of the forest in joining hands to balance economical income and social responsibility, to prevent the fires and to preserve the biodiversity of the forestry areas, remains a huge challenge to be answered.

Given that the large inland regions of Portugal are mainly agricultural, the author advocates a huge investment in developing economical clusters in Portugal on a basis of geographical characteristics and educational resources of each region so as to promote a balanced development based on new and sustainable technology. In his ambitious plan, there will be an agricultural and forestry cluster in inland regions such as Braganza, , Castelo Branco, Santarém and Évora; a “digital cluster” in Fundão; a cluster of and Vila Real as “paradigms of the future city”; a cluster of biomedical in Covilhã and Castelo Branco;

7 a cluster of new agriculture and natural products in ; a cluster of hot-springs in Chaves, Vidago, Curia, Pedras Salgadas, Luso, Manteigas, Monchique and São Pedro do Sul; a cluster of valuable natural resources in Montesinho, a site rich in wolframium; a cluster of valuable landscape and territory in Vale do Côa, a paleolithic archeological site in Northeast; Madeira and Azores as “paradises of biodiversity” (Silva, 2020:111). To better engage the local economical, natural and human resources, Costa Silva calls for a strong investment in building “autarchies-laboratories” following the examples of , Viseu and Braganza. Such effort in promoting a more adequate and fairer distribution of financial support is definitely worth noting, as Portugal has long been an “unbalanced” country, with most of resources centralized in Lisbon, reflexed in popular sayings such as “Portugal is Lisbon and the rest is landscape” (“Portugal é Lisboa e o resto é paisagem”). The decision is evidently laudable (if Coimbra is also fairly included in the investment plan, as we have mentioned above). Nevertheless, we still wait to see the outcome, and hopefully there will also be neutral mechanisms to closely supervise and evaluate the autarchies’ ability in efficiently applying the significant financial resource, as well as in collaborating with local universities and research centers. It is also worth reminding that Lisbon cannot be easily “decentralized”: in 2004, then Prime-Minister tried to dislocate six state-secretaries; however, the government headed by Santana Lopes was dissolved by Jorge Sampaio, the then President, and the new government quickly relocated the state-secretaries back to Lisbon.

Now, the author focuses on one of the pillar industries of Portugal, which is also one of the most affected industries by the pandemic – the tourism industry. Before the global health crisis, tourism created an astoundingly 13% of Portugal’s GDP, having contributed greatly to lower the unemployment rate of the country and helping Portugal to finally recover from the damages of the 2008 financial crisis. Under this new crisis, it is a time to search for creative proposals to help the tourism industry to survive in a still socially-distanced world and to remerge in the post-pandemic world. In Costa Silva’s plan, he calls for financial support to touristic enterprises, promoting modernization and digitalization of artistic and creative programs. Portugal possesses great cultural heritage, as well as abundant natural resources, such as all-year-round sunshine and high-quality thermal water, which make the country a great touristic destination. The challenge, however, remains in how to make the country a suitable destination, not only in summer but all the year round; and how to make it more attractive, to be able to compete with other popular touristic destinations in Southern Europe such as Spain and Italy. Although much smaller in territory than its Mediterranean neighbors, Portugal has the advantage of being a strikingly diverse country. From North to South, inland to coast, the

8 landscapes, costumes, traditional art craft and gastronomy can be quite different. After the pandemic, besides successful destinations such as Lisbon, Oporto, Algarve and the Atlantic islands, other regions of Portugal will need to be very creative to attract visitors, be they national and international.

Curiously, during the past summer, some relatively isolated regions of Portugal accomplished a notable outperformance compared with more populated cities in attracting tourists. This is because the rural tourism suffered considerably less impact of the pandemic than other types of tourism. The number of visitors, mainly national, attracted to largely rural regions such as Viseu, Vila Real, Castelo Branco and Santarém increased greatly ever since the early stage of deconfinement, hitting a record of an increasement of 30% of reservation on Airbnb. Valuable resources of these region, such as tranquility, warm and dry weather, well preserved country villas with swimming pools, are well sought after by visitors, especially by big families. This successful case could be served as an inspiration for other less populated regions. Traditionally hot-spring sites, such as Luso, Curia and São Pedro do Sul, as has been mentioned before, are also located in the less populated central-northern regions. Usage of the medical power of thermal waters in these sites can be dated to the Ancient Roman times. However, since 2011, the thermal tourism has been losing its attraction. Recently, Portuguese government has created a working group to revitalize the 46 active hot-spring sites of the country. A group of 10 specialists in tourism, health care and energy will submit a report in August or September of the next year. Hopefully, the huge potential of the hot-springs in Portugal can be well explored and will benefit people’s health.

Along with the central-northern region, another region that has attracted more visitors in this summer than ever before is the southern and rural region of Alentejo. According to Luís Araújo, president of Portuguese Tourism (“Turismo de Portugal”) who was recently nominated president of the European Travel Commission, the rural regions were mainly chosen by national visitors. According to the same source, Portuguese tourism still relies strongly in cities as Lisbon and Oporto, although, under normal circumstances, large international event could be organized, it is not feasible in the time-being. Algarve relies heavily on British visitors, which ties the region to the unpredictable outcomes of the Brexit process. Madeira and Azores islands, worldly famous as they are, still need better connectivity to the continent. Being Luís Araújo the president of the European Travel Commission for the next four years, Portuguese tourism could benefit from a better international projection. Certainly, for Portuguese tourism to thrive in a post-pandemic time, it will need a vast and effective promotion, not only inside the country and within Europe, but also to the whole world. Different promotional programs could be

9 designed to attract various kinds of tourists. Take the University of Coimbra (UC) as an example: located in a historical zone classified as World Cultural Heritage by the UNESCO (since 2013), most of the visitors to this 730-year-old university come from and Spain, as well as from Asia (e.g.: China, Japan, Korea, India) and USA. During this summer, UC created a special program “the secrets of UC” to promote cultural tourism, offering guided tours around the heritage zone of the university, with the generous support of famous historians who are also professors at the of Humanities. It can be a great example to follow.

II. Chinese community in Portugal: search and research Chinese residents in Portugal play an important role primarily in the retail and hospitality industries. Since these are sections that have suffered a heavy blow in the pandemic and are still struggling for survival, the Chinese community has been actively searching for solutions to recover from the recent disruption, by holding online seminars to share knowledge and ideas, and to strengthen the communication between its members. The “Sino-Portuguese Lectures” (“Palestras China-Portugal”), a non-profit platform of knowledge sharing for Chinese community in Portugal, timely organized an online seminars on 3rd August, inviting entrepreneurs, professionals and amateurs of the catering business, as well as scholars in different areas, to exchange opinions and to offer suggestions for a better future of Chinese restaurants in Portugal. Some valuable insights have been put forward, which worth a deeper reflection. For example, the president of the Chinese Chamber of Commerce and owner of the “Mandarim Estoril” Restaurant (a very popular Cantonese style restaurant in Portugal), Mr. Choi Man Hin expressed his expectation for more top-quality restaurants run by Chinese residents in Portugal. For him, the top-quality should reflect in food and drink, as well as in cleanness and elegance of the establishment. President of the Portuguese Chinese Business Association, Mr. Huang Yongjie, agreed with Mr. Choi in the necessity of improving food quality and developing special, even unique, dishes, combining the local taste with the traditional Chinese cuisine. He also suggested a careful redefinition of the position of Chinese restaurants in the Portuguese market; as well as a strong investment in staff training. The executive director of the Portuguese-Chinese Entrepreneur Association, Mr. Jin Jiaqing, who is also co-owner of a successful Sichuan-style restaurant in Lisbon and another Chinese restaurant in Coimbra, shared information about the recent situation of his two restaurants: after the deconfinement, the one in Lisbon (named “Old House”), located in the high-end zone, quickly regained its loyal clients, who are mainly local young people. Of course, the

10 other major group of clients – Chinese tourists – will only return after the pandemic. By contrast, Mr. Jin’s other restaurant (named “Fuhua”), located in a tranquil zone in the university city of Coimbra, was slow to show recovery signs. Being one of the oldest restaurants in Portugal, it offers good Chinese-flavor food adapted to the traditional Portuguese taste and has already earned a solid fame. However, most its frequent clients are senior citizens, who have been avoiding going to public places due to the higher risk of the COVID-19 for the elderly. At the time when this paper is written, “Fuhua” has regained the other big group of its clients: university students. Since the beginning of September, old and new students of Coimbra are coming back. Meanwhile, “Fuhua” also put its take-away service on the food delivery apps such as “Uber Eats”, very popular among young people. This being said, just like the catering business around the world, Chinese restaurants in Portugal need to be modernized and digitalized. Portuguese government’s financial support to tourism could also benefit Chinese entrepreneurs. Another good opportunity that should be grasped by Chines-Portuguese merchants is the new “Agreement between the Government of P. R. China and the on cooperation on, and protection of, geographical indication”. In this Agreement, which was signed in September, European and Chinese specialties are mutually recognized and protected. Some Portuguese agricultural products are also on the list, such as wines of Alentejo, Dão (in the central-inland region), Douro (in the North), the world-famous Oporto wine, the “Green wine” (typical of the Minho region, on the borderline with Galicia, Spain) and Rocha pear. Other products as Moura (in Alentejo) olive oil, olive oil of inland Alentejo and of Trás-os-Montes (in the Northeast region), wines of Bairrada (in the central-coastal region), hams of Barrancos (in Alentejo) and St. Jorge Cheese (in St. Jorge Island, Azores) are also being recognized and protected by the same agreement. For Portugal, it is a golden opportunity to promote its renowned agricultural products (combined perfectly with rural tourism) to China through the good connection of the Chinese community in Portugal. For the Portugal-based Chinese business men and women in the food and drink industry/business, it is worth trying to use the high-quality local products to produce modern and fusion-style dishes, which are still quite fashionable in Europe. The aforementioned Agreement also grants the same rights to Chinese specialties. To give an example, on the list there are a lot of famous Chinese teas, like Pu’er tea, Fuzhou jasmine tea, Lapsang Souchong, Mountain Wuyi Da Hong Pao and many others, which are well known in some European country, yet need to be promoted in Portugal. We hope to see more Chinese teahouses in Portugal, which could provide a cultural experience to Portuguese people. It could be a great success, since it was the Portuguese Princess Catherine of Braganza (1638- 1705), who married to King Charles II and brought Chinese tea to England. Her contribution

11

made Portugal the true home of the tea culture in Western Europe. We are also glad to see many ingredients which are essential to Chinese gastronomy are also on the list, such as Pixian bean paste, Shaoxing rice wine, Jiangjin pepper and Wuliangye Liquor, among others. As the Agreement will surly facilitate the importation of these productions in Europe, it can be truly beneficial to Chinese restaurants in Portugal: more authentic and delicate Chinese dishes, with original flavor, can finally be produced. We see a good opportunity to promote Chinese food culture in a post-pandemic time, engaging Chinese restaurants, Confucius Institutes, Portuguese schools of tourism and local TV channels, to carry out Chinese food festivals, show-cooking sessions and expositions. It is also interesting to notice that several products on the list of the Agreement are also ingredients for Traditional Chinese , such as Ningxia Goji berry, Jinlin Changbai mountain ginseng, Wenshan notoginseng, Minxian Angelica, Cele jujube, among others. In this aspect, we see a precious opportunity to promote in Portugal the dialogue between Mediterranean diet and Chinese healthy diet, through online or presential seminars and expositions, with help of professionals and experts in Chinese Medicine. In this case, the Confucius Institute at the University of Coimbra, which is the only CI specialized in Chinese Medicine in the Iberia, can provide a suitable platform. It is also what we suggested in the aforementioned seminar organized on 3rd August in the Chinese community.

Of course, the prosperity of trade and business depends greatly on the peace and stability of the society. During the pandemic, the Chinese community in Portugal also had to confront the frequent accusation of “Chinese virus”, which turned popular by constant media shows of President Donald Trump and other political opportunists. Obviously, there are also a lot of Portuguese people who are not stirred by such shameless manipulation. In spite of this, there is also no secret that hate speech in popular social networks against China and Chinese people has increased during the confinement. Though this phenomenon is lamentable, it is understandable: in a time that the uncertainty reigns, the hatred towards China easily provides a kind of certainty, consequently, and unfortunately, a lot of people fell under its spell. Seen at a cool distance, the pandemic is a touchstone for Sino-Portuguese relation: it forces hidden problems to emerge, while challenges both countries to find ways to regain confidence in Sino-Portuguese cooperation. This brings us to the next point.

III. Sino-Portuguese relations in a post-pandemic world: dichotomy or flexibility

12

The pandemic deeply affected the EU-China relations, and the relationship between Portugal and China is no exception. It is a time to review and rethink the Sino-Portuguese relation during the pandemic, in order to have a better understanding of the obstacles and opportunities for Sino-Portuguese cooperation in the future.

During the pandemic, the leaders of both countries maintained close communications. Portuguese President spoke over the phone with Chinese President Xi Jinping. There was also contact between Portuguese Prime-Minister António Costa and Chinese Prime-Minister Li Keqiang; as well as between Mr. Augusto Santos Silva and Mr. Wang Yi, ministers of Foreign Affairs. Portugal and China encouraged each other during the critical time. There are good examples of mutual help that should not be forgotten: in the beginning of February, with the help of Chinese Embassy in Portugal, the University of Coimbra (UC) sent masks to China (Zhejiang Province) through the Confucius Institute at the UC. In early March, Teachers and students of Tovim School, in Coimbra, the local partner of the Confucius Institute at the UC, organized a gathering to send solidarity and encouragement to China. This moving initiative was reported by the RTP 1, the national TV channel of Portugal. In mid-March, Oporto city worked efficiently with Shenzhen city in a dazzling speed, getting a package of the most-needed ventilators to the St. John’s Hospital, the main hospital in the North. During the confinement, although the normal connection between Europe and China was cut down, Chinese business and academical entities also tried hard to send medical supplies to Portugal, articulating with Portuguese diplomats and with the support of the Chinese community in Portugal. To name just a few examples: Fosun Foundation offered 70000 units of medical supplies to SNS (Portuguese National Health System) through Portuguese Consulate in Shanghai; Chinese Academy of Social Sciences sent 20000 units of disposable masks to the University of Coimbra through Portuguese Embassy in Beijing.

As mentioned before, Portugal’s reaction to the pandemic was relatively prompt, as a national emergency state was declared as early as 8th March. Like in other European countries, though, it took some weeks for the DGS (Portuguese health authority) to advise the usage of facial masks (only on 13th April). In Europe, unlike in Asia, normally, healthy people do not use masks to prevent seasonal flu or other contagious diseases. Consequently, after the outbreak of the COVID-19, when Asian tourists and residents in Europe began to use masks as a preventive method, not infrequently they became subject to ridicule or to verbal, even physical aggression. In Portugal, fortunately, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa himself insists in wearing a mask in public places, and in so doing, effectively sets an example for the people. Beside the cultural differences, EU’s hesitation in recommending the usage of masks as an

13 effective way to combat against the COVID-19 could not be dissociated with the shortage of such medical supplies in Europe, which, in its turn, rose the question of reforming the vulnerable public health system. Opinion makers such as Costa Silva pointed out the necessity of shorten the international supply chains of certain products of vital importance, reducing “the dependence upon China” (Silva, 2020: 10). Under this guidance, Portugal’s import from China is tend to cool down. In the geopolitical strategy formulated by Costa Silva, as we have mentioned before, there is a discreet, but undeniable “withdrawal” from China: North-Atlantic powers (USA and UK) are perceived as “historical allies”, “new cycle of cooperation”, “integrated consortium for climate and ocean studies”, “target-market”; South-Atlantic powers (Brazil/South-America; Angola/West-Africa) are considered as “safeguard of the commercial and energy networks”, “cooperation”, “target-market” and also “integrated consortium for climate and ocean studies”; China is grouped with India and Japan as “emergent markets”, “multilateral cooperation projects”, “international commercial network” and “target-market”, obviously mainly a commercial partner among others (Silva, 2020:32). It is plain to see that in Costa Silva’s strategic proposal, there is no intention to intensify cooperation with China, despite the already existent platforms between the two countries: Portugal is the first country in the EU to formally establish blue partnership with China, as well as the first country in South Europe to sign a “One Belt, One Road” memorandum on cooperation with China, while also has the access to the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese Speaking countries (Macao). This being said, nowhere in Costa Silva’s proposal does the author mention any of these platforms, which is, in our modest opinion, regrettable. It appears to us that opinion makers in Portugal continue to see China as a “last resort”, the same attitude of its Iberian neighbor, just as Professor Xulio Ríos so wisely pointed out in his recent dialogue with Professor Zhang Min, published on Guangming Journal. Is this situation liable to change?

Let us not forget, Portugal is a famous “small country with grand diplomacy”, renowned for its ability to engage in multilateral negotiations. The flexibility of Portuguese diplomacy is reflected in its presence in international organizations. The Secretary-General of the United Nations is António Guterres, former Portuguese Prime-Minister. Recently, José Manuel Durão Barroso, another Portuguese former Prime-Minister and the former President of the EU Commission, was elected on 29th September as the President of GAVI (Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization). In a time when unilateralist and protectionist tendency is on the rise, the dialogue between China and Portugal, as well as the dialogue between China and the

14

EU, can be crucial to balance global power, protect multilateralism and maintain the world peace.

Besides trading, China and Portugal/EU can strengthen their cooperation in scientific research. During this crisis, Chinese and European scientists have been working proactively to combat the pandemic and developing vaccine research. A few days ago (on 12nd October), Mme. Ursula von der Leyen, EU Commission President, welcomed China to join COVAX facility, co-led by GAVI, CEPI (Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations) and WHO. After the pandemic, Chinese and Portuguese/European scientists could continue to work together in a wide range of medical and scientifical fields, for a better future of mankind. Just as the virus knows no boarders, and knowledge also have no nationality.

During the pandemic, as we have mentioned before, there was a virulent media war against China, mostly agitated by the House. News about US individuals and companies suing Chinese government in its controlling of the pandemic were also reported widely in Portugal/Europe, and consequently made a huge impact on society. However, we did not see similar coverage about the outcomes of the aforementioned lawsuits, nor have we seen (yet) serious studies about these cases. Just to name one example, in the case Medina v. Chinese Government and the town of Wuhan, in its handling of the COVID-19 “which caused a worldwide crisis”, the court of South District New York ordered the case to be dismissed on grands of being “frivolous or malicious”, on 10th July (case number 20-CV-3644 (CM)). As far as we can see, there is no media coverage in Portugal of this order, or orders of other similar cases, which drives us to question Portuguese mainstream media’s criteria and ethics in selecting news.

Thinking about the lamentable discrimination against Chinese by certain individuals in Portugal, we consider it vitally important for both China and Portugal to continue to invest in cultural and academic exchanges between the two countries, to improve the mutual understanding, and to make sure the economical profit of Sino-Portuguese cooperation can truly benefit Chinese and Portuguese people. Through the five Confucius Institutes in Portugal (CI at the , in Braga; CI at the University of Lisbon; CI at the ; CI at the University of Coimbra and CI at the University of Oporto), a lot of cultural and scientific events can be organized, online in the time being, present and online in the future, engaging academia and local community. Leading thinktanks like the CASS-UC (Chinese Academy of Social Sciences – University of Coimbra) Centre for China Studies will also need to do their best to promote in-depth and interdisciplinary research, to effectively consolidate and expand the multilevel cooperation between Portugal and China, in all the scientific areas

15 of mutual interest. Definitely, with a deeper understanding of each other, we believe both Chinese and Portuguese economy could benefit more from the aforementioned excellent platforms for China and countries. On a higher level, regarding the EU-China communication, Portugal can also play a more constructive role. We trust that Portugal, a country that a few centuries ago so fearlessly endeavored to open a new maritime route to the East, has the wisdom and confidence to write with China a brand-new chapter on the huge Book which is the of the Mankind.

Conclusion

“Tudo vale a pena, se a alma não é pequena” (“Everything’s worth doing/ If the soul of the doer isn’t small”). Many packages of medical supplies sent from China to Portugal chose this verse as a mutually encouragement. The author of this concise, yet powerful verse is Fernando Pessoa (1888-1935), the prominent Portuguese writer and a leading figure of the European Modernism, celebrated for his highly innovative art of Portuguese language, as well as his astonishingly original cosmopolitanism. A country that is fortunate enough to count such a magnificent writer in its literary canon certainly is not a “small country” at all. Although Portuguese people usually tend to keep a low profile (“não dar nas vistas”, as suggested by this proverb), and even joke about the peripherical position of their country in the European continent, they are able to carry out grandiose enterprises that impress the whole world. In Portugal’s answer to the pandemic, we see the resilient, ambitious and inventive side of its people. There are a lot of challenges in a post-pandemic Portugal, but plenty of exciting possibilities as well.

At this critical time, the combat against the COVID-19 seems yet far from over. Chinese residents in Portugal are still struggling to recover from the devastating effects of the pandemic, while Sino-Portuguese cooperation is still dealing with a lot of uncertainties. In order to survive and to thrive in a post-pandemic world, it is important to always remember the power of unity and solidarity. We believe that Chinese and Portuguese people will rely on their wisdom and creativity, joining hands to surpass this crisis and to build a better future.

16

Reference

Alvarez, Luciano. “Marcelo admite novo estado de emergência e recolher obrigatório.” 16 Oct 2020. Web 18 Oct 2020. https://www.publico.pt/2020/10/16/politica/noticia/marcelo- admite-novo-estado-emergencia-recolher-obrigatorio-1935567

Antunes, Rui Pedro. “DGS não ensina a usar máscaras porque não há para todos.” 20 Mar 2020. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://observador.pt/2020/03/20/dgs-nao-ensina-a-usar-mascaras- porque-nao-ha-para-todos-nao-vale-a-pena-dizer-que-ha-nao-ha/

Caetano, Edgar. “O milagre português.” 11 Apr 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://observador.pt/2020/04/11/o-milagre-portugues-revista-alema-der-spiegel-em-busca-de- explicacoes-para-numeros-da-pandemia-que-nao-sao-tao-maus-assim/

Coronatracker Portugal. 18 Oct 2020. https://www.coronatracker.com/country/portugal/

Dinheiro Vivo/Lusa. “Ocupação hoteleira no Algarve cai para 60,5% em Agosto.” 4 Sep 2020. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/autor/dinheiro-vivolusa/

---. “Turismo de Portugal: Regiões menos turísticas registam melhor Verão de sempre.” 12 Sep 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/autor/dinheiro-vivolusa/

Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian (Caloute Gulbenkian Foudation). “Venda da Partex concluída.” 4 Nov 2019. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://gulbenkian.pt/noticias/venda-da-partex- concluida/

Jornal A Cabra. “Receita do turismo aumenta na UC e na região Centro.” 16 Feb 2019. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.acabra.pt/2019/02/receita-do-turismo-aumenta-na-uc-e-na- regiao-centro/

Jornal de Notícias. “António Costa Silva: Há uma grande desconexão entre vontade política e execução.” 16 Sep 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.jn.pt/economia/antonio- costa-silva-ha-uma-grande-desconexao-entre-vontade-politica-e-execucao-12729366.html

Laranjeiro, Ana. “Airbnb. Portugueses cá dentro levam a subida das reservas em 30%.” 3 Sep 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/autor/ana-laranjeiro/

Lourinho, José Carlos. “Continental Portugal excluded from the UK air corridor.” 10 Sep 2020. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://jornaleconomico.sapo.pt/en/news/continental-portugal- excluded-from-the-airlift-of-the-united-kingdom-635273

Ministry of Commerce, P. R. China. “Agreement between the government of the People’s Republic of China and the European Union on Cooperation on, and Protection of, Geographical Indications.” 18 Sep 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. (open access document available for download) http://tfs.mofcom.gov.cn/article/zscq/202009/20200903002354.shtml Notícias do Ribatejo. “Polémica em torno da construção do aeroporto no Montijo.” 22 Jan 2020. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://ribatejonews.net/2020/01/22/polemica-em-torno-da- construcao-do-aeroporto-no-montijo/

Nunes, Diogo Ferreira. “Governo cria grupo de trabalho para reanimar termas.” 25 Aug 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/autor/diogo-ferreira-nunes/

17

---. “Turismo rural com as menores perdas em Julho.” 15 Sep 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. https://www.dinheirovivo.pt/autor/diogo-ferreira-nunes/

Pessoa, Fernando. Forever Someone Else: Selected Poems. Translation by Richard Zenith. Lisbon: Assírio & Alvim. 2008.

Portas, Paulo. “A publicidade não é verdade. Não há nenhum milagre português.” 21 Jun 2020. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://tvi24.iol.pt/opiniao/covid-19/paulo-portas-global-a- publicidade-nao-e-verdade-nao-ha-um-milagre-portugues

Silva, António Costa. “Visão Estratégica para o Plano de Recuperação Económica de Portugual 2020-2030.” 21 Jul 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. (open access document available for download) https://www.portugal.gov.pt/pt/gc22/comunicacao/documento?i=visao-estrategica- para-o-plano-de-recuperacao-economica-de-portugal-2020-2030

United States District Court Southern District of New York. Medina v. Chinese Government case. 11 May 2020. Web 26 Sep 2020. (open-access case document available for download.) https://casetext.com/case/medina-v-chinese-govt

Vasconcelos, Catarina Maldonado and Domingues, Nuno. “Secretários de Estado fora de Lisboa? Medida peca apenas por tardia.” 4 Nov 2019. Web. 26 Sep 2020. https://www.tsf.pt/portugal/politica/secretarios-de-estado-fora-de-lisboa-medida-peca-apenas- por-tardia-11476105.html

Zhang Min & Xulio Ríos. “An important inspiration from COVID-19 pandemic: Strengthening the public sector.” Working paper published by China-CEE Institute, 28 Sep 2020. No.32. ISBN: 2560-1628.

18