Feature: Portugal braces for refugees in hope of benefit amid migration crisis

Several weeks ago, 30-year old Mustafa was crossing the sea to get to Greece on a frail dinghy boat, braving sub zero temperatures.

The Iraqi-born former tailor, who moved to Syria in 2006 and later fled to Turkey, paid smugglers 700 euros to get there, and travelled together with another 60 people.

Upon arrival, a boat from the United Nations (UN) took them to a refugee camp, but Mustafa was soon tricked by smugglers into travelling to the Macedonia border, only to find it was closed.

He ended up sleeping rough on the streets of Athens, in the bitter cold, for several nights, until Praksis, a Greek NGO, helped to relocate him.

Mustafa was one of the 64 refugees who arrived in Lisbon earlier this month in a flight from Greece, and seems relieved to be here.

Using his smartphone to learn Portuguese and to communicate with locals, he often walks around his neighbourhood on the riverfront near Lisbon.

"I am trying to understand Portuguese culture," he tells Xinhua from his new temporary home.

While countries like Hungary have refused to take part in the mandatory relocation of asylum seekers, Portugal has committed to receiving up to 10,000 refugees under an European Union relocation plan adopted in September 2015.

The southern European country is offering young refugees the chance to study, and in February the government announced a plan to distribute 2,000 scholarships, with the right to have housing and Portuguese and English classes. There are also opportunities to work in agriculture and in regions where there is a low population density.

However, only 160 refugees have arrived in Portugal so far. And while leaders in Brussels discuss the crisis, thousands of people who were forced to flee their countries are stranded in desperate situations, with NGOs struggling to offer shelter, food and basic sanitation.

"The program has been a great failure, and I think there's a lack of political will by European leaders to make it work," Rui Marques, head of the Portuguese refugee support program PAR, which has received around 35 families, told Xinhua from his office in Lisbon.

"The people who have arrived here (in Portugal) don't know their luck," he added. "I was recently in Lesbos where around 3,500 people were arriving every day. And they would pass by EASO (the EU's asylum agency) without realizing what an incredible opportunity they were leaving behind."

Many people who arrive in Greece have a fixed travel route in mind and want to get to countries like Germany, therefore rejecting offers to go to other countries, later finding themselves stranded before closed borders, Marques explained, adding that combined action between European countries is required to avoid this.

In March alone, another 100,000 migrants will enter Greece. The International Organization for Migration has pointed out that around 134,905 migrants and refugees have crossed the Mediterranean this year.

While some people in Portugal are concerned about the arrival of refugees due to the bleak economic crisis and lack of jobs, the government has highlighted that refugees will benefit parts of the country that have become deserted.

Marques has no doubt that refugees could bring advantages to the country, however that's not the main reason why he thinks his country should welcome refugees. "It's simply a humanitarian and moral duty," he said. "And if countries continue to be selfish, creating barriers and obstacles, it's going to be a disaster for us all." Endit