Just two weeks after its newly granted authorisation to use emergency lights was abruptly scrapped, animal rescue organisation IRA has taken the fight directly to the Institute for Mobility and Transport (IMT), delivering a petition that has already surged past 31,000 signatures. The group says the public backing shows that the IMT’s U-turn is “an administrative decision that devalues lives.”
The row erupted after the IMT withdrew authorisation it had granted just two weeks earlier, following new opinions from entities within the National Civil Protection System. Officials claimed one of IRA’s vehicles displayed a Civil Protection symbol without approval and stressed that the organisation, as a volunteer group, is not classified as an official civil protection agent. IRA has rejected the reasoning as “politically motivated” and lacking technical and legal basis.
Since then, the group has ramped up public pressure, sharing dramatic examples of delayed rescues, most notably a dog stranded on Lisbon’s busy Segunda Circular, which they say took “three times longer” to reach without emergency lights. The organisation insists the equipment is not a privilege but “a lifesaving tool” that allows teams to reach dangerous locations safely and quickly.
In a highly emotive message posted on social media following the petition delivery, IRA laid out its case point by point, arguing that Portugal “cannot move backwards” in animal-protection policy. The group highlighted its ongoing cooperation with the GNR, PSP, firefighters and ANEPC, saying all these entities “know the value” it adds in emergencies.
With the petition now in the IMT’s hands, IRA says it is waiting for a formal response but warns it will continue to challenge any decision that hampers rapid animal rescue. “No revocation will revoke our mission,” the group declared.
