Mistreatment by police is persistent in Portugal

Amnesty International released its annual report on “The State of Human Rights in the World” in the early hours of Wednesday, April 24th. The document warns of the effect of technology on the world, which is used by political forces to create division and hatred, and presents an assessment of human rights in 155 countries. With regard to Portugal, the document points to several cases reported by a group of organizations.

Impunity among security forces

The Council of Europe’s Committee for the Prevention of Torture states that ill-treatment of detainees by police officers is a persistent practice. The report reiterated the obligation of the Portuguese authorities to ensure investigations into these allegations and apply measures to combat impunity within the police. Amnesty also recalls the moment when the Évora Court of Appeal acquitted a police officer and reduced the sentences of four officers convicted of torturing migrants in Odemira. After an initial suspension from duty, all seven police officers involved were allowed to resume duty. A report from the Ombudsman is also a reference. The document shows that the average prison occupancy rate in December 2022 was 100.8 percent, with 25 of 49 prisons overcrowded.

Violence and migrants’ rights

The human rights organization’s report also points to the UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which expressed concern about the “persistent high level of domestic violence” in Portugal. This commission asked authorities to address the low prosecution rates for suspected perpetrators of domestic violence, as well as the insufficient provision of shelter for victims seeking safety.

The government’s annual report on homeland security estimated an 18.2 percent increase in the number of people subject to human trafficking, nearly half for labor exploitation. An adult and a child died and 14 other people were seriously injured in a fire in an overcrowded house in the Mouraria neighborhood. All were migrants. Two years after it was revealed that the Lisbon City Council transmitted data about people demonstrating in front of diplomatic representations to employees of foreign embassies, three activists sued the municipality of Lisbon for alleged violations of their rights. The case was opened a year after the National Data Protection Commission fined Lisbon City Council 1,200,000 euros for 255 violations of the data law.

Housing and environment

The Portuguese Government admitted that there were 86 thousand families in housing need, triple the number in 2018. Data from the National Statistics Institute in January estimated that 9.2 percent of people lived in overcrowded housing, affecting almost 20 percent of families who were at risk of poverty.

With regard to the environment, the report states that the European Court of Human Rights began in September to hear a case brought by six young Portuguese people against 33 countries, including Portugal. Referencing problems of extreme heat and forest fires, young Portuguese argued that governments were violating their human rights by not doing enough to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect them from the effects of climate change.

Text written by Juliana Batista/magazine Missionary Fatimaunder the partnership with 7MARGENS.