The Ombudsman’s Office is concerned about the lack of protection for migrants with documents that have expired, and calls for the dissemination of information on the subject to be stepped up among public administration services and foreign citizens in Portugal. This concerns the situation of migrants from countries outside the European Union (EU) and applicants for international protection, since a…
The Ombudsman’s Office welcomes the recent amendment to the Rules of Procedure of the Guimarães Municipal Assembly, which expands citizens’ participation in all sessions of the body, including extraordinary ones. This amendment was approved on 27 September 2024, following an intervention by the Ombudsman’s Office, prompted by a complaint questioning the failure to hold a period for the public to…
On September 27, the Palácio de Vilalva in Lisbon hosted the conference “Five Decades of Freedom and Justice: Celebrating 50 Years of the Ombudsman and April 25”. The event, organized by the Ombudsman’s Office, marked the fiftieth anniversary of the creation of this institution in Portugal. The initiative brought together members of the Network of Ombudsmen, National Human Rights Commissions…
The Ombudsperson participated in the 57th Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council by intervening in a panel discussion, which took place on September 11, 2024, in Geneva, on how to “Promote and protect economic, social and cultural rights in the context of combating inequalities”. In her remote intervention, the Ombudsperson, Maria Lúcia Amaral, stressed the centrality of human…
The Ombudsman’s Office has pleaded with the Social Security Institute’s (ISS) the right to unemployment benefits for victims of domestic violence who have terminated their employment contracts under the terms of the Decent Work Agenda Law, in force since May 2023. A different position is being adopted by the ISS, which only recognises this right in cases of termination after…
The Ombudsperson has sent a Recommendation to the Minister of Infrastructure and Housing to amend the legislation to bring the level of protection afforded to road passengers on par with the higher level afforded to rail passengers. The Recommendation now addressed to the Government is the result of an analysis of a complaint received alleging the unconstitutionality of the rules…
On 7 June, the Ombudsman obtained the renewal of its accreditation as a National Human Rights Institution (NHRI), maintaining the maximum ‘A’ status it has held since 1999. The demanding accreditation process takes place periodically under the auspices of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), in order to assess and certify the degree of compliance of NHRIs…
The National Preventive Mechanism (NPM) for Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment has made public the summaries of the reports on the visits carried out in 2023 to places of deprivation of liberty. The transparent operation of places of deprivation of liberty is fundamental to compliance with the rules that regulate the activity of these spaces,…
Universal Periodic Review (2024). Ombudsman submits report on the human rights situation in Portugal
In the exercise of its mandate as the National Human Rights Institution (NHRI), in April the Ombudsman submitted the alternative report with a view to the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to which the Portuguese state will be subject at the end of 2024. Recognised as an accredited NHRI with A status, in full compliance with the Paris Principles, the Ombudsman…
The medical certificate of multipurpose incapacity (AMIM) is today a central document in access to a series of rights granted to people with a certain degree of incapacity (generally equal to or greater than 60%), which derive from the State’s duty to promote and protect the fundamental rights of those who are in a situation of physical or mental disadvantage.…