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Title: Portugal Human Rights Practices, 1995
Author: U.S. Department of State
Date: March 1996
PORTUGAL*
* A separate report on Macau, recognized by both China and Portugal as
Chinese territory under Portuguese administration, follows this report.
The Republic of Portugal is a constitutional democracy with a president,
an independent judiciary, a prime minister and a legislative assembly
freely elected by secret ballot in multiparty elections.
Internal security is primarily the responsibility of the Ministries of
Justice and Internal Administration. Security forces are controlled by,
and responsive to, the Government.
Portugal has a market-based economy and is a member of the European
Union. An increasing proportion of the population is employed in
services, while employment in agriculture continues to decline and has
been static or declining slightly in the industrial sector.
Citizens enjoy a broad range of civil and other human rights which the
Government generally respects. Civil rights are outlined in the
Constitution with specific reference to the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights. The principal human rights problem is the occasional
beatings of detainees or prisoners by police or prison personnel.
Credible--although infrequent--reports of this problem continued in
1995, as did reports of poor conditions in prisons. Domestic violence
against women is reportedly common.
RESPECT FOR HUMAN RIGHTS
Section 1 Respect for the Integrity of the Person, Including Freedom
from:
a. Political and other Extrajudicial Killing
There were no reports of political or other extrajudicial killings.
b. Disappearance
There were no reports of politically motivated disappearances.
c. Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman, or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment
The Constitution forbids torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment, and the use of evidence obtained under torture in criminal
proceedings. An independent Ombudsman, chosen by the Legislative
Assembly (parliament), investigates complaints of mistreatment by police
and prison authorities.
The Government and Amnesty International (AI) have continued their
dialogue on allegations of police brutality. One case of mistreatment
of two citizens by the National Republican Guard (GNR), which AI had
been following since 1992, was apparently resolved by the sentencing of
several GNR soldiers to prison terms. They remained free on appeal,
however. At the same time, new credible allegations of police brutality
were lodged, including a widely publicized incident involving injuries
to a prominent lawyer and employee of the Lisbon city government. AI
and the United Nations Committee Against Torture lamented the delay in
investigating such allegations. While the Government admits to some
problems with control and supervision of police officers, it
characterizes the operation of the public security forces as positive
overall and says violations of citizens' rights by the security forces
are "exceptional cases."
The Council of Europe's Committee for the Prevention of Torture and
Inhuman or Degrading Punishment and the International Observer of
Prisons maintained a dialogue with the Government on prison conditions.
Based on visits to prisons, these observers noted instances of brutal
treatment by guards and general failure to meet minimum standards.
Corrective steps such as improving access to counsel and to medical
treatment have been recommended. A lack of resources inhibits progress
in this area.
d. Arbitrary Arrest, Detention, or Exile
Under the law, an investigating judge determines whether an arrested
person should be detained, released on bail, or released outright.
Persons may not be held more than 48 hours without appearing before an
investigating judge. Investigative detention is limited to a maximum of
6 months for each suspected crime. If a formal charge has not been
filed within that period, the detainee must be released. In cases of
serious crimes, for example murder or armed robbery, or of more than one
suspect, investigative detention may be for up to 2 years and may be
extended by a judge to 3 years in extraordinary circumstances. A
suspect in investigative detention must be brought to trial within 18
months of being formally charged. If the suspect is not in detention,
there is no specified period for going to trial. A detainee has access
to lawyers; the State assumes the cost if necessary.
Exile and incommunicado detention are illegal and not practiced.
e. Denial of Fair Public Trial
The judiciary is independent and impartial. The judicial system
provides citizens with a fair legal process; it has been much
criticized, however, for a large backlog of pending trials resulting
from inefficient functioning of the courts. The court system, laid out
in the Constitution, consists of a
Constitutional Court, a Supreme Court of Justice, and judicial courts of
first and second instance. There is also a court of accounts, which
functions as a court of appeal.
All trials are public except those which may offend the dignity of the
victim, such as in cases of sexual abuse of children. The accused is
presumed innocent. In trials for serious crimes, a panel of three
judges presides. For lesser crimes, a single judge presides. At the
request of the accused, a jury may be used in trials for major crimes;
in practice, requests for jury trials are extremely rare.
There were no reports of political prisoners.
f. Arbitrary Interference With Privacy, Family, Home, or
Correspondence
The Constitution forbids such practices, and its provisions are
respected in practice. Violations are subject to effective legal
sanctions.
Section 2 Respect for Civil Liberties, Including:
a. Freedom of Speech and Press
Freedom of speech and the press is provided for in the Constitution, and
the Government respects these rights in practice. An independent press,
an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system
combine to ensure freedom of speech and of the press, including academic
freedom.
b. Freedom of Peaceful Assembly and Association
The law provides for these rights, and the authorities generally respect
these provisions.
c. Freedom of Religion
The Constitution provides for freedom of religion, and the Government
respects this right in practice.
d. Freedom of Movement Within the Country, Foreign Travel,
Emigration, and Repatriation
The Constitution and laws provide for these rights, and the Government
respects them in practice.
The Government cooperates with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees
and other humanitarian organizations in assisting refugees. Persons who
qualify as refugees are entitled to residence permits. There were no
reports of forced expulsions of those having a valid claim to refugee
status.
Section 3 Respect for Political Rights: The Right of Citizens to
Change Their Government
Portugal is a multiparty, parliamentary democracy. The Constitution
provides citizens with the right to change their government peacefully,
and citizens exercise this right in practice through periodic, free, and
fair elections on the basis of universal suffrage.
Section 4 Governmental Attitude Regarding International and
Nongovernmental Investigation of Alleged Violations of Human Rights
A number of local and international human rights groups operate freely,
investigating and publishing their findings on human rights cases.
Government officials generally cooperate, although most groups complain
of slow investigations or remedial actions.
Section 5 Discrimination Based on Race, Sex, Religion, Disability,
Language, or Social Status
The Constitution forbids discrimination based on ancestry, sex, race,
language, territory of origin, religion, political or ideological
convictions, education, economic situation, or social condition, and the
Government enforces these prohibitions.
Women
Women's groups continued to draw attention to the largely hidden but
reportedly common problem of domestic and other violence against women.
The law provides for criminal penalties in cases of violence by a
spouse. Traditional societal attitudes discourage many battered women
from recourse to the judicial system. Women's groups complain that
Portugal lacks institutions established specifically to provide relief
to battered women. The judicial system shows no apparent reluctance to
prosecute suspects accused of abusing women.
The Civil Code provides for full legal equality for women. Sexual
harassment, an issue gaining public attention, is covered in the Penal
Code as a sex crime, but only if perpetrated by a superior and in the
workplace. As in the case of violence, socially ingrained attitudes
discourage many women from taking advantage of their legal protection in
this area.
Women are increasingly represented in universities, business, science,
government, and the professions. Traditional attitudes of male
dominance persist but are changing gradually. The Commission for the
Equality and Rights of Women, an official organization under the
Ministry of Employment and Social Security, is a leading and effective
advocate of women's rights.
Children
The Government is committed to the rights and welfare of children, and
has established mechanisms to protect children through the Institute for
Support of Children. This governmental body complains that it has not
been allocated adequate funds to fulfill its responsibilities. Most of
the funds it does receive are spent on campaigns publicizing the abuse
of child labor, which occurs mainly in low technology home based
industries (see Section 6.d.). Otherwise there is no pattern of
societal abuse of children.
People With Disabilities
There is no discrimination against disabled persons in employment,
education, or the provision of other state services. Their access to
public facilities is mandated by legislation, which is generally
complied with. There is no such legislation covering private businesses
or other facilities.
National/Racial/Ethnic Minorities
The principal minority groups are immigrants, legal and illegal, from
Portugal's former African colonies; there is also a resident Roma
population. African immigrants continued to organize to protest what
they perceive as racism. The press has continued to report occasional
racially motivated incidents perpetrated by small unorganized skinhead
groups. Government denials that significant racist offenses have
occurred were called into question by an incident in June in which a
large number of skinheads rampaged through a downtown Lisbon
neighborhood, assaulting numerous persons they believed to be African
immigrants and killing one. The police pursued this and other such
incidents as vigorously as other crimes.
Section 6 Worker Rights
a. The Right of Association
Workers in both the private and public sectors have the right to
associate freely and to establish committees in the workplace to defend
their interests. The Constitution provides for the right to establish
unions by profession or industry. Trade union associations have the
right to participate in the preparation of labor legislation. Strikes
are constitutionally permitted for any reason, including political
causes; they are common and generally are resolved through direct
negotiations. The authorities respect all provisions of the law on
labor's rights.
Two principal labor federations exist. There are no restrictions on the
formation of additional labor federations. Unions function without
hindrance by the Government and are closely associated with political
parties. There are no restrictions on the ability of unions to join
federations or on federations affiliating with international labor
bodies.
b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively
Unions are free to organize without interference by the Government or by
employers. Collective bargaining is provided for in the Constitution
and practiced extensively in the public and private sectors.
Collective bargaining disputes rarely lead to prolonged strike action.
Should a long strike occur in an essential sector such as health,
energy, or transportation, the Government may order the workers back to
work for a specific period. This did not occur in 1995. The Government
has rarely invoked this power, in part because most strikes are limited
to periods of 1 to 3 days. The law requires a "minimum level of
service" to be provided during strikes in essential sectors, but this
has been infrequently applied. When it has, minimum levels of service
have been established by agreement between the Government and the
striking unions, although unions have complained, including to the
International Labor Organization, that the minimum levels have been set
too high. When collective bargaining fails, the Government may appoint
a mediator, at the request of either management or labor.
The law prohibits antiunion discrimination, and the authorities enforce
this prohibition in practice. Complaints are promptly examined by the
General Directorate of Labor.
There are no export processing zones.
c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor
Forced labor is prohibited and does not occur.
d. Minimum Age for Employment of Children
The minimum employment age is 15 years. It is to be raised to 16 years
when the period of 9 years of compulsory schooling takes effect on
January 1, 1997. The two main labor federations and observers from
other European countries have charged that a number of "clandestine"
companies in the textile, shoe, and construction industries exploit
child labor.
The Government's General Labor Inspectorate, which is responsible for
enforcement of child labor laws, admits that thousands of children under
age 15 are employed illegally, but says the number is declining. The
Inspectorate's funding has been increased, and the number of inspectors
and inspections continues to grow. The Inspectorate has levied
increasingly large fines on employers who are found employing child
labor. Government statistics derived from labor inspections indicate
that the incidence of child labor has been greatly reduced in recent
years. Critics rejoin that most children are employed in home workshops
and other settings beyond the reach of inspectors.
Union observers agree that the number of illegally employed children is
falling, but they attribute this to the general rise in unemployment.
Unions continued to form local alliances with church groups, citizens
groups, and local government bodies to address the multiple social and
economic causes of child labor. While some improvements have been
effected, the Government does not allocate resources sufficient to
address the problem fully.
e. Acceptable Conditions of Work
Minimum-wage legislation covers full-time workers, as well as rural
workers and domestic employees age 18 or over. The monthly minimum wage
of about $340 (Esc 52,000) is generally enforced. Even with rent
control and various social assistance subsidies, it is difficult for a
single-income family to maintain a decent standard of living on the
minimum wage, particularly in urban areas.
The law limits regular hours of work to 8 hours per day and 44 hours per
week. Overtime is limited to 2 hours a day, up to 200 hours annually.
Work during what is normally a day off is restricted to 8 hours. These
limits are respected in practice. Workers are guaranteed 22 days of
paid annual leave per year. The Ministry of Employment and Social
Security monitors compliance through its regional inspectors.
Employers are legally responsible for accidents at work and are required
by law to carry accident insurance. An existing body of legislation
regulates safety and health, but labor unions continue to argue for
stiffer laws. The General Directorate of Hygiene and Labor Security
develops safety standards, and the General Labor Inspectorate is
responsible for enforcement, but the Inspectorate lacks sufficient funds
and inspectors to combat the problem of work accidents effectively. A
relatively large proportion of accidents is in the construction
industry. Poor environmental controls in textile production also cause
considerable concern. While the ability of workers to remove themselves
from situations where these hazards exist is limited, it is difficult to
fire workers for any reason. Workers injured on the job rarely initiate
lawsuits.
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