The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination today concluded its consideration of the combined eighteenth and nineteenth periodic report of Portugal, with Committee Experts noting the adoption of the National Plan to Combat Racism and Discrimination, and asking questions on the 2019 census and discrimination against Roma and persons of African descent.
Chinsung Chung, Committee Expert and Country Co-Rapporteur for the report of Portugal, said the adoption of the National Plan to Combat Racism and Discrimination made Portugal the first member of the European Union to adopt such a plan.
Ms. Chung regretted the decision made to not include racial and ethnic issues in the census, and asked what measures were in place to remediate this and gather updated and comprehensive statistics on the population's demographic composition, including information on non-citizens. She noted that when accessing public and private services and when looking for work and being at work, Roma respondents reported the highest discrimination rates, and asked for an explanation for these findings. She also asked what steps had been taken to initiate a national dialogue regarding the colonial past aimed at renegotiating Portuguese identity by recognising and acknowledging past wrongdoings and addressing today's lingering effects in the form of systemic and institutional racism against people of African descent.
Ms. Chung said the Committee was concerned about the prevalence of racial discrimination in Portugal. It noted the initiatives and emerging discourse on systemic racism, and was concerned about the shortcomings in addressing the legacies of the colonial past and the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Racism and racial discrimination were endemic in Portugal, particularly in law enforcement and the judiciary.
Ibrahima Guisse, Committee Expert and Country Co-Rapporteur for the report of Portugal, said the Committee was concerned about the information that indicated that the excessive use of force by police officials continued and was a deep-rooted practice against people of African descent. What measures had the State taken to prevent racial profiling by the police and discrimination in the administration of justice, Mr. Guisse asked. He also asked for detailed information on specific measures taken to combat prejudices and stereotypes that led to racial discrimination of protected minorities, in particular Roma, people of African descent, migrants, asylum seekers, and refugees.
Isabel Almeida Rodrigues, Secretary of State for Equality and Migration of Portugal and head of the delegation, said she recognised the importance attached to statistics, and why the 2021 census questions were not satisfactory. Portugal was doing everything it could to obtain information. This data was fundamental so that the State was able to understand its own reality and better design public policy measures. However, the National Statistical Institute in Portugal was an administratively and technically independent body: the Government could issue it recommendations, but could not replace any decision made by the body.
Ms. Almeida Rodrigues said Portugal had promoted de-colonisation, and had welcomed all persons coming from former colonies, regardless of whether they had Portuguese citizenship, and the democratic forces that overthrew the Portuguese dictatorship had supported these de-colonisation efforts. Portugal continued to be open to dialogue, believing this was the only path it could take. The Constitution of Portugal led one to extrapolate that the State considered itself a community of citizens from diverse origins, having come together in a united political community, and established principles which included equality and non-discrimination, and drew inspiration from humanism. Portugal recognised that there was a lot remaining to be done, and a long road to travel.
The delegation said that in 2018, the Government reviewed the National Strategy for Integrating Roma Communities, extending its lifecycle and aiming to improve the situation for the Roma population. The reviewed strategy focused on five basic principles: inter-culturality, non-discrimination, public participation, community-based action, and gender equality. The education programmes for the Roma communities were rolled out in partnership with the Roma communities, including secondary school and higher education. Local action plans had been developed for integrating Roma communities, and there were inter-cultural mediators working at the municipal level.
On persons of African descent, the delegation said there were three publications aiming at raising awareness of their presence in Portugal, including one on women of African descent, one which covered the scope of historic discrimination, and a historic road map on African presence in Lisbon. A number of events had been held celebrating the presence of persons of African descent and explaining the relationship through civil society and local authorities working with young people.
Ms. Almeida Rodrigues said more had to be done to fight racism in security forces, and there was a tightening in hiring procedures, an improvement in the handbooks, and a strengthening of staffing and funding of the General Inspectorate of Home Affairs. An Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia had been established, allowing for greater production, treatment, and dissemination of knowledge on racism, racial discrimination, and xenophobia in various areas. Amendments were being made to ensure that sporting associations and clubs had greater means to combat racism and sanction its expression. Over the past 10 years, the State had delivered over 10,000 hours of training on fighting racism, including in schools, the police force, journalists, and other social groups. Training was not enough, but this showed that Portugal was committed to fighting racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and was ready to implement all measures in this regard, relying on the Committee to recommend safe paths to this end.
In concluding remarks, Ms. Chung thanked the delegation and the national human rights institution for the honest and constructive dialogue. The Committee would prepare recommendations aimed at supporting Portugal in fulfilling its human rights obligations.
Ms. Almeida Rodrigues, in concluding remarks, said the recommendations would be looked at in the greatest detail, very seriously, and implemented as far as possible. Racism was a scourge affecting Portuguese society, a structural and integral phenomenon, and Portugal needed a better grasp, with more and better data, and it was aiming to gather this data. Once this was obtained, the phenomenon would be combatted through further national programmes and plans at various levels and in various bodies. Portugal would strive to guarantee a life free from discrimination for all, including Roma, persons of African descent, migrants, refugees and the stateless, who would see their rights fulfilled and completely protected in all areas.
The delegation of Portugal included representatives of the Ministry for Equality and Migration; the Presidency of the Council of Ministers; the Ministry of Home Affairs; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the Ministry of Justice; the Ministry of Youth and Sports; the Ministry of Education; the Ministry of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security; the Ministry of Housing; and of the Permanent Embassy of Portugal to the United Nations Office at Geneva.
The Committee will issue its concluding observations on the report of Portugal after the conclusion of its one hundred and ninth session on 28 April. Summaries of the public meetings of the Committee can be found here, while webcasts of the public meetings can be found here. The programme of work of the Committee's one hundred and ninth session and other documents related to the session can be found here.
The Committee will next meet at 3 p.m. this afternoon to start its consideration of the combined twenty-first to twenty-fifth periodic report of the Philippines (CERD/C/PHL/21-25).
Report
The Committee has before it the combined eighteenth and nineteenth periodic report of Portugal (CERD/C/PRT/18-19).
Presentation of Report
ISABEL ALMEIDA RODRIGUES, Secretary of State for Equality and Migration of Portugal and head of delegation, said the dialogue would aid Portugal in combatting racism and discrimination. The National Human Rights Committee of Portugal, established in 2010, coordinated the drafting of the periodic reports. This Committee was made up of representatives of 22 different areas of governance. The national human rights institution had a permanent seat on the Committee as an observer.
When Portugal re-established democracy in 1976, it adopted a Constitution enshrining the principle of equality, and explicitly banning racist organizations. Fighting racism was a battle for human rights, and must be fought at home and on the international stage, where Portugal firmly supported the crucial role of the United Nations, recognising the work of the treaty bodies, the Human Rights Council, and its various mechanisms and procedures. A strong multilateral system must make all efforts to eradicate racial discrimination a priority. It was in this spirit that Portugal, in 2021, co-facilitated the General Assembly's general declaration allowing to commemorate the anniversary of the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action. Portugal hoped to see progress on the adoption of a United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Persons of African Descent, and had worked to this end. Portugal urged all States, on the seventy-fifth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to make commitments to ensuring racial equality.
Since the last review in 2016, a number of advances had been made that deserved to be highlighted. In 2017, Parliament had adopted an act to prohibit and combat discrimination on the basis of, among others, colour, descent, and place of origin, aiming to follow up on various recommendations issued from international bodies, including the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination. Portugal had a Plan for Migration, aiming for respect for migrants' rights, and promoting their reception through education, health and social protection. It had recently focused on fighting the pandemic, automatically regularising all outstanding applications by migrants and asylum seekers, and providing a model for access to vaccination and health testing by all, regardless of regular or irregular status. Portugal was the first European Union Member State to have national plans adopted, aiming to deconstruct stereotypes and ensure intersectorality on fighting racial discrimination, recognising that there was endemic and systemic racism in Portugal, and that social exclusion had increased due to a growth in hate speech and incitement to violence. Although many measures were still being rolled out, an interim assessment was being prepared.
More had to be done to fight racism in security forces, and there was a tightening in hiring procedures, an improvement in the handbooks, and a strengthening of staffing and funding of the General Inspectorate of Home Affairs. Greater transparency and scrutiny was ensured by the use of bodycams by police officers. Portugal was hosting a number of Ukrainian refugees, who received social benefits, including family allowance and the minimum social income. An Observatory on Racism and Xenophobia had been established, allowing for greater production, treatment, and dissemination of knowledge on racism, racial discrimination, and xenophobia in various areas.
Amendments were being made to ensure that sporting associations and clubs had greater means to combat racism and sanction its expression. At the end of 2023, Portugal hoped to obtain data disaggregated by ethnic origin, with the aim of characterising the diversity of persons living in the country. Over the past 10 years, the State had delivered over 10,000 hours of training on fighting racism, including in schools, the police force, journalists, and other social groups. Training was not enough, but this showed that Portugal was committed to fighting racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance, and was ready to implement all measures in this regard, relying on the Committee to recommend safe paths to this end.
RAVI AFONSO PEREIRA, Office of the Ombudsman for Human Rights, said the Office had been since 1999 the national human rights institution, in compliance with the Paris Principles, and it had submitted a shadow report. The report reflected situations that were brought to the attention of the Office of the Ombudsman through complaints made by citizens. As per its mandate as a national preventive mechanism, the Office of the Ombudsman carried out regular visits to places where persons were deprived of their liberty. It was important to ensure that there was a greater level of dissemination of the national plan to combat racism and racial discrimination, and it was important to have an independent assessment of the results of this plan. There was still housing insecurity for a considerable portion of the Roma community, and it was hoped that the upcoming plan for the integration of the Roma would remedy this. There was concern for the various areas of detention of migrants, as existing areas were already at maximum capacity: there should be alternative measures for administrative detention of migrants, which should be a last resort. The Office approved of the adoption of the plan for reducing racial discrimination among law enforcement, but was concerned that this was taking place through administrative proceedings, resulting in a low number of disciplinary proceedings: there should be an increase in the number of inspectors in this regard.
Questions by Experts
CHINSUNG CHUNG, Committee Expert and Country Co-Rapporteur for the report of Portugal, said the adoption of the National Plan to Combat Racism and Discrimination made Portugal the first member of the European Union to adopt such a plan. The Committee also appreciated the submission of the updated common core document, but regretted the lack of participation of non-governmental organizations and other organizations in the preparation of the State report. The Committee was concerned about the prevalence of racial discrimination in Portugal, and hoped for a constructive dialogue. It noted the initiatives and emerging discourse on systemic racism, and was concerned about the shortcomings in addressing the legacies of the colonial past and the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Racism and racial discrimination were endemic in Portugal, particularly in law enforcement and the judiciary.
On statistics and socio-economic indicators, the Committee regretted the decision made to not include racial and ethnic issues in the census, and asked what measures were in place to remediate this and gather updated and comprehensive statistics on the population's demographic composition, including information on non-citizens? The Committee also required further information regarding economic and social indicators relating to ethnic minorities and non-citizens in the State party, particularly Roma, people of African descent, migrants, refugees, asylum seekers and stateless persons, including information on their access to health care, education, housing, and employment.
Regarding the status of the Convention in domestic law and its implementation, while taking note of paragraph 3 of the State party report, which referred to the Constitutional Court ruling 106/2016, Ms. Chung asked if there were other concrete examples where the Convention had been invoked before or applied by domestic tribunals in the State party, including in lower courts and by administrative bodies. Further, she asked for more detailed information on the human rights training for judges, prosecutors and lawyers, including information on the content of the training provided, the number of trainings carried out during the reporting period, and the number of people participating in the training.
Ms. Chung also asked the delegation to provide information on the main challenges, obstacles or reasons that would explain the underreporting of complaints for racial discrimination; information on the measures taken to strengthen the Commission for Equality and against Racial Discrimination and its impact in combatting racism in dealing with complaints related to racial discrimination; and information on the steps taken and their impact on strengthening governance integration and the territorialisation of the National Plan to Combat Racism and Discrimination, including information on any initiative implemented to raise awareness among municipal administrations on their role in addressing racism and combatting racial stereotypes. How many complaints of racial discrimination had been made by the Roma population, and what data had been compiled regarding the difficulties faced by the different ethnic groups in the country in accessing housing?
IBRAHIMA GUISSE, Committee Expert and Country Co-Rapporteur for the report of Portugal, said it was recognised by the delegation that there was structural racism in Portugal, as was seen in many countries. Article 240 of the Criminal Code set forth penalties for certain public acts involving racial hatred, religious hatred, and hatred based on colour, ethnic or national origin. Furthermore, the report from the national human rights institution indicated that the Commission for Equality and against Racial Discrimination and the Ombudsperson had registered an increase in the number of complaints between 2018 and 2021. Was this increase the effect of the Criminal Code? In this regard, he asked for updated information on the number of complaints, investigations carried out, trials, and convictions where article 240 was applied, and the remedies provided to victims.
Mr. Guisse also asked the delegation to provide further information on the steps taken to simplify and speed up complaint procedures related to racial discrimination, and the measures taken to broaden and facilitate access to legal aid for victims of racial discrimination, including data on the number of beneficiaries. The Inspectorate General of Home Affairs, which was the entity responsible for independent inquiries into cases of police brutality, was currently understaffed, with only 36 out of 55 posts filled, which in turn affected the filing and proceedings of the investigations. What measures was the State party implementing to remediate this situation? What measures had been taken to implement the recommendations made by the Working Group of Experts of People of African Descent to create an independent oversight mechanism to address allegations of police misconduct?
What measures had the State party taken to strengthen the mandate of the Ombudsman to discharge its mandate effectively and independently in full compliance with the Paris Principles, and did it have the mandate to receive, investigate, provide legal advice on, and prosecute individual cases of racial discrimination? What measures had been taken by the State party to prevent and combat racist hate crimes and acts of racist violence against persons belonging to ethnic minorities, in particular persons of African descent, Roma and migrants? What measures had the State party taken to combat racist hate speech and incitement to racial discrimination, including in political discourse? What measures had been taken to prevent and combat racist and xenophobic messages on the Internet? Had the State party worked with Internet providers and the media in this regard? What measures had the State party taken to protect human rights defenders and other persons belonging to civil society organizations working against racism, from any form of violence.
