On World Children’s Day, the Ombudsman was represented at the meeting on alternatives to the administrative detention of migrant children in Portugal, organised in Lisbon by IOM – International Organisation for Migration (the United Nations Migration Agency), by the Coordinator of the National Preventive Mechanism, Miguel Feldmann, who presented a communication entitled “The National Preventive Mechanism and the detention of…
The Ombudsperson, Maria Lúcia Amaral, participated in the Board of Directors of the International Ombudsman Institute (IOI) which held its annual meeting from 7 to 11 May 2023, in Vienna. In addition to organizational issues and strategic priorities, the IOI Council received and heard from the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, Dymtro Lubinet. To learn more about the agenda…
Entries are open for the 9th edition of the King of Spain Human Rights Award, aimed at public or private entities that have distinguished themselves in the defense, promotion and realization of human rights and democratic values or that have driven programs to promote them values. Sponsored by the Defensor del Pueblo of Spain and the University of Alcalá de…
The Ombudsman’s Office has been receiving a significant number of complaints regarding various aspects of the measures adopted, since September 2022, in the context of mitigating the effects of inflation. The analysis and resolution of these complaints allowed the acquisition of vast information regarding the practical application of the measures, as well as the revelation of some problems of conception…
The Deputy Ombudsman, Ravi Afonso Pereira, and Cristina Sá Costa (Head of International Relations) participated in the 109th Session of the United Nations Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, held in Geneva on 18-19 April, during which there was a dialogue between the Portuguese State and the Committee on the implementation of the International Convention on the Elimination of…
The Ombudsperson, Maria Lúcia Amaral, received on 19 April a visit from a delegation of the Human Rights and Equality Institution of Turkey (HREIT) led by its president, Muharrem Kiliç. The visit was intended to allow the exchange of experience and good practices, particularly in the function of National Preventive Mechanism that both institutions ensure in their respective countries.
The Ombudsperson, Maria Lúcia Amaral, met with the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Ukrainian Parliament, Dmytro Lubinets, on 29 March, in Amsterdam, in the margins of the conference on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights. The meeting allowed to address, in particular, issues related to the Ukrainian community living in Portugal, namely the one received under the special reception programme…
The Ombudsman sent a new recommendation to the Minister of Labour, Solidarity and Social Security highlighting the urgency of guaranteeing timely access to the Social Insertion Benefit (PSI) by persons with disabilities. The new recommendation arises from the continuous receipt of complaints that show that the effectiveness of the PSI is not guaranteed, primarily as a result of the delay…
The Ombudsperson, Maria Lúcia Amaral, participated in a conference on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, promoted by the Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Dunja Mijatović. How to protect human rights, holistically and in all sectors of activity, in the face of accelerating reliance on digital technologies and automation based on access to personal data, and what…
The Ombudsman sent a Recommendation to the Government to promote approval of a new and appropriate regime of protection for teachers during illness, that includes the possibility of adapting the teaching load and functions exercised to the respective state of health. Regarding the system of teachers’ mobility due to illness, it was also recommended that the list of illnesses that…