PNHRC's Report for 2020
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
ACTIVITIES´ REPORT OF THE NATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS COMMITTEE 2020 Index PART I – COMMITTEE ACTIVITIES ....................................................................................... 11 I – PLENARY MEETINGS ................................................................................................... 11 1. 29th Plenary meeting – May 20 ................................................................................................ 11 2. 30th plenary meeting - September 23 (open to civil society) .............................................. 16 3. 31st plenary meeting - December 10 ....................................................................................... 22 II – WORKING GROUP MEETINGS ................................................................................... 29 1. Preparation for the defense of the 5th national report on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights ...................................................................... 29 2. Human Rights Indicators working group ................................................................................. 29 3. Business and Human Rights working group ............................................................................ 30 III - OTHER NCHR ACTIVITIES ........................................................................................ 31 1. Cooperation with civil society .................................................................................................... 31 2. Cooperation with other countries ............................................................................................. 32 3. The institutional page online and on Facebook ...................................................................... 33 4. Digital conferences ...................................................................................................................... 35 5. Training ......................................................................................................................................... 37 6. Institutional matters.................................................................................................................... 38 PART II .................................................................................................................................. 40 GOOD HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES DEVELOPED BY NCHR MEMBERS ............................... 40 I – ECONOMY AND DIGITAL TRANSITION .............................................................................. 41 II – FOREIGN AFFAIRS ......................................................................................................... 43 III – PRESIDENCY – CITENSHIP AND EQUALITY ..................................................................... 44 IV – PRESIDENCY – INTEGRATION AND MIGRATIONS ............................................................ 46 V - FINANCES ...................................................................................................................... 48 VI –NATIONAL DEFENCE ....................................................................................................... 49 VII - HOME AFFAIRS …………………………………………………………………………………………………………. 51 VIII- JUSTICE ...................................................................................................................... 53 IX – STATE MODERNIZATION AND PUBLIC SERVICE ............................................................... 54 X - CULTURE ........................................................................................................................ 55 XI – SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND HIGH EDUCATION ............................................................. 57 XII - EDUCATION ................................................................................................................. 58 XIII– WORK, SOLIDARITY AND SOCIAL SECURITY .................................................................. 60 XIV - HEALTH ....................................................................................................................... 62 2 XV – ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE ACTION ........................................................................... 63 XVI – INFRASTRUCTURES AND HOUSING .............................................................................. 64 XVII –TERRITORIAL COHESION ............................................................................................. 65 XVIII - AGRICULTURE ........................................................................................................... 66 XIX - SEA ............................................................................................................................ 67 XX – STATISTICS PORTUGAL ................................................................................................. 68 3 MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIRMAN OF THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE FOR HUMAN RIGHTS Having assumed the functions of Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation on December 15, 2020 and, inherently, the Presidency of the National Committee for Human Rights (NCHR), I am today honored and pleased to present this report, which describes, in a detailed way, the actions developed by the NCHR in 2020. Before highlighting some of the main lines of NCHR´s activities over the past year, I would like to salute and thank the leadership and commitment of my predecessor, Teresa Ribeiro, who, from 2015 to December 14, 2020, chaired the NCHR in an exemplary manner. Teresa Ribeiro was able to guide and stimulate the NCHR in maximizing its performance, optimizing its potential and strengthening its mandate. A paradigmatic example of this is the emblematic and structuring initiatives launched by NCHR over the past year, in an extremely difficult and challenging context, which will extend well beyond the period covered by this report. I am sure, therefore, that the members of the NCHR join me in this tribute to Teresa Ribeiro. In retrospect, we will remember 2020, above all, as the year in which the new coronavirus invaded our lives and deeply affected the daily lives of each of us and the way our societies work. The challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic, both in the medical-sanitary terms and in the various socio-economic dimensions, inevitably ended up guiding all government action and, consequently, the activities of the NCHR. However, despite these challenges of an unprecedented scale, opportunities also emerged that the NCHR knew how to take advantage within the scope of its mandate, demonstrating the capacity for adaptation and innovation in pursuing its objectives and in the performance of its functions, in favor of the national commitment in promoting , protecting and defending human rights. Coincidentally, in 2020, the NCHR celebrated 10 years of existence. Established in April 2010, after the national commitment made during the first Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations, in 2009, the creation of the NCHR aimed above all to ensure “inter-ministerial coordination both with regard to the preparation of Portugal's position in international organizations in human rights, as well as with respect to the fulfillment of international obligations assumed in this matter ”(Resolution of the Council of Ministers no. 27/2010, of April 8). 4 Portugal's performance in terms of human rights in the international organizations of which it is a part, especially in the United Nations and the Council of Europe, is a central and constant vector of its foreign policy, within the framework of the promotion of effective multilateralism, something that is widely recognized by our partners and was considered by the UN as a good practice, something that honors us. The NCHR is a National Mechanism for Implementation, Reporting and Monitoring (NMIRF) that increasingly assumes a central role in promoting public debate, at different levels, and equally the availability and circulation of diverse content, informative and formative, thus contributing to the realization of human rights. One of the most important initiatives carried out by the NCHR in 2020 was the launch and organization of the cycle of digital conferences “Conversations in times of a pandemic”, dedicated to the theme “Human Rights and COVID-19”, whose first phase ran between July and December. This cycle of conferences aimed to stimulate and deepen the dialogue with civil society, promoting a reflection on the protection of human rights during the pandemic. Representatives of the Government, the academic world and civil society participated in each of its five sessions, which contributed to public reflection and debate on topics of relevance in the area of human rights, namely, freedom and confinement, privacy in the digital era, mental health, children's rights and migration. With the attendance of around 500 participants over the course of the 5 sessions, these conferences constituted an important milestone in the action of the NCHR, bringing it closer to new audiences, making them aware of its existence and mandate, and more attentive to its activities and performance. Also noteworthy is the production and dissemination of the document “Portugal and the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights in Times of the Pandemic of COVID-19”, by the NCHR. This work made it possible to bring together the measures implemented by the different governmental areas, giving a comprehensive and systematic view of the main actions developed in the context of the first wave of the pandemic in Portugal, from the perspective