Maria Lúcia Amaral indicated in Parliament that the complaints are due to the slowness of services, bureaucracy and lack of reception conditions
The Ombudsman said this Thursday, in Parliament, that with the extinction of the Foreigners and Borders Service and the creation of the Agency for Integration, Migration and Asylum (AIMA) there are 40% of complaints from immigrants.
Ombudsman Maria Lúcia Amaral was heard by the parliamentary committee on Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees to assess the Ombudsman's annual report for 2023, as well as the national report on the National Mechanism for the Prevention of Torture.
In response to the MPs, Maria Lúcia Amaral stressed that 40% of all requests/complaints made to the Ombudsman's Office are related to immigrants, due to the slowness of services, bureaucracy and lack of reception conditions. The Ombudsman considered that the country welcomes people and the public administration "does not treat them well because it does not treat them" as it should.
"It is an example that the law and the enforcement of the law are sometimes divorced", he said, considering that the decision to close down the Foreigners and Borders Service (SEF) was "taken at the worst possible time" and that there is currently an influx at AIMA of "people in incredible situations" to whom the services are slow to provide protection.
Another issue addressed by several deputies was related to prisons, with the ombudsman explaining that this year's report mainly addresses situations of mistreatment and aggression against inmates without there being any corresponding reports or processes.
Ana Lúcia Amaral said that previous reports had reported the poor conditions in most Portuguese prisons [with the Portuguese State even being condemned by the European Court of Human Rights], and that the situation remains the same. However, the ombudsman stated that prison officials have welcomed some of the ombudsman's recommendations to improve conditions.
The same person also said that a large part of the complaints received are related to the functioning of Social Security, noting however that there have been regular contacts with the Social Security Institute and there has been "great receptiveness to the proposals and problems presented".
The report released on July 12 and debated in the first committee states that the Ombudsman received 10,641 complaints in 2023, the lowest number in the last five years, which resulted in almost 2,900 complaints being investigated, mainly relating to issues with Social Security.
The most recent report from this State body shows that the 10,641 complaints received are divided between 7,787 preliminary assessments and 2,854 complaints that were investigated. The report explains that, since April 2022, the Ombudsman's Office has had a new model for handling complaints and now has a team that carries out a preliminary analysis and triage, deciding what can be resolved immediately and what should be forwarded to other entities.
Following this new model, the Ombudsman's Office proceeded with the investigation of just over a quarter of the complaints (26.8%), which came mostly from individuals (97%).
Among the complaints filed, 27% concern issues with Social Security, with complaints about the entry and stay of foreigners coming in second place (8%) and traffic in third place (7%).
Of the 778 complaints about social security, 155 concern contributions, dues, debts and refunds, 153 are about pensions, with the issue of parenthood and family benefits coming in third place, with 131 complaints processed.
In the same document, the Ombudsman criticizes the "serious delays" in the allocation of equipment to people with disabilities, denouncing that, after 14 years, the support products bank has still not been regulated.