Association 25 April alerts on police repression in demonstrations

A The 25th April Association today condemned “disproportionate police interventions” against citizens in demonstrations for housing and called on political leaders to ensure “full respect for constitutional rights” and the search for solutions.

In a statement, the association, chaired by the April military Colonel Vasco Lourenço, says to accompany “with deep concern” the events of the last days, marked by protests for the right to housing and police charges in Lisbon and Porto.

“ The images and reports of police interventions that we consider disproportionate, directed against citizens who exercise their right to protest, cannot leave indifferent an Association that has in its origins the fight for freedom, democracy and respect for fundamental rights ", reads the statement.

The association warns that “the authority of the State is not asserted by unjustified repression, but by respect for the Constitution, democratic legality and the trust that the institutions deserve from the citizens”.

“The 25th of April 1974 brought an end to a dictatorial regime in which repression was an instrument for the maintenance of power,” he stressed, adding that the Constitution of the Republic consecrated rights, freedoms and guarantees “that represent fundamental achievements of democracy and that cannot be relativized by political conveniences or by restrictive interpretations of the exercise of citizenship.”.

The association calls on the political leaders and the competent authorities “to ensure full respect for constitutional rights, to promote strict clarification of possible excesses in police activity and to promote dialogue and the search for solutions to the problems that lead to these demonstrations”.

The leaders recognize the security forces “the indispensable mission of guaranteeing public order, protecting citizens and ensuring compliance with the law”, but stress that this mission “should always be carried out with respect to the principles of necessity, adequacy and proportionality, without resorting to forms of action that can compromise the rights that are their responsibility to protect”.

“ The maintenance of public order cannot be confused with the repression of social protest, nor can the legitimate exercise of authority dispense common sense, weighting and respect for human dignity ", sustain.

The invocation of compliance with the law “does not exempt politicians from considering the constitutional compliance of the rules applied, nor do they exempt them from the duty to promote solutions that prevent the aggravation of social tensions”, they argue.

The Association 25 April considers “especially worrying any action that, instead of encouraging dialogue and confidence in democratic institutions, can contribute to the distancing between citizens and the State or to the radicalization of conflicts that must be met in the context of democracy”.

“ The April military took on the historic responsibility in 1974 to contribute to the construction of a free, just, supportive and peaceful society. It is in the name of these same values, and not of any party alignment, that the Association 25 April considers it its duty to raise its voice whenever fundamental rights and freedoms are concerned”, reads the statement.