BackThe office of the Ombudsman of Portugal has published three positions, which have recently been of importance.
Ombudsman warns that there are still complaints about discrimination against HIV/AIDS in access to pools
On the day of the Zero Discrimination, which was highlighted on the 5th of March, the Ombudsman, Maria Lúcia Amaral, draws attention to the fact that complaints about municipal swimming pools that condition access to people with HIV/AIDS continue to arrive.
As early as 2016, a complaint had been made on this subject, and the Ombudsman found that, for alleged public health reasons, a considerable number of regulations for the use of municipal swimming pools limited the access of users to the presentation of a medical statement proving the non-portability of contagious, infectious or transmissible diseases, which may prove to be inadequate and excessive in view of the aim pursued: protecting the health of others.
When the Medical Association was consulted, it was concluded that these were vague and unfounded demands or prohibitions. The expression referring specifically to people with HIV/AIDS was classified as clearly discriminatory and without any clinical basis.
At that time, the Ombudsman informed the National Association of Portuguese Municipalities (ANMP) of its position, requesting its disclosure to the Associated Municipalities, which had endorsed it in a significant number.
In December 2018, however, the Ombudsman received a similar complaint, and contacted ANMP again, in collaboration with this State body to evaluate the best strategy, to clarify that the conditioning of admission to swimming pools should be limited to presentation of medical examination proving the physical fitness of the practitioner.
With this appeal, the Ombudsman joins the United Nations-led global movement, which this year challenges institutions and citizens to act against laws that, when ill-informed, unfounded or prejudiced, produce discrimination, and subject people to undue restrictions on their life choices.
http://www.provedor-jus.pt/?idc=136&idi=17837
First interim evaluation of the human rights training program conducted by the Ombudsman of Portugal with the Turkish counterpart
On 25thFebruary, the first interim evaluation of the Twinning Project for the Empowerment of the Role of the Ombudsman Institution of Turkey on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights, under the responsibility of the Portuguese Ombudsman, was held at the Turkish Ombudsman Institution in Ankara.
The meeting was attended by the Project Leaders and Heads of International Relations of the two institutions, the European Union Delegation in Turkey and representatives of the Government and Parliament of Turkey.
As part of this project, four training missions have already been developed for training the staff of the Turkish Institution and to share experiences and good practices on dealing with complaints on the matters of environment, housing, right to water, police, prisons and human rights, civil service regime, prohibition of discrimination , rights of women, children, migrants and refugees, LGBTI persons, rights of older persons and of persons with disabilities, as well as on the role of the Ombudsman in combating gender-based violence and trafficking of human beings.
This Portuguese-Turkish partnership was inaugurated on November 12, 2018, after last July the Ombudsman of Portugal was selected by the EU to lead the twinning project for the technical training of the Ombudsman of Portugal. Turkey.
The project will be developed over 2019 and is part of the general objective of strengthening the rule of law in Turkey and aims to develop the capacity of the Ombudsman, the Ombudsman's institution, to defend fundamental rights, of complaints against public authorities, promotion of respect for human rights and guarantee of independence vis-à-vis political power.
Ana Rita Gil, Deputy Office of the Ombudsman, and Miguel Coelho, Coordinator at the Ombudsman's Office, lead the coordination of this project.
http://www.provedor-jus.pt/?idc=136&idi=17839
Ombudsman talks about taxpayers rights at CAAD conference
The Ombudsman took part in the conference organized by the Center for Administrative and Fiscal Arbitration (CAAD) on February 26 in Lisbon to commemorate its 10th anniversary. Maria Lúcia Amaral intervened in the debate on "The Frontier between tax collection and taxpayers' guarantees" alongside Helena Borges, director general of the Tax Authority (TA).
After a peak of complaints that coincided with a greater computerization of TA and led the Ombudsman to order inspections, Maria Lúcia Amaral stated that "our perception is that in the last ten years the AT has improved the automatisms regarding tax executions" .
Citizens' more systemic grievances about tax administration today are related to delays in hierarchical appeals, particularly in cases of IRS and property tax disputes.
The Ombudsman drew attention to the fact that she had in her hands an old problem concerning the IRS taxation system of income from previous years, the resolution of which depends on the legislator who, in response to a recent amendment recommendation considered it "inopportune".
"It is a regime that produces incomprehensible injustices and that will tend to penalize a growing number of people given the great growth of people's complaints about delays in the processing of pensions by Social Security services," warned Maria Lúcia Amaral, signalling that this is an example of how the tax administration requires more of the taxpayers than of itself.
http://www.provedor-jus.pt/?idc=136&idi=17833
Source: Office of the Ombudsman of Portugal
