The PSD questioned the Minister of Justice about the legitimacy of the letter, which, in accordance with the amnesty law, ordered release warrants to be sent to prisons until today, and whether she was trying to bypass the strike of the judiciary in this way.
This is the circular of the Directorate-General for the Administration of Justice (DGAJ), cited in a question sent by the Social Democratic parliamentary faction to the Minister of Justice, which stipulated a deadline to guarantee the processing of amnesty decisions. as a result of a law created in connection with the visit of the Pope to Portugal in August, aimed at young people and coming into force on Friday.
“If warrants for release are issued as from the effective date of the Act, they must be issued in close cooperation with the relevant magistrates and sent to the appropriate prison facility by August 31 in such a way as to guarantee “Protection of the rights, freedoms and guarantees of the recipients of the Act in question The administrators of the court must inform the bailiffs responsible for ensuring this procedure about this circular letter,” the Social Democrats are quoted in a question addressed to Minister of Justice Catarina Sarmento. e Castro.
In view of the order of the Director General of the DGAJ, Disembarkation Judge Isabelle Namora, the PSD questions “the legality of this circular”, noting that since the law only comes into force on 1 September, “no procedure can be initiated based on this” prior to this dates.
“Furthermore, the law in question is intended to be applied by judges handling cases,” the Social Democrats cite, adding that it is also the responsibility of magistrates to verify compliance with the requirements.
The SDP claims it is not surprised that several district presidents accuse the government of “unlawfully interfering with the independence of the judiciary” and allege that the DGAJ has “exceeded the limits of its administrative powers by encroaching on the realm reserved for the judiciary”, given that ” great gravity.”
“This course of action on the part of the DGAJ is even more serious when you consider that it was a deliberate way to circumvent the strike of judicial officials” on September 1, the day the amnesty law goes into effect, accuses a parliamentary group.
The PSD asks Catarina Sarmento e Castro what is her position on the contents of the letter, if it considers it illegal for interfering with the judiciary.
He also wonders what the Minister intends to do to restore the rule of law and what justification the Minister has found for the published letter.
“Did this happen because judicial officials circumvented the consequences of the strike planned for September 1, 2023?” the Social Democrats insist.
The letter, released on Tuesday, was rejected by the magistrates, with several district presidents protesting and the Association of Portuguese Trade Unions (ASJP) reminding that the matter was under jurisdiction and that the DGAJ’s instructions “are illegal and must be withdrawn.”
The Supreme Council of the Judiciary (SCM) urgently convened on Wednesday and pointed to “unusual interference with the governing powers of the court, which are the responsibility of district presidents”, as well as the competence of judges in these cases.
The organization also emphasized that the court decision “of course, should be taken only after the entry into force of the law” and called for interaction between various actors “to avoid incidents like the one recorded in the future.”
Lusa appealed to the Ministry of Justice about this situation, but has not yet received a response.
This law deals with crimes and offenses committed before June 19 by young people between the ages of 16 and 30, which provides for a one-year pardon for all sentences up to eight years in prison.
The amnesty regime is also provided for crimes with a maximum fine of up to 1,000 euros, as well as criminal offenses for which the punishment does not exceed one year of imprisonment or 120 days of a fine.
The law includes non-beneficial exceptions, namely, perpetrators of crimes such as murder, infanticide, domestic violence, abuse, crimes against serious physical integrity, female genital mutilation, crimes against qualified physical integrity, forced marriage, kidnapping. people, against sexual freedom and self-determination, extortion, discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence, influence peddling, money laundering or corruption.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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