Lawyers for the 13 soldiers who refused to board the Mondego for safety reasons will challenge the sailors’ suspension of 10 to 90 days in March 2023, admitting they have taken the case to the European Court.
“We had no expectations because we were not notified of the sanctions that could have been foreseen would be applicable, in fact this would be one of the grounds for recusal,” lawyer Paulo Graça began with a statement to the Navy Legal Office in Lisbon , where is the solution.
According to Paulo Graça, the 13 sailors made different decisions, which would mean “different ways of fighting.”
“There will be an appeal to be made to the Chief of Naval Staff against the two [sargentos]”, he decreed.
The lawyer told journalists that the process “from the very beginning was a real farce.”
“This process was led by an officer who was involved in the events that led to what happened at NRP Mondego and who was appointed as an instructor,” he said.
Paulo Graça said that the instructor was biased and that the lawyers were only heard formally.
“This trial was not public, it was a trial between four walls of Navy officers, which is contrary to the constitutional protections that our clients have. All the protections that were requested were violated. (…) Everything that was asked and everything that was said was not accepted. They didn’t let us prove anything,” he emphasized.
The lawyer added that the military will “personally sue whoever sues here in the Navy hierarchy for what happened during the disciplinary process.”
“We are talking about demands for compensation,” he said.
Lawyer Antonio García Pereira said an appeal would be filed against the two sergeants sentenced to 60 and 90 days in prison, stressing that the possibility of referring the case to the European Court of Human Rights would apply to the 13 sailors who were attacked. .
“The European Court includes 13, because (…) the decision made following public hearings affects them all,” he emphasized.
García Pereira explained that with the suspension, the sailors will be suspended from service and will receive only a third of their salary, which “means that they will be at the threshold of their existence and their economy.”
“We wanted to emphasize that the unfortunate scene of the trial and public execution that the admiral carried out on board the ship at the call of the media, carrying out the public crucifixion of our constituents, indelibly marked the disciplinary process. Having conveyed this message, we understood that there would be no one in the fleet who could go any other way than this,” he emphasized.
The Navy decided this Thursday to suspend 13 soldiers from the Portuguese Republic ship (NRP) Mondego for a period of 10 to 90 days, which last March failed a mission to monitor a Russian ship in Portuguese waters.
“It was decided to apply to all military personnel a penalty in the form of suspension from service for a period of 10 to 90 days, depending on the responsibility arising from the category, rank and seniority of each military personnel, as well as other circumstances,” says the message distributed by the branch headed by Admiral Enrique Gouveia e Melo.
On 11 March 2023, NRP Mondego failed a surveillance mission against a Russian ship north of the island of Porto Santo, in the Madeira archipelago, after four sergeants and nine enlisted personnel refused to board, citing security concerns.
The Navy reported the incident to the Military Judicial Police in Lisbon as part of a criminal investigation and initiated disciplinary proceedings, which ended this Thursday and the decision of which has already been communicated to the military.
Author: Lusa
Source: CM Jornal
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