The Security Information System (SSI) clarified that any version of the Annual Internal Security Report (RASI) accessed by the media was a draft subject to discussion and revisions by the Security Coordinating Office and the Superior Council of Internal Security. This statement was provided in a response sent to Lusa.
The SSI further explained that the version of the RASI published on the government’s website on Tuesday corresponds to the version presented at the Superior Council of Internal Security meeting and the version sent to members of parliament. However, it remains unclear why information about extremist organizations was omitted from the working version.
In the response sent to Lusa, the SSI mentioned that the RASI addresses political extremism, both far-right and far-left, as this was deemed relevant for risk assessment. Nevertheless, details on extremist organizations do not appear in the final version.
Lusa approached the prime minister’s office for clarification, which redirected the queries to the SSI.
Today, the Left Bloc submitted a request in parliament to question the government in the Permanent Commission about the removal of a chapter focused on extremist organizations from the final version of the RASI.
The party, led by Mariana Mortágua, sent questions to the government seeking an explanation for the disappearance of the chapter on extremist organizations in the final version of the RASI, made public on Tuesday.
The RASI document submitted to parliament and available online omits pages 35 to 39 from the initial version. These pages contained a chapter on “extremisms and hybrid threats,” warning of an international extremist organization’s presence in Portugal, classified as a terrorist group in several countries.
According to the draft version, there are no far-right organizations in Portugal classified as terrorist entities, though a branch of an international extremist group, recognized as terrorist elsewhere, exists. The draft indicated this branch was operational in Portugal and had been sanctioned in various countries for terrorist financing.
The preliminary report suggested the organization hosted events, including music festivals within Portugal, as means for recruitment and financing, notably for propaganda production.
This information was excluded from the final version, prompting the Left Bloc to question the reasons behind this omission, calling for a thorough explanation. The party demands to know “who ordered the removal” of this section from the RASI and whether the government plans to submit a revised version to parliament that includes details from the draft.
Questions were also directed to the Ministry of Internal Administration and the Ministry of Justice by Lusa. Both ministries referred back to the SSI for further comments.
It is customary for the Secretary-General of the Internal Security System, alongside the Ministers of Internal Administration and Justice, to present the RASI after the Superior Council of Internal Security meeting. This procedure did not occur this year. Instead, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro was the one addressing the press conference on Monday, without unveiling the final document, responding only to one journalist’s question.
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