Adalberto Campos Fernandes argued on Monday night on CNN that the Constitutional Court’s stance on the Foreigners Law was “more political than technical.” He emphasized that political parties should not aggressively criticize institutions that challenge their ideas, highlighting that such behavior is not a principle of democracy.
“The State must conform to the transformation of sociological and political majorities. But Chega, AD, PS, and PC must also comply with what is more important: safeguarding freedom and the democratic regime, which are the institutions,” he stated, adding that parties should not “attack the President of the Republic or judge A or B” because “in the logic of a sports fan, when they are on our side, they are fantastic; when they are not, they are not.”
The socialist referred to President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa’s decision to veto the Foreigners Law after the Constitutional Court (TC) announced the unconstitutionality of five provisions. This decision was not well-received by the parties that supported the law.
Adalberto Campos Fernandes advocated for the protection of the state and its institutions, arguing that there are mechanisms available, like “constitutional revision,” to express dissatisfaction. He noted, “they have the majority to do it.”
“We do not improve the functioning of democracy by denigrating institutions,” he asserted.
Veto of the Foreigners Law
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa vetoed, on Friday, the “amendments to Law No. 23/2007, of July 4, which approves the legal framework for the entry, stay, exit, and removal of foreigners from national territory,” following the Constitutional Court’s announcement of the unconstitutionality of five provisions.
“Following today’s ruling by the Constitutional Court, which considered five provisions of the diploma unconstitutional and submitted them for preventive review of constitutionality, the President of the Republic will return to the Assembly of the Republic, without promulgation, under the terms of paragraph 1 of article 279 of the Constitution, the Decree of the Assembly of the Republic that amends Law No. 23/2007, of July 4, which approves the legal framework for the entry, stay, exit, and removal of foreigners from national territory,” a note on the Presidency of the Republic’s page stated.
It should be noted that, earlier that day, the Constitutional Court announced the unconstitutionality of five provisions comprising the Foreigners Law.
In the request sent by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to the TC, the President of the Republic requested a preventive review of the constitutionality of provisions concerning the right to family reunification and conditions for its exercise, the deadline for evaluating requests by the Agency for Integration, Migrations and Asylum (AIMA), and the right to appeal.
Recall that the decree was approved on July 16 in the Assembly of the Republic, with favorable votes from PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP, an abstention from IL, and against votes from PS, Livre, PCP, BE, PAN, and JPP.
The diploma was criticized by almost all parties, except for PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP, with many considering it unconstitutional and criticizing the legislative process, which did not engage immigrant associations or constitutionalists and lacked mandatory opinions.
