During a press briefing at the Assembly of the Republic, Livre deputy Paulo Muacho stated that sending the decree to the Constitutional Court was the “most sensible decision” to make, criticizing the legislative process conducted in the Assembly of the Republic.
“No one was consulted, procedural and legal norms requiring consultation of certain entities were disregarded, attempting to solve a problem based only on perception,” he criticized.
Conversely, Paulo Muacho argued that the law is “unjust in its content,” containing norms that directly infringe on “rights, freedoms, and guarantees,” discriminate against immigrants, and seek to limit “access to courts,” which is a “constitutional right.”
“These are the three essential issues we presented to the President of the Republic, and we are therefore pleased to see that the President supports these arguments,” he noted.
The deputy stated that they would now wait for the Constitutional Court’s decision, expressing confidence that some regulations “clearly infringing on human rights” could be removed from the legislation.
Paulo Muacho also remarked that this decision by the President of the Republic serves as a “warning to the Government and the majority formed in the Assembly of the Republic between the AD and Chega,” which he accused of being “extremely arrogant in handling legislative processes and democratic procedures in the approval of legislation.”
Regarding the nationality law, he expressed hopes that this legislation, set to be voted on in September in the Assembly of the Republic, would “follow the same path as this foreigner law legislation,” meaning it should also be sent to the Constitutional Court following any parliamentary approval.
Meanwhile, PCP parliamentary leader Paula Santos also agreed that Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa made the “necessary decision” in light of what was approved in the Assembly of the Republic by PSD, CDS, and Chega.
“We are talking about a decree that not only violates rights enshrined in various international conventions, including those of the United Nations, but also fails to protect the rights of children, families, and family reunification, and constitutes an attack on immigrants’ rights, introducing unacceptable discrimination,” she argued.
Paula Santos emphasized that these concerns were also raised by the President of the Republic and additionally criticized the “accelerated” manner of the legislative process in the Assembly of the Republic.
“The reservations are numerous: there was no intent to listen to the entities, associations, or even the entities that are mandatory to consult. Therefore, we consider this decision necessary given the diploma’s content,” she stated.
The President of the Republic today submitted to the Constitutional Court the parliament decree altering the legal regime of entry, stay, exit, and removal of foreigners from national territory, approved by PSD, Chega, and CDS-PP.
