Portugal | HCRW

Portugal regularly reports information on hate crimes to ODIHR. The Ministry of Justice and the Prosecutor's Office collect data on hate crime.

In 2018, the Ministry of Justice, ODIHR and the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights co-organized a workshop to improve hate crime recording and data collection, based on ODIHR's Information Against Hate Crimes Toolkit (INFAHCT). The workshop resulted in a set of recommendations for relevant state authorities.

Portugal has launched a series of action plans in recent years to combat discrimination, including a plan to combat racism (PNCRD 2021 - 2025), the National Strategy to Combat Poverty and Social Exclusion, the National Strategy for Equality and Non-Discrimination (2018-2030), the National Implementation Plan of the Global Compact for Migration, the National Roma Communities Integration Strategy (2013-2022), and the National Programme on Holocaust Remembrance.

SELECT YEAR

Download the 2023 hate crime report for Portugal

OFFICIAL DATA REPORTED BY STATES

Year	Hate crimes recorded by police	Prosecuted	Sentenced
2023	344	5	3
2022	270	Not available	Not available
2021	150	5	3
2020	132	Not available	Not available
2019	82	-	-
2018	63	Not available	Not available
2017	48	Not available	Not available
2016	-	-	0
2015	Not available	Not available	Not available
2014	21	21	Not available
2013	Not available	Not available	Not available
2012	Not available	Not available	Not available
2011	Not available	Not available	Not available
2010	Not available	Not available	Not available
2009	2	0	0

About 2023 Data

Police-recorded figures, as well as figures on prosecuted and sentenced cases, refer to incidents of discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence, and thus cover incidents that fall outside the OSCE's definition of hate crime.

Hate crime recorded by police

National developments

In 2023, the Polícia Judiciária organized a 12-hour training course promoted by a number of civil society associations, including the Portuguese Association for Victim Support (APAV), ILGA, Commission for Equality and Against Racial Discrimination (CICDR), and the Commission for Citizenship and Gender Equality (CIG).

The Office of the Prosecutor-General published guidelines for prosecutors on the exercise of professional duties in line with the latest report on Portugal issued by the Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD). The High Council of Public Prosecutors was also informed of the training needs identified by CERD to ensure the judiciary's effective knowledge and concrete implementation of the norms inscribed in ICERD. These training needs will be reported to the Centre for Judiciary Studies so that the CERD's recommendations may be reflected in the initial and in-service training curricula for judges and prosecutors.

As of 2023, there are nine victim support organizations in operation in Portugal, specifically in Aveiro, Braga, Coimbra, Faro, Leiria, Lisbon-West, Lisbon-North, Lisbon-South, and Porto-East. By 2024, one more will open in Setúbal. On 28 August 2023, priorities and guidelines for criminal policy, 2023-2025, were established in line with Article 8 of Law no. 51/2023, which also provides for the creation of two support offices for victims of gender-based violence in each calendar year.

KEY OBSERVATION

ODIHR recognizes Portugal's efforts to report hate crime information and data to ODIHR. However, based on the available information, ODIHR observes that law enforcement agencies have not recorded the bias motivations behind hate crimes and that Portugal's hate crime statistics do not sufficiently distinguish hate crimes from other crimes. In addition, ODIHR observes that Portugal would benefit from raising awareness among and building the capacity of criminal justice officials to address hate crime.

ODIHR recalls that in Ministerial Council Decision 9/09, OSCE participating States agreed to a definition of hate crime shared by all OSCE participating States, and committed to collecting reliable data and statistics on hate crimes, as well as to promptly investigating hate crimes and ensuring that the motives of those convicted of hate crimes are acknowledged. To that end, law enforcement agencies must first record the bias motivations behind hate crimes. Participating States also committed to introducing or further developing professional training and capacity-building activities for law enforcement, prosecution and judicial officials dealing with hate crimes.

ODIHR stands ready to support Portugal in meeting its relevant commitments through the provision of comprehensive resources and tailored assistance in the area of hate crime recording and data collection, as well as by providing further resources and tailored capacity-building assistance for police, prosecution, and judiciary.

Our methodology

🛈 Please note that the total number of incidents may be lower than the sum of incidents presented in the breakdown chart above, as some incidents involve multiple bias motivations.

🛈 ODIHR no longer presents descriptions of property attacks in the incident tables below. Data on property attacks are presented in the breakdown charts above. One property attack may target multiple properties or involve multiple types of attack.

🛈 Please note that the total number of incidents may be lower than the sum of incidents presented in the breakdown chart above, as some incidents involve multiple bias motivations.

Anti-Muslim hate crime

Date	Type of incident	Source	Description
2023-03	Violent attacks against people	Safer and Stronger Communities in Europe	Show info

INTERNATIONAL REPORTS

No information is available.