Portugal Safety and Security Report Wednesday 28th February 2024

Good morning. We start the day with a report of an accident that was certainly preventable and nearly led to a tragedy. This involved the rescue of nine students from the sea at Vila do Conde on Sunday. The alert was given to the Vila do Conde firefighters for a pre-drowning situation on Senhora da Guia beach. Eight were kayakers including a kayak teacher included. The ninth was a member of the public who tried to help and ended up being dragged along too.

The students and the teacher were kayaking on the Ave River when they approached the mouth of the river and ended up caught by the current into the sea to the surf zone, which threw them out of the boats. All nine members belong to the Clube Fluvial Vilacondense, and five of them ended up having to be transported to hospitals.

Yellow level rough seas and strong winds warnings were in place at the time and the ANEPC had earlier advised “Do not practice activities related to the sea, namely sport fishing, nautical sports”.  The fact that the students were in trouble, that they had to be rescued and that five were in a state of “hypothermia”, begs the question, why in view of the warnings in place this training session went ahead in the first place? It could have been far more serious if it was not the prompt action of the emergency services.

We remind everyone to respect the warnings that are put in place – they are there for a very good reason – your safety!

A reminder that with the decreasing minimum temperatures and rain showers earlier on in parts of the mainland, especially in the centre and north, there is a risk of ice patches on the roads. We recommend that drivers be on the lookout and be prepared for such conditions. Braking distances can increase tenfold on ice compared with a dry road. For this reason, you should leave up to 10 times the normal recommended gap between you and the car in front. Remember that tyres grip less efficiently in cold conditions. If you do encounter a skid, steer gently into it. For example, if the rear of the car is sliding to the right, steer to the right. As above, do not take your hands off the steering wheel or brake hard.

Also a reminder from the civil protection authority Lisbon which published earlier this week the dangers concerning detergent capsules and young children. The detergents in capsules, with bright and eye-catching colours, are particularly appealing to children who can easily confuse them for treats, leading to an appreciable number of calls to the INEM Anti-poison Information Centre, due to intoxication.

Most of these are related to children who when handling the capsules, result in the capsules bursting in the hands or mouth, hitting the eyes, the mouth or skin. Although most situations are low-severity, they can still cause injury, namely at the eye level, with potentially more serious consequences. Depending on the organ affected by direct contact with the product, it can happen: 1. Skin: erythema (red skin, irritated) 2.Eyes: burning, red eye, swollen eyelid or even a chemical burn or 3. Mouth: vomiting, changes in the oropharynx (throat), or changes in respiratory due to product aspiration. If affected contact the INEM Anti-poison Information Centre – 800 250 250 immediately and remember: Always keep these products out of reach of children.

Our team wishes you a safe and happy week ahead

News

Strike against prison guards leads to the postponement of more than 90% of trials

Lisbon, February 27, 2024 (Lusa) – The strike by prison guards on stage has already led to the postponement of more than a thousand trials and more than 90% of scheduled sessions, according to the National Union of the Prison Guard Corps (SNCGP).

The guards have been on strike since February 13th and, according to the union, membership is currently around 100%, with an impact on the transport of prisoners.

“We are talking about the postponement of around 90% to 95% of trials,” Frederico Morais, from the SNCGP, told Lusa, noting that, in two weeks, more than a thousand sessions were postponed.

According to the union leader, in prisons in Lisbon and Porto, joining the strike led to the postponement of all trials.

The strike is also having an impact on medical appointments and, in this case, the minimum services are only allowing 10% of appointments to be guaranteed, with the rest being postponed.

The guards are on strike until March 9 to demand the “valuation and dignification of professionals”, the “restructuring of remuneration supplements” and the “approval of the performance evaluation system for professionals in the prison guard body, which has already been completed”.

“The adherence has to do with the dissatisfaction of the prison guard body and the lack of responses from the Government. We have been on strike for two weeks and no one has even deigned to speak to the prison guard staff”, highlighted Frederico Morais.

Prison guards have also been present at security force protests over the last month, motivated mainly by the granting of a mission allowance to the PJ, which left out not only the prison guard, but also the PSP and GNR.

Lusa questioned the Ministry of Justice about the impact of the strike on proceedings in the courts and is awaiting a response.

Almost 1 in 10 students in Portuguese schools are foreigners

The number of foreign students attending schools has increased in recent years. The data is contained in the report “State of Education 2022”, released by the National Education Council (CNE), which provides a portrait of education in Portugal

The number of foreign students attending Portuguese schools has increased in recent years and in 2021/2022 there were more than 100 thousand, equivalent to almost one in 10 of the total universe.

The data is contained in the report “State of Education 2022”, released this Monday by the National Education Council (CNE), which provides a portrait of education in Portugal.

In 2021/2022, 1.2 million students were enrolled in primary and secondary education. In mainland Portugal, schools were attended by 105,855 children and young people of foreign nationality, from more than 200 countries.

With an increase of almost 14 thousand compared to the previous academic year, the 79,796 foreigners between the 1st and 3rd cycle represented 9.3% of the total number of students and close to half belonged to the Brazilian community (44.6%).

Among the nationalities most represented in basic education are Angolans, with 6,613 students, and Ukrainians (5,019), which more than doubled in one year, as a result of the war in Ukraine.

Coming from 246 countries, there were 26,059 foreign students in secondary education, 3,502 more than in the previous year and equivalent to 7.9%.

Similar to basic education, the largest community was Brazilian (40.3%), followed by Angolan (10.0%) and Santomean (8.0%).

Comparatively, the proportion of Ukrainian students is much lower, representing only 3.5% (924 in total).

The Lisbon Metropolitan Area concentrates almost half of the students of foreign nationality and, in the opposite direction, only 5% were found in Alentejo.

Despite the growing trend recorded in recent years, the report notes that “at all levels and cycles of education, the proportion of foreign students with access” to the subject of Portuguese as a Non-Mother Language is low.

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