Category: Uncategorized

GNR Reaching out to the elderly living in isolated areas

Around the country, the Republican National Guard, in partnership with Altice Portugal has been providing some unforgettable moments to the elderly living alone and / or isolated, helping them fight isolation.

Through the making of video calls, on tablets delivered to the elderly during visits by the GNR, which are part of the 65 Far + Near program, the elderly can contact the family members who are distant, making these contacts emotional but at the same time comforting.

A really excellent and well thought out program.

 

Two foreign nationals extradited to Portugal to face international drug trafficking charges

Last weekend, following a joint operation carried out by the Judiciary Police, through the International Cooperation Unit and the National Unit to Combat Drug Trafficking, and by the competent authorities of Montenegro, it was possible to extradite two men to Portugal. 47 and 53 years of age, who, in a criminal proceeding running under terms in our country, are strongly indicted for the crimes of aggravated drug trafficking and criminal association.

The extradites, one of dual Croatian / Dutch nationality and the other of Croatian nationality, are suspected of having joined a criminal organization with a transnational dimension responsible for sending large quantities of cocaine from South America to Europe. Together with a third individual, who was detained by the Judicial Police in June 2018, when they were crewing a recreational vessel that was intercepted off the Azores with around 1.4 tons of that type of drug on board.

In the process currently underway in Portugal, the two men, now detained as well as the third member who followed the vessel, are subject to the enforcement measures of periodic obligation to present the police authority and a ban on absent from national territory. However, they violated the conditions by going overseas.

 

GNR detained 202 people in the last week across the country

According to the corporation the GNR detained 202 people, half of them for illegal driving and driving under the influence of alcohol, in operations to combat crime and road enforcement carried out last week across the country.

In a statement of the summary of the week’s operational activity between May 8 and 14, the National Republican Guard highlights the following arrests having been made:

63 arrests for driving without legal authorization, 51 for driving under the influence of alcohol, 16 for drug trafficking, 11 for theft, 6 for domestic violence, 3 for illegal possession of weapons and 2 for possession of prohibited weapons.

GNR also added that, in the last week, it also seized: 1,323 doses of hashish, 77 doses of cocaine, 56 doses of heroin, 26 firearms, 15 bladed weapons, 3,645 ammunition of different calibres, 50,000 cigarettes, 1,800 kilos of fish, 1,400 kilos of shellfish, five vehicles and 3,745 euros in cash.

Within the scope of traffic inspection, the GNR military detected 3,767 infractions: 2,261 of which due to speeding, 264 related to anomalies in the lighting and signalling systems, 173 due to use of mobile phones while driving and 167 due to lack of inspection and 149 due to lack of insurance

GNR also detected 135 infractions for lack or incorrect use of the seat belt and child restraint system, 69 for driving with a blood alcohol level higher than allowed by law and 47 related to tachographs

 

PSP union warns of increased aggression against police

The Union of Police Professionals (SPP) lasts Sunday expressed concern about the increase in “aggressions, disrespect and disobedience” towards elements of the security forces in recent times.

“The SPP-PSP expresses its enormous concern with the increase in aggressions, disrespect and disobedience to the security forces without the Assembly of the Republic and the Government taking swift and concrete measures to reverse this situation”, said the PSP.

It is also required to assign a risk subsidy to police officers.

During the early hours of Saturday 16^th May, three PSP agents were injured in an intervention in the Casal dos Machados neighbourhood, near Moscavide, in Lisbon, where about 100 people gathered for a party.

According the Correio da Manhã, a security operation was to take place in the neighbourhood on Sunday, the day following the assault on the officers. The PSP were going to be searching residents in that area.

 

Woman run over in Ermesinde by driver who was distracted “by an insect”

A 24-year-old woman is in serious condition after falling off a bridge and landing on a railway line. She was seriously injured after being hit by a car, on the bridge of Palmilheira, in Ermesinde, and having fallen to the railway line, from a height of about nine meters.

The authorities were alerted at 2:37pm.

The driver of the car who had lost his way and hit the young woman, on Avenida Duarte Pacheco (EN208), told the PSP that he was distracted by an insect that entered the vehicle and that is what ended up causing the accident.

The young woman was hit and thrown onto the railway line. She was rescued by the Ermesinde Firefighters and transported, to the Hospital de S. João, in Porto, in serious condition

PSP was at the scene, with members of the Criminal Investigation Division and the Accident Brigade.

Circulation on the railway line in the direction of Ermesinde / Porto, was cut off during the rescue operation.

 

PSP resumes speed control operations

PSP resumed its speed control operations this week, despite continuing to monitor points considered crucial in the context of the calamity situation due to the covid-19 pandemic.

With the gradual return to normality of Portuguese society, the Public Security Police also resumes speed control operations “as of Wednesday, the 15^th May 2020,” announced the PSP, in a statement.

According to the PSP, these operations constitute “an essential pillar in the increase of road safety”, being therefore essential to return to “permanent and intensive preventive, proactive and dissuasive inspections of road accidents”.

Despite the resumption of some of the usual activities of the PSP, this police force says that it will continue its action in the context of the calamity decreed due to the covid-19 pandemic.

The PSP stresses that it will maintain vigilance and follow-up at points considered crucial, such as public transport, bathing areas and other places where there is a greater likelihood of a illegal gathering of people.

 

Domestic violence and mistreatment of animals

A 40-year-old man was detained in Sesimbra by the GNR, accused of assaulting his partner for five years.

In addition to physical abuse, the detainee also tortured his companion’s domestic animals.

“The suspect physically, verbally and psychologically assaulted the 34-year-old ex-partner during the five years they lived together.

He exercised total daily, family and social control over the victim, depriving them of contact with family and friends, as well as financial control, leading to their economic dependence “, said the GNR of Leiria.

“He also had the habit of mistreating the victim’s domestic animals.”.

The man did not accept the end of the relationship and pursued the woman for months and even threatened her with death. He also published intimate photographs of the victim and publicly accused her of resorting to prostitution.

GNR also informed that the detainee, with a criminal record for drug trafficking, was detained at the GNR facilities, and will remain there until he appears before the Leiria Judicial Court.

Civil Protection sent to all operational personnel involved in the rural fire-fighting device a plan with measures and instructions to prevent contagion by covid-19, that organization revealed to Lusa today.

According to the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection (ANEPC), the operational instruction was sent on Tuesday to all operational personnel of the Special Rural Fire Fighting Device (DECIR) of 2020.

ANEPC stresses that this document materializes a set of concrete measures, ranging from individual protection, hygiene rules for rest spaces, food and transportation for operational staff.

These measures are intended to protect civil protection agents from contagion by covid-19 during the time of fighting rural fires, advances Civil Protection, noting that the document reflects the recommendations of health authorities.

The instruction manual on how to manage the risk of covid-19 in fighting fires includes the hygiene and distance rules applied to the spaces where the operational personnel sleep, eat, rest or receive the command’s instructions, as well as the procedures that must be followed. with equipment and vehicles, namely cleaning before and after each service.

Meals will be distributed directly in the theaters of operations, instead of concentrating on the food places and multiplying the number of food places.

According to ANEPC, the pre-positioning of means will be done through a greater separation of teams to avoid exposure to covid-19 through an adjustment of the rules for the use of the Logistical Support Bases and a lower concentration of elements for each one. of these infrastructures, promoting a greater distribution of personnel in the territory through the different temporary municipal infrastructures, created for the reception of people affected with covid-19 and that are not being used.

The Civil Protection has also foreseen the implementation of mechanisms of initial attack to the most robust fires due to the danger and meteorological risk with the use of aerial and terrestrial means of expanded attack, right in the initial phase, in order to reduce the times of operation and of a more prolonged concentration of human resources over time.

In relation to the coordination of air resources, an additional reinforcement grant is foreseen through elements with adequate experience and training.

The National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection also provides rules for command posts installed in theaters of operations.

In a debate organized last week, the southern district grouping operational commander (CODIS), Miguel Cruz, stressed that this operational instruction can be articulated with the contingency plans of each of the structures involved in the combat.

The means of fighting forest fires were strengthened for the first time this year on May 15, this year being the great challenge to the pandemic of invite-19 in which it is necessary to reconcile the response to fires with health security.

According to the National Operational Directive (DON), which establishes the DECIR for this year, 8,402 operational members of the 1,945 teams and 1,968 vehicles of the various agents present in the field will be available by May 31, in addition to the aerial means, which will be at most 37.

The means of firefighting will be reinforced again on June 1, but it is between July and September, known for the most critical phase, the period that mobilizes the largest device, with 11,825 operational personnel, 2,746 teams, 2,654 vehicles this year. and 60 aerial means.

The Data Protection Commission warns that schools must verify and demonstrate that the body temperature measurements they take on students, within the scope of covid-19, comply with legal data protection principles and rules.

In a note available on its website, the National Data Protection Commission (CNPD) emphasizes that temperature measurement was not recommended for educational establishments by the national health authority, “an entity to whom, due to its technical and scientific competences, the law assigns the competence to determine or recommend appropriate and necessary measures to guarantee public health “.

The commission says it was aware that, in the resumption of face-to-face classes last Monday, some educational establishments adopted the procedure of reading students’ body temperature.

In this sense, the Commission recalls that the reading of students’ body temperature, “regardless of whether or not the respective record is performed, constitutes a processing of personal data” and, therefore, educational establishments “have an obligation” to verify and demonstrate that the treatments they carry out comply with the principles and legal rules for the protection of personal data.

“In fact, body temperature is information related to an identified or identifiable natural person, and a collection and analysis operation is being carried out on it, so much so that, depending on the observed measurement result, a decision is made that affects the life of the student who holds the data: whether or not admission to the educational establishment he attends is permitted, and therefore whether he is prevented from attending and participating in face-to-face classes “, says the CNPD.

The legal diploma that regulates the resumption of classroom teaching activities does not provide for this treatment of personal data, says the CNPD, in the guidelines for educational establishments regarding the measurement of students’ body temperature, in the context of returning to classes and other teaching activities in person, regardless of education level.

According to CNPD, the decree-law only determines that educational establishments reorganise “school spaces, classes and schedules, in order to guarantee compliance with the guidelines of the General Directorate of Health, namely in terms of hygiene and physical distance. “.

“Nor do the guidelines and recommendations of the Directorate-General for Health, to which it refers, point to this measure as adequate and necessary to safeguard public health. In fact, regarding access to the school grounds, in the guidelines only the “duty to ensure that everyone is wearing a mask. Hand hygiene at the entrance and exit, with alcohol-based antiseptic solution, must also be taken care of”, specifies the commission.

CNPD indicates that educational establishments have regular autonomy, within which the student’s status can be defined.

However, the commission stresses, “the restriction of rights, freedoms and guarantees, such as the right to respect for private life and the right to the protection of personal data, can only occur by determination of law, which provides for appropriate and specific measures that safeguard the fundamental rights and interests of the data subjects, and therefore, under no circumstances can a regulation of an educational establishment introduce innovatively a restriction of those rights “.

The commission also stresses on the grounds of lawfulness for the processing of health data, that “consent, to be legally relevant, must be given under conditions that guarantee the freedom inherent in that manifestation”.

This, according to CNPD, assumes, “not only clear information about the conditions of the processing of personal data and the consequences of it, but also that this manifestation of explicit will is not conditioned or impaired by the possible repercussions (or by the threat of repercussions) that the refusal of its issuance may have “.

This means, says the commission, that the “declaration of will eventually manifested by the student, or by the guardian, is only relevant to justify the treatment if there is no threat or communication that the refusal to subject the body temperature reading procedure implies the negative consequence for the student of being prevented from entering a classroom and, therefore, of obtaining the necessary teachings for his preparation for the evaluation ”

 

Within the scope of the Contingency Plan for the National Strategic Blood Reserve in the face of the COVID-19 epidemic, blood donors should be previously scheduled, preferably by appointment, respecting the eligibility criteria.

This strategy allows not having so many donors at the same time at the fixed collection sites, being a guarantor for the safety of professionals and donors, respecting the social distance measures recommended in the Guidelines of the General Directorate of Health.

At the same time, no more than 10 donors may remain inside any blood and blood component collection site.

Donors will then be able to schedule their donation by appointment using the following telephone numbers:

Lisbon Blood and Transplant Center: Tel  910 650 140 from 8:00 am to 3:00 pm;                                                                                      – 910 650 100 from 9:00 to 17:00 0r 21 792 1000 from 16:00 to 00:00, the appointment will be made the next day.

Porto Blood and Transplantation Center – 225083400 from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm Immediate appointment, from 7:30 pm to 12:00 am the appointment will be made the following day.

Coimbra Blood and Transplantation Center – 239 791 070 from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm immediate appointment, from 7:30 pm to 12:00 am the appointment will be made the next day.

Within the scope of the same Contingency Plan, the Fixed Collection Station of the Blood and Transplantation Center of Lisbon, is open from Monday to Sunday from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm.

The blood collection session at IPST Central Services, located at Avenida Miguel Bombarda 6 in Lisbon, is open every Friday from 9:30 am to 2:00 pm.

Within the scope of the same Contingency Plan, the Fixed Collection Station of the Blood and Transplantation Center of Lisbon, is open from Monday to Sunday from 8:00 am to 7:30 pm.

The blood collection session at IPST Central Services, located at Avenida Miguel Bombarda 6 in Lisbon, is open every Friday from 9:30 am to 2:00 pm.

More details http://www.ipst.pt/index.php/home/destaques/715-horario-para-agendamento-dadiva-de-sangue

 

 

The context of the fire risk for this year is “worrying”, with the impact of the covid-19 pandemic adding to the concerns that already existed, according to a note released today by the Technical Observatory Independent of the Assembly of the Republic.

“The context of risk for the current year is worrying”, reads the document, which points to the “situation of pandemic crisis due to covid-19, with a reduction in the general mobility of the population, and with special confinement of risk groups , with measures of physical distance – mistakenly called ‘social’ – and restrictions on the permanence of a large number of people in limited spaces ”.

This new framework will influence the constitution of teams, garrisons, aircraft crews, heli-transported teams and command posts, “which will necessarily lead to the elaboration of a contingency plan”, underlines the entity, adding that the work take place “at a time when knowledge about the evolution of the pandemic in the coming months is uncertain”.

According to the analysis of the device for fighting rural fires in 2020 made by the observatory experts, in addition to the issue of covid-19, “many of the previous concerns remain”, since “beyond the influence of climate change , also the susceptibility of the territory to the occurrence of rural fires has not decreased ”.

The observatory stresses that it has been drawing “attention to the occupation goals by species established by the Regional Forest Management Plans (PROF) for 2030 and 2050 (OTI 2018)” and that “the revision of these goals results from the need to adapt the forest cover to reduce the risk of fire, by reducing the area of ​​the most flammable species such as eucalyptus and maritime pine and the inverse expansion of leafy species such as oaks ”.

The experts consider that the PROF “continue to be the instrument for the redefinition of forests in order to increase their resilience, imposing the definition of a suitable cover and management models and favoring the expansion of less flammable species”.

On the other hand, “the weaknesses regarding planning pieces are maintained, which rests once again on the hazard map, distributing resources and means based on this cartography”, says the observatory, stressing that “it has already drawn attention to the risk that operational planning is based on this mapping ”.

This is because “it classifies as highly dangerous areas recently covered by fire”, he stressed, that is, “this process results in the overestimation of the risk of fire in areas already burnt to the detriment of other areas of the country with greater potential risk”.

Furthermore, according to the observatory, it is also noted that this Special Rural Fire Fighting Device (DECIR) “does not explicitly reflect the concerns expressed in the studies that the Observatory has carried out, both in the strategic positioning for the first intervention, as well as the importance intervention in the night combat, which proved to be very ineffective in the Monchique and Vila de Rei fires analyzed by this Observatory ”.

The organization suggests that “the device could have specialized teams with greater mobility and intervention authority in the most complex operating theatres”.

The observatory also records “some lack of integration of the combat device with the rest of the Integrated Rural Fire Management System, namely in relation to the components of surveillance, detection, defense of the populations or investigation of the causes”.

And he warns that “the little integration of these aspects results from the lack of organization of a true integrated system with territorial coherence and the inexistence of a National Plan for Integrated Management of Rural Fires, an issue to which this Observatory has systematically warned”.

Finally, the experts note that the analysis made focuses only on the description of DECIR, and in particular on the amount of means available to fight fires.

“It is known, however, that the efficiency and effectiveness of combat, particularly in more complex situations, depends strongly on the quality of the intervention”, emphasizes the observatory, concluding that this “requires an increasing emphasis on the training and qualification of agents”

The Prime Minister acknowledges that this is not the time to open bars and nightclubs, and that it may even be the case that they will not reopen all summer “if necessary”. In an interview with TSF on Monday, António Costa admitted that there are still no dates planned for the reopening of this type of establishment. A warning that has added to the sector’s concern.

“It is not on our calendar yet. We have to make [the reopening] in a gradual way and starting with the sectors of activity where it’s easier to regulate and establish rules for distancing. Now, activities that, by their very nature, live not from distance but, on the contrary, from proximity and interaction, it is clear that they will be in the last place of those that can reopen”, the Prime Minister began by saying.

Asked if bars and nightclubs might not open this summer, Costa answered: “If necessary. If not, even better. If it is, it will have to be… We can’t now call into question what we’ve achieved with enormous difficulty from people. There are people who have not left their home for two months. Only today will families be able to visit their relatives in nursing homes again. Only today will parents be able to put their children in day care. And they do it with a very divided heart, not knowing if it is a risk for the child,” he said. And he insisted: “We cannot question what we have achieved.” And he remembered one criterion: “Maximum containment, minimum disturbance.”

The Association of Bars in the Historic Area of Porto (ABZHP) has already reacted to the declarations. António Fonseca, president of ABZHP, confessed to PÚBLICO that the declarations of the Prime Minister “aggravate the concern” of the sector. “If [the establishments] don’t open this year, what will be done to the people?”

Aware that the Government’s positions may “evolve from one day to the next”, António Fonseca has once again reinforced that the owners of nightclubs want “to know that they are heard”, both by the executive and by the Directorate-General of Health (DGS), even more so when the possibility is on the table that there will be no reopening during the summer.

ABZHP is aware of the circumstances and ensures that the priority is to open spaces “safely” and therefore wants to talk to “seek solutions” with the Government and DGS on possible support and on the preparation of the sector for health and safety measures that could be taken. Due to more than just about this Monday’s statements, António Fonseca admits that businessmen are concerned that there is no dialogue”, despite several attempts already made.

On Thursday the sector sent a letter to the government with a set of measures that could save bars and nightclubs. The entrepreneurs are asking for exemption from all payments to Social Security and Finance (with the exception of VAT), exemption from the Single Social Tax for the years 2020 and 2021 and support for “non-repayable funds from the sum corresponding to the salaries of the permanent jobs for a minimum period of nine months, provided that the jobs at the date of closure are maintained”, among other measures.

The Associação de Discotecas do Sul e Algarve (ADSA) does not believe that the scenario of bars and nightclubs being closed during the summer “may have any viability”, admitting it only if the Government assumes “the expenses and losses” associated with such a decision.

“If all economic activity is gradually opening up, we’re not prodigal children – I think the bars and nightclubs will have to operate as well,” the ADSA president told PÚBLICO. Liberto Mealha hopes that, at least during the month of June, there will be a “green light” for the sector, so that the establishments can try to “make some profit from the summer”, always with full respect for the measures that may be required.

ADSA recognizes that nightclubs were “prepared to open later,” but not to be closed during what are ultimately “the strongest months.”It’s a sector that can’t be marginalized.”

About gyms, Costa says the government is “in dialogue with the association [representative of the sector], to see how hygiene criteria are ensured”. “Standards have to be found” to avoid crowding and ensure “sanitization,” he said, pointing out that the gyms are places where contamination is “easier”.

 

 

he President of the Government of the Azores announced today that passengers arriving in the region will be able to choose to carry out a test on departure, or on arrival in the Azores, comply with a voluntary quarantine period or return to the origin.

“Four options are given to passengers who, as of today, arrive in the Azores: travel already with a negative test done before departure; undergo a test upon arrival in the region and wait for the result; or comply with a voluntary quarantine period of 14 days in a specific hotel, with the costs borne by the Region; or return to their original destination ”, declared Vasco Cordeiro.

The measures take effect at 00:00 on Sunday.

The President of the Government spoke at a press conference in Ponta Delgada, following the decision of the Ponta Delgada Court, which granted today a request for immediate release (‘habeas corpus’) made by a plaintiff against the imposition of quarantine in hotels by part of the Government of the Azores.

The measures were taken following today’s meeting of the Government Council, which, under the Legal Regime of the Civil Protection System of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, decreed the situation of public calamity on the islands of São Miguel and Terceira, islands with connections with the outside world, in the context of combating the covid-19 pandemic.

Vasco Cordeiro stated that “if a passenger refuses any of these options, violates voluntary quarantine or prophylactic isolation, mandatory quarantine in a hotel will be determined, assuming, in this case, all the respective financial costs by a decision of his own”.

As is currently the case, the Azorean executive maintains for passengers who are subject to mandatory quarantine, the obligation to perform a screening test on the 14th day.

Vasco Cordeiro considered that another of the consequences that the decision of the Court of Ponta Delgada “can have, is that the approximately 350 passengers coming from abroad and who are, at the moment, fulfilling quarantine in hotels, may eventually decide to abandon that quarantine. ”, Something that, according to the President of the Government,“ some have already done ”.

The head of the Azorean executive said that “as soon as there was knowledge of the ‘Habeas Corpus’ request, it was determined that the health authorities carry out the collection of biological samples and subsequent screening tests for these passengers”, a measure “in order to avoid potential risks of the emergence of transmission chains on the islands of São Miguel and Terceira ”.

“These passengers were also informed that, if they so wished, and only if they so wished, they could abandon the hotels where they were staying in compliance with the mandatory quarantine,” said Vasco Cordeiro.

Ryanair and SATA are not operating between the continent and the region, but TAP continues to have connections, albeit to a lesser extent than usual, between Lisbon and Ponta Delgada and Lisbon and Angra do Heroísmo.

So far, 145 cases of infection have been detected in the Azores, with 105 recovered, 16 deaths and 24 positive cases active for infection with the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2, which causes covid-19 disease, of which 16 in São Miguel, two in Graciosa, one in São Jorge, three in Pico and two in Faial.T

Campsites and motorhome service areas in the country should be operational and reopen within a week, the federation and association representing these activities announced today, in the process of adapting.

According to a statement sent to the Lusa agency by the FCMP – Federation of Camping and Mountaineering of Portugal and APCAA – Association of Camping Sites in the Alentejo and Algarve, “a physical and formative adaptation is taking place in the places”, so “no immediate reopening should be possible “.

Camping and caravan sites, as well as motorhome service areas, may reopen on Monday, with a maximum capacity of two-thirds of their total capacity, as announced by the government on Friday.

The measure was approved by the Council of Ministers, within the scope of the new phase of deflation that begins on Monday, in the context of the 19-covid pandemic.

However, both the FCMP and the APCAA today indicate that the opening should only happen a week from now, “due to the different realities existing in the national territory and the constraints now imposed”, for the “requalification of spaces for common use, adopting the new mechanisms to control the necessary entries and the application of all security rules “.

In the statement, the two entities indicate that they have prepared a good practice guide for campsites, based on the recommendations of the Directorate-General for Health, “which is awaiting approval from this entity, with a view to clarifying and standardizing safety procedures. to observe during this new phase of deflation “.

They also state that, as a way of “reinforcing confidence in the use of camping sites and service areas for motorhomes”, Turismo de Portugal will make available the attribution of the “Clean & Safe” seal, through the National Register of Tourist Enterprises, to campsites, or via the FCMP platform to service areas for motorhomes.

This certification, “requires the implementation of an internal protocol that ensures the hygiene and social distance measures to combat the risks of contagion from Covid-19, thus guaranteeing the best safety conditions for the operation” of these services.

The FCMP and APCAA call on users to wait for the information given by each entity, regarding the date of its reopening, “so that it occurs in the best possible way, guaranteeing that there will be no reason for a setback in the fight against the pandemic that must be done for all and for all “.

On Friday, in a statement, the Ministry of Economy said that the “Clean & Safe” label has already joined more than 4,000 companies in the tourism sector.

The seal, which is 100% digital, free and valid until April 30, 2021, requires the implementation of an internal protocol that, according to the recommendations of the Directorate-General for Health, must ensure social distance and the necessary hygiene for avoid risks of contagion and ensure safe procedures for the operation of tourist activities.

Within the scope of the declaration of the state of emergency in Portugal, to combat the covid-19 pandemic, the Government had defined until March 27 the deadline for users to leave the campsites and caravan parks, while the permanent residents in these establishments tourists were able to stay in them to ensure the response to housing needs.

At the time, Secretary of State Rita Marques told Lusa that the closure of campsites and caravan sites was taking place “in an orderly and peaceful manner”, underlining the return of foreign tourists to their countries of origin.

António Costa said this evening, at the end of the Council of Ministers meeting that the results of the first measures of de- confinement, taken 15 days ago, were positive in combating the spread of covid-19, there being no reason to postpone a further step in the reopening of activities.

According to the Prime Minister, given the data on the evolution of the pandemic, the government concluded that “the first containment measures taken 15 days ago, which came into effect at the beginning of this month, did not alter the control trend” of the new coronavirus.

“In view of these developments, there is no reason for us to delay, backtrack or postpone any of the measures that we had planned to enter into force next Monday. On the contrary, just as 15 days ago, we still have a robust system of testing capacity. We are now, after Lithuania, Cyprus and Denmark, the fourth country in Europe with the highest number of tests carried out by a million inhabitants,” said the head of government.

Among the measures approved by the Council of Ministers is the extension of the state of calamity until 31 May, “continuing the process of de-confinement that began on 30 April, without calling into question the evolution of the epidemiological situation in Portugal”, reads the communiqué.

The Prime Minister announced new rules for the de-confinement period.

 

Beaches

About beaches, António Costa stressed that users must ensure a physical distance of 1.5 meters between different groups and a distance of three meters between sun hats, awnings or thatched umbrellas, from June 6.

According to the deconfinement plan divulged after the Council of Ministers, during the bathing season, in the use of the beach sands there are “forbidden sports activities with two or more people, except nautical activities, surf lessons and similar sports”.

In the awnings, thatched umbrellas and beach huts, “as a rule, each person or group can only rent in the morning (until 13h30) or afternoon (from 14h00)”, with a maximum of five users.

The Infopraia application is already available, which citizens can access before going to the beach and see if the destination beach is red (full and not advisable), yellow (almost full) or green (accessible). “You can download it now,” challenged the Prime Minister.

“We can’t have security officers on every beach saying that the beach is crowded” and if the respect for others is not confirmed, the Government admits closing beaches.

Commercial Spaces

“A fortnight ago we opened the small shops and announced that we could take a new step. That’s what’s going to happen”, the Prime Minister declares, thus confirming the second phase of deconfinement, with the opening of more commercial spaces, including restaurants, cafés and pastry shops. Left out of the reopening are bars and discos.

However, the required sanitary rules, namely the limitation of capacity, are maintained. “I understand that it is strongly restrictive of catering and its activity. We want the conditions to be created so that from June onwards we can take a step forward and take away this limitation on capacity, maintaining a distance and friendly protection,” he says.

 

Cafes, pastry shops and restaurants

Restaurants can also reopen on Monday. But with some restrictions.

• The capacity of the spaces should be reduced by 50 percent.
• Masks are mandatory for all staff in cafes and restaurants.
• The layout of tables and chairs must ensure a distance of at least two metres between people. At the same table, people can sit facing each other or side by side.
• The opening hours are reduced. Cafes and restaurants can only operate until 23h00.
• Owners must disinfect all areas of frequent contact at least six times a day. This is the case for door handles, doors, taps and tables.
• Critical equipment such as automatic payment terminals and individual menus must be disinfected after each use.
• At the entrance and exit of the establishment, customers must disinfect their hands. They must also use a mask, except during the meal period.

Nursing Homes

The Chief Executive also announced that from Monday visits to nursing homes by relatives will resume, although still with restrictions on the number of people and maintaining the rules of social distance.

“From Monday it will be possible to resume visits to homes by relatives,” announced António Costa, adding that the restriction on these visits “was one of the most difficult decisions” taken by the executive.

Schools

11th and 12th grade students return to face-to-face classes on Monday. The return applies only to subjects subject to exams. The use of masks in schools is compulsory and social distance must be respected.

Students who do not attend classes in person, at the option of their parents, have justified absences. In this case, the school is only obliged to guarantee distance learning to groups at risk.

The reopening requires new security measures. In classrooms, there must be an exclusive desk for each student, who cannot face another colleague. The break times must be as short as possible and within the classrooms.

Classes take place from 10h00 to 17h00 and students will be divided into two shifts: one in the morning and one in the afternoon.

Day care centers

António Costa recognises that “it’s a particularly sensitive issue, for families who need day cares to open so they can return to work, for parents who are concerned about their children’s safety and for those who work in the day cares”.

The Prime Minister says that 80% of day care staff have been tested, but he points out that at least until the end of the month the Government keeps financially supporting parents who decide to continue at home with their children.

• A distance of between one and a half and two metres between the children inside the rooms, during meals and naps is planned.
• Professionals should wear a mask, but not the children.
• It is also recommended that close contact with the children be reduced to the indispensable.
• In the rooms where the children are sitting on the floor, the shoes should be left at the door.
• Professionals should also ensure, whenever possible, that children do not share objects.

Teleworking

For António Costa, the end of the compulsory teleworking should not be the end of this distance working option. “On the contrary,” he says. The Prime Minister says that this de- confinement should always be coordinated, so that workers are not all in their workplaces at the same time and repeats that this is a training of what will have to be a new lifestyle until vaccines

Representatives of various religious denominations met today at the Ministry of Justice to discuss, together with the Director-General for Health, “the general principles” to be applied in the gradual resumption of religious activity scheduled for 31 of May.

The Minister of Justice, Francisca Van Dunem, clarified that the meeting “aimed essentially to establish with the religious communities (Evangelical, Muslim, Jewish, Ismaili, Buddhist and Hindu) the general principles of a technical nature that the gradual restart of the activity must obey. “of the various religious confessions in the period of illness of the covid-19.

At the end of the meeting, which was also attended by the Minister of Health, Marta Temido, and the Assistant Secretary of State to the Prime Minister, Tiago Antunes, the Minister of Justice said that there is “a set of general rules, such as distance and the use of protective materials “that will have to be respected, as some religious rituals involve hugging and shaking hands, which contracts the distancing rule”.

Francisca Van Dunem said that the Directorate-General for Health (DGD) will distribute a document with the protection measures to be followed and the various religious denominations “will adapt the rules to the respective ceremonies and services”, after which this strategy will pass through permanent contact between the DGS and the different rites.

The minister did not dwell on the possibility of resuming ceremonies such as weddings and baptisms, saying only that this will depend on the DGS and that this first phase (the restart of religious activity) will be gradual and progressive.

He reiterated that today “generic ideas” were discussed and that next steps will be taken in articulation between the DGS and the religious confessions that are part of the Religious Liberty Commission, which functions in its ministry, since the Minister of Justice is a member of the responsible government for religious freedom issues.

Regarding the lifting of confinement measures in the period of covid-19, the minister recalled that, in late April, the government decided to carry out the gradual de-termination, a strategy that covered religious communities of public dimension that had been affected in religious practice due to restrictions rights, freedoms and guarantees imposed by the state of emergency.

As noted by a note from the Ministry of Justice, “the confinement measures adopted to ensure non-contamination and the treatment of covid-19 involved the restriction of rights and freedoms, but the State’s religious impartiality does not allow the expression to be deprived for much longer. public space, nor can the State ignore religious practice and culture as an integral part of the personality of many, in their primordial dignity “.

Portugal accounts for 1,190 deaths associated with covid-19 in 28,583 confirmed cases of infection, according to the latest daily bulletin from DGS on the pandemic.

Portugal entered on May 3 in a calamity situation due to the pandemic, after three consecutive periods in a state of emergency since March 19.

This new phase of combating covid-19 provides for mandatory confinement for sick people and under active surveillance, the general duty of home collection and the mandatory use of masks or visors in public transport, public attendance services, schools and commercial establishments.