II SÉRIE-D — NÚMERO 64

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A Deputada Catarina Rocha Ferreira (PSD) participou no debate com a seguinte intervenção:

Thank you,

Madam President, dear colleagues,

Let me start by sharing that today is the day of freedom in my country in Portugal.

On 25 April 1974, democracy won against the dictatorship in Portugal.

So this is the day that brought democracy and civil liberties back to the Portuguese

people.

I am happy to celebrate these values here today as these values we share in this

Parliamentary Assembly.

But at most, this is a symbolic day for us to discuss the importance of the European Convention on Human

Rights.

In fact, Portugal ratified these conventions four years after the 25April Revolution, and two years after the

approval of our national constitution.

Actually, we have within this Council of Europe many different constitutional models and values.

Of course, potential conflicts between the European Convention on Human Rights and national constitutions

can exist, and in fact exist, but it is very important that full respect for the convention is guaranteed.

I recall that human rights should be upheld in every situation. So, the respect for the convention and the

national constitutional orders must be understood as fully complementary.

This is the understanding we have in Portugal.

One of the aims of this Council of Europe is precisely the achievement of greater unity between its member

States. This unity includes the creation of a common European space for human rights protection.

The humanist message that is so clearly projected in the convention constitutes a higher guarantee, that

human rights are integrally protected by the signatory parts, and we should continue to make a commitment.

Our commitment is to continue to promote human rights, even more in the future.

In earlier times, the protection of human rights was left to the individual states, but the lessons of modern

war and a generally lax attitude towards human rights demonstrated the need for them to be made an

international concern.

So, I finish underlining the importance of this report because the protection of human rights became an

important instrument in the efforts to preserve global peace and security.

The international community should be committed to intervening in the cases where there is a failure in the

respect of European Convention of Human Rights by those who signed the convention.

Thank you.

O Deputado Pedro Cegonho (PS) participou neste debate com a seguinte intervenção:

Thank you, Madam Chair, for the floor,

Portugal explicitly set out in the constitution that international law or

international human rights law of which the convention is part are above

domestic law.

In Article 16, about scope and meaning of fundamental rights, the

Portuguese constitution says:

«The fundamental rights in the Constitution do not exclude any others

contained in the applicable laws and rules of international law».

And after that:

«Constitutional and legal precepts relating to fundamental rights must be interpreted and integrated in

accordance with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights».

This sentence is very important. As several authors claim: