Bodycams are used by police forces in several countries across the globe
Portugal is set to join the long list of countries that allow the use of cameras on police uniforms (bodycams).
The announcement was made on Wednesday by Portugal’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, who revealed that the Supreme Administrative Court has ruled in favour of the government and that the bodycam implementation process will go ahead.
Being heard in the parliamentary committee on Constitutional Affairs, Rights, Freedoms and Guarantees, Margarida Blasco said that the ruling of the Supreme Administrative Court came on January 10 and that it “confirmed the decision of the first instance”, which considered the action brought by a company that challenged the public tender related to the video surveillance platform and police bodycams to be “totally unfounded.”
“We can move on to the next procedures,” she added, without offering further details about the next steps.
Her announcement followed a question posed by Chega, who wanted to hear from the minister about the process of implementing bodycams and about violence against the security forces. In addition to Chega, PS, Bloco de Esquerda, PCP and Livre also asked to hear Margarida Blasco for clarification on the death of Odair Moniz, in Cova da Moura, in October last year, and on the PSP police operation in Martim Moniz, Lisbon, in December 2024.
In November last year, the government announced the creation of a working group to “overcome the impasse” in the public tender for bodycams for the PSP and GNR, which has been contested twice.
In April 2023, the previous government launched a public tender worth €1.48 million to purchase a Unified Video Systems Security Platform to manage the information collected by the bodycams used to equip the PSP and GNR.
The previous government intended to acquire around 10,000 bodycams in phases by 2026 for an investment of €5 million. When the tender was announced in April 2023, it was said that the first 2,500 bodycams would arrive at the PSP and GNR in November 2024, but this didn’t happen.
Bodycams are used by police forces all around the world, from major countries such as the United Kingdom in Europe to Australia and the United States of America.
Source: LUSA
