The Constitutional Court in Lisbon has prevented Portugal’s parliament from restricting the inflow of migrants in a decision handed down on Friday, August 8th. It cited a particular “human right” (to a family life) that the bill would allegedly take away by obstructing family members from joining immigrants who are already legal residents in Portugal.
President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa responded by sending the bill back to parliament, which is on recess until September. Previously, the president was criticised for asking the court to check the document for potential constitutional infringements, leading it to rule that the bill was a “violation of the rights enshrined in the constitution” as it was “likely to lead to the separation of family members” of foreign citizens legally resident in Portugal.
If the bill had been incorporated into law, only highly-skilled workers and investors with special residence permits would be exempt from waiting for two years before requesting permission to have immediate family members join them.
Once again, an activist court system is overruling the decisions of elected officials, thwarting the will of the people. This Europe-wide pattern is also evident in courts blocking Georgia Meloni’s ‘Albania Protocol’ in Italy and the ongoing activities of the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Human Rights.
