​The Inspectorate General of Home Affairs (IGAI) is an independent organism of external control of police activity. It works directly under the authority of the Ministry of Home Affairs (Ministério da Adminstração Interna – MAI) and its control includes all security forces and services that depend upon this Ministry, ensuring the compliance with the rights of the citizens, with especial emphasis on the protection of human rights and the maintenance of public order.

I - Origin, Characteristics, Functions and Competences

The IGAI was created by Decree-Law No. 227/95, dated September 11, 1995, later amended by Decree-Law No. 154/96, dated August 31, 1996, and by Decree-Law No. 3/99, dated January 4, 1999. The purpose of its creation was to endow the Ministry of Home Affairs with a service of inspection and supervision especially focused on the defence of the rights of the citizens and on a better and more expedite disciplinary justice in the situations of a greater social relevance. Its implementation corresponded to the requirements of the programme of the XIII Constitutional Government, section II – Home Affairs, paragraph 2 – Citizens’ safety, subparagraph (k):

    “Implementation of institutional solutions and proceedings in order to ensure, in the area of home affairs, a more effective control of law enforcement practices, defence of the rights and legitimate interests of the citizens and restoration of the legality that has been violated.” (Official Gazette of the Assembly of the Republic, Series II – A, No. 2, page 26(7), dated November 8, 1995).

This organism was created to provide an answer to less transparent or less legal matters in the scope of activity of the MAI but, mainly, to respond, in an effective way, to the intransigent defence of human rights, the fundamental rights of the citizens, in a perspective of improvement of the quality of police action and the exercise of citizenship in a Democratic State based on the rule of the Law.

The IGAI intends thus to provide an answer to the domestic and international concerns in this field, including those felt by organisations of an institutional and non-governmental nature, with special attention to the NGOs, the Amnesty International, the APT (Genève) and the CPT of the Council of Europe.

Accordingly, a new platform of control, both at the operational and selective levels, independent of the security forces and services, was created, with the Inspector General answering directly to the Minister of Home Affairs but with functional and technical autonomy.

In what concerns its activity, the IGAI is guided by criteria of legality and strict objectivity.

In what concerns the core of its duties and competencies, the IGAI is a high level inspection service with supervision powers over all the services that depend on or are under the authority of the Minister of Home Affairs and the business enterprises that perform their activity in the area of private security.

It is responsible for ensuring the respect for the law having in mind a good operation of the services, the defence of the legitimate interests of the citizens, the safeguard of the public welfare and the reinstatement of the legal order.

For the performance of its activity, the IGAI carries out not only regular inspections but also control actions without previous notice to precincts and units of the police forces, where it makes an assessment of the general conditions of operation, the respect for the legal norms and the applicable procedures and, especially, the conditions of temporary arrest and treatment of the detainees.

With these actions, the IGAI intends to prevent the practice of ill treatments and other abusive procedures. When it verifies that the premises do not have minimum conditions of dignity for housing detainees, it recommends their immediate closure and the use of other nearby premises until new places are built or the old ones repaired.

The IGAI analyses complaints submitted by citizens, as well as other situations brought to its attention by whatever means where there is a suspicion of breach of the law or of behaviour that is detrimental to the fundamental rights of the citizens. In the most serious cases, such as police use of ill treatment, torture, bodily harm or death of citizens, the IGAI directly starts the inquiries and disciplinary procedures and submits its conclusions to the Minister with the suggested individual sanctions. When it verifies the existence of systematic flaws, the IGAI presents proposals for the improvement of the services.

II - Institutional affiliations of the Inspector General of Home Affairs

According to Decree-Law No. 166/98, dated June 25, 1998, which instituted the System of Internal Control of the Financial Administration of the State (Sistema de Controlo Interno da Administração Financeira do Estado – SCI), the Inspector General is a member of its Council.

According to article 39, paragraph 2, subparagraph (b), of Decree-Law No. 34/2013, dated May 16, 2013, which regulates the exercise of the activity of Private Security, the Inspector General of Home Affairs is a permanent member of the Council of Private Security.

III - Premises

The IGAI is located at Rua Mártens Ferrão, No. 11, 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th floors, in Lisbon