Regarding 2023, the document analyzes 155 countries and concludes that, last year, human rights violations "were widespread".

For Portugal, AI points out the case of seven police officers who were accused of torturing immigrants and who were authorized to return to work, says that concerns about low rates of prosecution of domestic violence persisted last year, and recalls data indicating that the number of families without adequate housing tripled in relation to 2018.

On torture and ill-treatment, the report cites the Committee for the Prevention of Torture of the Council of Europe, which said that ill-treatment inflicted on detainees by law enforcement officers is a persistent practice, reiterating the Government's obligation to ensure the investigation of alleged cases and combat impunity.

In June, the Évora Court of Appeal acquitted a military police officer and reduced the sentences of four other officers convicted of torturing immigrants in the city of Odemira, Beja district.

After an initial suspension of duties, the seven police officers involved in the case were authorized to return to work.

"According to a report by the Ombudsman published in April, the average prison occupancy rate in December 2022 was 100.8%, with 25 of the 49 prisons overcrowded," the report says.

On gender-based violence, AI cites the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) and its concern about the "high and persistent level of domestic violence" in Portugal, with that Committee urging the authorities to address the problem of low rates of prosecution of suspects of domestic violence, as well as the insufficient supply of shelters for victims seeking safety.

Amnesty also cites official data on internal security (from March), which estimated an 18.2% increase in the number of people subjected to human trafficking, almost half for labor exploitation.

And it recalls data from the National Institute of Statistics from January, which estimated that 9.2% of people lived in overcrowded housing, affecting almost 20% of families in poverty. And that there were 86 thousand families with housing needs last year.

In 2023, AI says in the report, in the part on economic, social and cultural rights, France, Ireland and Portugal registered record levels of homelessness.

The international movement also mentions in the part on Portugal the case of three activists who sued the Lisbon City Council for alleged violation of their rights, and the case of six young people who filed a complaint with the European Court of Human Rights against 32 countries, alleging that governments were not doing enough in the fight against climate change. This year the Court ruled, not giving the young people the reason.

In global terms, AI paints a much grimmer picture, speaking of attacks and assassinations in a growing number of armed conflicts, crackdowns on freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, and arbitrary detentions.

It also speaks of States that have failed to take steps to ensure people's right to food, health, education and a healthy environment, neglecting economic injustices and the climate crisis.

The treatment of civilians as expendable in armed conflict, the growing backlash against gender justice, the disproportionate impact of economic crises, climate change and environmental degradation on the most marginalized communities, and the threats of new and existing technologies represent, in AI's view, critical challenges for human rights worldwide in 2024 and beyond.

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