Only young people who committed a crime when they were between 16 and 30 years old can have their sentence reduced. But not all crimes are covered
The visit of Pope Francis to Portugal for World Youth Day (WYD) is a pretext for the application of an amnesty for crimes committed until June 19 by people between 16 and 30 years old at the time of the crimes.
The amnesty includes a one-year pardon for all sentences of up to eight years’ imprisonment and for criminal offenses for which the penalty is not more than one year’s imprisonment or 120 days’ fine.
Excluded from the amnesty are sentences for murder, trafficking in human organs, robbery and extortion, domestic violence, forced marriages, crimes against national sovereignty and the rule of law, prison riots, corruption and influence peddling, tampering with sporting truth, fraud in obtaining subsidies or grants and traffic fines.
Also excluded are all sentences for crimes against children, young people and particularly vulnerable victims, against sexual freedom and self-determination, discrimination and incitement to hatred and violence.
The amnesty is scheduled to enter into force on September 1.
The amnesty is the result of a government bill which, after some controversy and discussion, was approved by the Assembly of the Republic and promulgated by the President of the Republic.
The Minister of Justice, Catarina Sarmento e Castro, guarantees that “an individualized response is already guaranteed to each one” of the people who will leave prison under the scope of this pardon. The response will be given through coordination between Social Security and the National Health Service, she adds.
It is not the first time that there has been a papal amnesty in Portugal, it had already happened with the visits of Paul VI in 1967 and John Paul II in 1982 and 1991.
