The Government approved this Thursday a bill that reinforces the mechanisms to combat violence in sport, combining the intensification of measures to prevent the expansion and aggravation of the criminal network.
According to the Secretary of State for Youth and Sports, João Paulo Correia, “one of the objectives of this package is to strengthen the means” available to the Authority for the Prevention and Combat of Violence in Sports (APCVD).
In a press conference held at the end of the Council of Ministers, João Paulo Correia also pointed out that the bill approved today also aims to respond to the fact that, “since 2018, there have been significant incidents of violence in sports outside the sphere sports”. local”.
Among the proposed measures, we highlight the criminalization of support for organized groups of fans that are not registered with the APCVD or the attribution of direct or indirect support not declared in the established protocols (declaration that becomes a new obligation for clubs ), in which those responsible for the groups must also be identified.
“There are only 27 [grupos organizados de adeptos] duly registered with the Authority [para a Prevenção e o Combate à Violência no Desporto] and that is a limitation that must be overcome”, warned João Paulo Correia, adding that the criminal framework will be from one to three years in prison.
The responsibility of the visiting clubs for the behavior of the fans, the extension of the prohibition of access to sports venues to all modalities and all venues for those convicted and the aggravation of penalties for clubs that do not facilitate video surveillance images.
João Paulo Correia acknowledged that “the minimum fine has not been a deterrent” in relation to the breach of the obligation to provide video surveillance images in cases related to violence in sport and revealed that it will increase from 2,500 to 6,000 euros, while The maximum will double from 100,000 to 200,000 euros.
The crime of damage will be made public and aggravated in the context of violence in sports, the authorities may prevent the entry of fans identified in acts of violence that occurred before the sports event and of people convicted of crimes outside the scope of this law. it may be that the interdiction measure was applied in the enclosures.
The bill also aims to criminalize the promotion -and not just the incitement- of violence related to racism, xenophobia, intolerance and hatred, which becomes an isolated crime and an aggravated fine.
“The organizers of competitions are now obliged -currently, it is optional- to include in their regulations the disciplinary sanctions associated with the practice of acts of promotion or incitement to racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sports events”, said the minister .
One of the measures that will not have immediate application with the entry into force of the law, because it will require an adaptation period, will be the need for clubs to ensure places for people with reduced mobility in the sectors visited and visitors to their premises. .
The figure of the security officer will also be created, which will be applied progressively, for clubs that do not compete in professional or high-risk competitions, which will also benefit from the simplification of security regulations.
João Paulo Correia recalled that the bill, which must be approved in the Assembly of the Republic, had the contribution of representatives of sports agents, such as national federations, the Portuguese League and the Portuguese Olympic Committee, and contains ” measures to respond” to the phenomenon of violence in sport.
The Secretary of State was asked about another type of violence, the cases of sexual harassment in women’s football, indicating that “the Government has closely followed” this situation and that it has a “zero tolerance position”.
“We know that the complaints that were made public and others that do not yet have a public dimension are being duly investigated, by more than one entity,” said João Paulo Correia, recalling the opening a week ago of a complaint channel by the Institute Portuguese of Sport and Youth.
Source: TSF
