According to the decision released today, the ECHR ruled that the Portuguese courts violated Victor Veiga Cardoso’s freedom of expression by punishing a comment made by the Portuguese citizen about the prosecutor responsible for his daughter’s parental regulation case
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ordered Portugal to pay more than 18,000 euros to a Portuguese citizen for violating his right to freedom of expression by condemning a prosecutor for defamation.
According to the decision released today, the ECHR ruled that the Portuguese courts violated Victor Veiga Cardoso’s freedom of expression by punishing a comment made by the Portuguese citizen about the prosecutor responsible for his daughter’s parental regulation case.
Victor Veiga Cardoso said in a meeting with social workers who were monitoring his daughter’s supervised visit that the prosecutor allegedly consumed too much alcohol, thus jeopardizing his work and what he considered to be the child’s best interests: the right to be with her father as well.
The comment was passed on by the officials to the public prosecutor, who then sued Victor Veiga Cardoso for aggravated defamation and saw the court find in his favor, ordering the citizen to pay 1,600 euros.
However, the ECtHR considered the penalty to be “disproportionate” and that the comments “constituted a form of venting” of dissatisfaction with the parental regulation process, while also criticizing the officials who reported the comment.
“It is not unreasonable to consider that the applicant expected some discretion and reserve on the part of the professionals. According to the manual of good practice of the specialized unit that works with the family courts, such meetings imply an atmosphere of trust, so that parents feel free to express their thoughts openly,” reads the ECtHR’s decision, contradicting the understanding of the Portuguese courts.
In its analysis of the confrontation between the right to protection of the prosecutor’s reputation and Victor Veiga Cardoso’s right to freedom of expression, the Strasbourg-based court noted that “the applicant’s criminal conviction cannot be considered proportionate in the light of the legitimate aim pursued and is therefore not necessary in a democratic society”.
The ECtHR ruled that Portugal must pay a total of 18,696.15 euros in compensation to the Portuguese citizen within three months, broken down into 1,600 euros in compensation that Victor Veiga Cardoso had been sentenced to in national court (pecuniary damage) and 17,096.15 euros in costs and expenses.