Security Forces
Since the issue at hand targets security forces, it is important to define and explain to the reader what is meant by security forces.
Security forces and services are defined in our law as “… public bodies exclusively at the service of the Portuguese people, rigorously non-partisan, and contributing to ensuring internal security.”
Internal security, in turn, is defined as an “… activity carried out by the State to ensure public order, security, and tranquility, protect individuals and property, prevent and combat crime, and contribute to ensuring the normal functioning of democratic institutions, the regular exercise of citizens’ fundamental rights, freedoms, and guarantees, and respect for democratic legality.”
Currently, security forces and services are composed of six public bodies, namely the National Republican Guard, the Public Security Police, the Judicial Police, the Security Intelligence Service, the bodies of the National Maritime Authority, and the bodies of the Aeronautical Authority System.
It is important not to confuse security forces and services with the concept of criminal police bodies, as criminal police bodies are those that cooperate with judicial authorities in criminal investigations, carrying out investigative acts as requested or with tactical and technical autonomy of the body itself.
However, it is worth clarifying that there are security forces that are also criminal police bodies, specifically the National Republican Guard, the Public Security Police, and the Judicial Police, as well as any other public body with specific competence in this area.
Given that the subject of a series of upcoming writings is community policing, I will focus on the security forces with these organic competencies, namely the National Republican Guard and the Public Security Police.
In Portugal, the internal security system has, as the cornerstone of policing, a ‘dual’ model of security forces, which includes the bodies.
The GNR ‘is a military nature security force, consisting of military personnel organized in a special corps of troops and endowed with administrative autonomy.’ Its mission is ‘to ensure democratic legality, guarantee internal security and citizens’ rights, as well as to collaborate in the execution of national defense policy, in accordance with the Constitution and the law.’
The PSP ‘is a uniformed and armed security force, with a nature of public service and administrative autonomy’ whose mission is ‘to ensure democratic legality, guarantee internal security, and citizens’ rights, in accordance with the Constitution and the law.’
Both forces, among their functions, perform policing through foot or vehicle patrols, and for this reason, they are the first point of contact for citizens with the police, making them the face of internal security.
Street patrol functions:
One of the functions of street policing through patrols is crime prevention. This function has a proactive aspect but, for the purposes under discussion, it also has a preventive aspect.
The preventive aspect is not only about the visibility of police presence deterring criminals from acting. This is the ideal moment for the police to engage with the community they serve, to establish trust relationships with community members. They should know business owners, understand their concerns, and ensure that they are there to safeguard their trust, both in the security system and in the actions undertaken by the police.
In a high-risk area (which will be defined later), such as a social housing neighborhood, it is where police officers should get to know the area well. Through various approaches, they can establish trust with the community leaders of that neighborhood, individuals whom all residents respect — an almost modern-day village elder.
The European Commission defines crime prevention as “… covering all measures aimed at reducing or contributing to reducing crime and citizens’ sense of insecurity, both quantitatively and qualitatively, through direct deterrence measures against criminal activities and policies/actions aimed at reducing factors contributing to the causes of crime.”
Community policing has proven effective in reducing crime in several countries and should be one of the operational objectives of law enforcement agencies in Portugal.
