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More than 600 police officers have been
dispatched to the Algarve for this summer’s security operation,
entitled Verão Seguro’08. Portugal’s Minister of Internal
Affairs, Rui Pereira, said during a ceremony in Olhão on Sunday that a
total of 419 GNR soldiers, 104 PSP police and 86 maritime police were
dispatched on July 1 to the Algarve as part of the summer security
operation. They will remain in the region until September 30.
He said that the Algarve was one of the safest
regions in Europe but that the summer security programme was one of the
most important in Portugal, in terms of active policing in the streets.
“Compared to last year, there will be 381 more men and women in the Algarve,” he said. “The government is strongly supporting the Verão Seguro operation.”
The extra
police were not available last year because they were in Lisbon for the
security operation related to Portugal’s presidency of the EU. Rui
Pereira said that the Ministry of Internal Affairs aims to increase the
feeling of security in Portugal through effective policing.
He
added that examples of this aim are the recruitment of 2,000 new PSP
and GNR personnel as well as the government’s investment in structures,
vehicles and weapons. In the Algarve this summer, the GNR have a
platoon of 24 soldiers from the Batalhão Operacional, a rapid response
force, as well as four police dogs and their handlers, five horse
mounted soldiers, 22 traffic police and 295 soldiers in training.
Some
of the PSP police, wh0 are responsible for public security in the
Algarve this summer, have been trained specifically to deal with
tourists. The PSP also have six sniffer dogs and 29 vehicles in the
region.
Border control: Security in the Algarve has
also been reinforced at the border, with extra personnel at Faro
airport’s border control because of the large increase in passenger
numbers. Castro Marim’s police station will also receive
reinforcements as it is the closest to the border between Spain and
Portugal in the Algarve. The maritime police’s summer reinforcement of 86 personnel also includes four jeeps and four rescue jet skis.
Rui
Pereira said that although the Algarve is one of the safest regions in
Portugal, the large increase in population justifies the amount of
police reinforcement. The civil governor of the Algarve, Isilda
Gomes, who was also present at the ceremony, said: “This reinforcement
will allow the Algarve to maintain its image of a tourist destination
of excellence”.
source: http://www.portugalresident.com
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