Lisbon, May 5, 2026 (Lusa) – Approximately 230 inmates at the Lisbon Prison (EPL) have protested in Wing B against detention conditions, refusing to return to their cells until the prison director received them.
Frederico Morais, president of the National Union of Prison Guards (SNCGP), said that the protest began at 8:00 a.m on Monday when over 200 inmates refused breakfast and medication. The group then refused to be locked in their cells, sitting on the floor of Wing B while demanding a meeting with director António Leitão.
The protest stems from a lack of adequate living and detention conditions at the prison. Morais said that the Director-General of Prison Services, Orlando Carvalho, was at the EPL during the morning but did not meet with the protesting inmates or intervene.
The Directorate-General for Reintegration and Prison Services (DGRSP) confirmed the peaceful protest to Lusa, involving "roughly half of the inmates in Wing B." However, the DGRSP denied that Carvalho had visited the prison.
"The Director-General did not travel to the Lisbon Prison to speak with the inmates, nor was such a purpose considered," the statement read.
In a later response, the DGRSP informed Lusa that "roughly half of the inmates in Wing B, as a form of protest against the prison guards' strike and the facility's physical conditions, refused to receive medication and breakfast this morning."
The directorate-general said that "the protest led inmates to sit on the floor of the Wing and express their intention not to return to their cells. However, they returned peacefully before the lunch period." All other inmates followed their daily routine without any recorded incidents.
The arrival and activation of the Prison Intervention and Security Group (GISP) at the EPL resolved the situation. Inmates agreed to return to their cells after receiving a promise that the prison director would meet with a representative group of the protesters during the afternoon, explained the president of the SNCGP. The DGRSP has not yet provided information regarding this meeting or its outcomes.
Morais stressed that events unfolded "peacefully." However, he lamented that the situation was not avoided by the director visiting the prison in the morning. This would have prevented the need for the GISP and stopped the protest from taking on the characteristics of the "beginning of a mutiny".
The EPL has led to several convictions of the Portuguese state by the European Court of Human Rights due to its poor conditions. Authorities have announced its closure for years, though the process has faced multiple delays.
The latest commitment ensures a gradual closure by 2028. Justice Minister Rita Alarcão Júdice told parliament in late March that Wing A would close first, followed by Wing E, describing them as "the two most problematic" areas. Monday's protest occurred in Wing B.
To facilitate the closure, work is underway in 11 other prisons to create 1,142 places by the end of 2028. These will accommodate transfers from the EPL, which currently holds 1,017 inmates, including 409 in pre-trial detention, the Minister informed MPs.
IMA/RYOL // AYLS
Lusa
