In statements to Lusa, jurist Ana Rita Gil and geographer Jorge Malheiros agree with the inclusion of data such as nationality in the RASI, requested by the Liberal Initiative, considering that this, if properly done, can demystify the discourse that links immigrants to criminality.

"Nationality is an objective fact, therefore, it does not seem to me that anything in the Constitution opposes this possibility", Ana Rita Gil told Lusa, considering that the measure could "combat prejudices and a narrative that thinks that immigrant populations come to cause more crime".

For Jorge Malheiros, having only "nationalities is insufficient information", because "some of the foreign detainees do not reside in Portugal and, therefore, by publishing only nationalities and not having components about residence or intersection with age, it may send the wrong message that certain groups of immigrants are associated with certain criminality."

When, in many cases, it may not be immigrants, but people who are passing through Portugal who are committing crimes, mainly in drug and human trafficking cases, "where there is an overrepresentation of foreigners", said the professor at the Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning at the University of Lisbon.

Including only nationality, "in current times, can very easily fuel a discourse based on incomplete and distorted information", which amounts to "saying that foreigners from certain groups are immigrants" in Portugal, added the researcher.

For Ana Rita Gil, professor at Lisbon Public Law (Centre for Research in Public Law at the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon), the publication of "objective information" that is nationality will also have the virtue of allowing existing problems to be identified.

"If there is indeed a community that commits more crimes than another, it could also be a way for the State to invest in greater integration," she explained, considering that public information should be the rule of a state governed by the rule of law.

"Information that is not protected must be transparent," because "we live in a democratic state," she added.

Regarding the publication of nationality data in RASI 2024, the Internal Security System has already informed Lusa that it does not intend to introduce changes for the time being.