Opinion (Rogério COPETO / Official GNR): MORE SENIOR CENSUS.
Operation "Senior Census" GNR is held for the eighth time this year and runs throughout the month of October, with a mission to combat loneliness and isolation in the elderly and prevent dangerous situations, by reason of their greater vulnerability.
Rogério COPETO
Lieutenant Colonel of the GNR
Master in Law and Security and Homeland Security Auditor
Head of the Education Division / Command Doctrine and Training
Unfortunately this year the operation "Census Senior" takes place days after we become aware through the media that the Judicial Police (PJ) He conducted "Operation Senior" which resulted in the arrest of four individuals "for alleged practice of theft crimes, kidnapping and murder, occurred since February in the municipalities of Leiria, Marinha Grande, Pombal, Figueira da Foz and Coimbra", as has the DN article entitled "PJ detained violent criminal group of suspects who worked in the Central region", of 12 of September.
Also according to the Public Article, also 12 of September, with the title "Close of 30 bound elderly and beaten in robbery in the central zone", this criminal group is suspected of 19 burglary of the elderly and "to have violently attacked a woman 85 years during a robbery, in your own home, a nearby village of Pombal, who died due to injuries caused".
The modus operandi the group was to identify isolated and inhabited homes for elderly, they entered hooded, night and break through doors or windows, assaulting the elderly with use of knives and sticks, with extreme violence, then tied.
Not watched similar levels of violence against the elderly living alone, from late 2009, at which point in November and December, a wave of robberies and luxury residences inhabited by foreigners elderly, hit the Algarve mountains, in the municipality of Loulé.
In response to the increased sense of insecurity, that registered in the foreign community living in the municipality of Loulé, It was implemented at the beginning of 2010, the operation "Safe home", that after being considered by the National Guard Command as "Good Practice", It has been chosen to represent Portugal in the "European Prize for Crime Prevention", the European Crime Prevention Network this year, whose theme, "For a Safe House, a Safer Community, Prevention by, the Policing and Reintegration", and it has been extended to the entire national territory, It is held together with the Operation "Senior Census", which now follows.
As a footnote is information that the four individuals held by the PJ in "Operation Senior", only one was in custody, as he realized the Portal "Parents to Minute", in article 14 of September, with the title "Gang who robbed and tortured the elderly is released. Only one is arrested".
If you already know how did Operation "Safe Home", Operation "Senior Census" was born of the need to contribute to any elderly to live alone or alone was found dead, without which no one paid them relief, so as not to repeat the occurrence relating to an elderly resident in Rinchoa, Sintra municipality, who was found dead at his home in February 2011 and alleged to be dead for 9 year old, no one had done anything, during all this time.
So, the main objective of Operation "Senior Census" is to register all seniors who live alone and / or isolated, keeping with the same frequent contacts and reference together of the elderly support institutions, those who are in situations of greater vulnerability, drawing on the GNR of its implementation throughout the national territory, from urban areas to the most remote areas of our country, human resources trained and motivated.
The all registered elderly is carried out a risk assessment, and that in situations where the elderly reveals particular vulnerability, it is signaled to respective institutions, having already been hundreds of marked elderly and some were literally saved from an impending tragedy.
It is also a set of information gathered including age, sex, civil status, GPS coordinates of your residence, phone has, you have family, health status and level of autonomy, you receive support, which the regularity of such support and received support.
The information collected is provided voluntarily by the elderly, it's confidential, It is used only for the purposes intended, thus complying with the latest personal data protection legislation, ensuring better security for the elderly alone and / or isolated, so that they feel protected, thereby strengthening their own security.
In possession of this information, GNR becomes the institution with more information on the theme of isolation and loneliness of the elderly, so it is often requested to give work account that performs with the elderly as part of Operation "Senior Census", in various forums, where the theme is the elderly protection.
Despite the GNR develop this activity, in the context of this issue, this was established as 1st line entity, linking up with the answer institutions, does not replace these, getting so a huge visibility and consequent recognition, from the entities who work with seniors, The further operation "Senior Census" was recognized as a National Good Practice in the study commissioned by the Economic and Social Council (THESE) entitled "The Population Aging: Dependence, Activation and Quality"And written by the Center for Studies of Peoples and Cultures of Portuguese Expression, the Faculty of Humanities, the Portuguese Catholic University and publicly presented at the Seminar "The Population Aging", made no dia 26 June 2013.
Operation "Senior Census" also aroused great interest, at government level, which includes the Ministries of Solidarity and Social Security and Internal Affairs, which led to both ministries sign a protocol in 1 February 2013 with the aim of "risk prevention, inherent isolation and loneliness, increased quality of life of older people and the sense of security of the same ".
The Ministry of Health showed interest in the work of the GNR under the 1st edition of Operation "Senior Census", and thus has the National Institute of Health - Dr. Ricardo Jorge filed with GNR, a partner in the study "Aging and Violence"And publicly presented at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation on 25 February 2014.
Local and national media also over these eight years held several reports and without intention to leave out any articles, we have to highlight what was accomplished by journalist Rosa Ramos and published in Jornal I on 15 February 2014, titled "When loneliness ends with a call from the GNR" where six pages portrays what is the activity of GNR military during Operation "Senior Census".
It is therefore concluded that the GNR performs an important role in protecting the most vulnerable elderly, constituting Operation "Senior Census" as sufficient evidence that the GNR fulfills the mission that is required, going far beyond what is required, and that only the great humanity of all involved military makes this operation a success year after year, and is the confirmation that the GNR constitutes the face of the state, that closer and more visible is the older population.
