The figure represents a 65% on 2013, according to this second annual report by the Observatory, which was set up by ILGA Portugal in 2013.


According to the report, 182 of the incidents involved verbal insults and abuse, but 112 involved threats and psychological violence and there were 69 reports of extreme physical violence.


The data come from 339 questionnaires, of which 210 were filled out by the victims themselves and 129 by witnesses.


"The victims are, in general, fairly young, between 14 and 20 years old," the report states. "They reveal their sexual orientation and/or gender identity to friendly people and go regularly to places that are mostly frequented by" lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals (LGBT).


As for the alleged aggressors, "they normally act in a group and are not known to the victims". They are mostly aged between 18 and 25 and "the motives most cited for the occurrence of the crimes were the real or perceived sexual orientation of the victim and/or his gender expressions."


In comments to Lusa, the coordinator of the Observatory, Marta Ramos, said that it is rare for victims to report such incidents to the authorities. Of the cases cited, 93% were not reported to the police.


"There continues to be here a need to create a relationship of trust between the LGBT community and the security forces and other authorities," Ramos said, stressing that this was a broader problem with attitudes in society, rather than one just involving the police.


Police and other forces have, she said, "made remarkable progress in terms of making officers aware of who LGBT victims are and of all the specific problems that they face and the special vulnerability to which they are subject."


She called for the appointment of liaison officers who could be known to the community and work on building trust.