According to the official site for the President, the decision is based on the argument that there has not been a sufficiently public debate on whether the proposed changes are in the best interests of parentless children.
However, with Cavaco Silva in office until the beginning of March, he could still be forced to pass the legislation should Parliament once again vote in its favour.
The argument stated “the principle of equality did not necessarily impose the solution now proposed” and hence it did not make sense that this leads to a constitutional or legal imposition.
Cavaco Silva highlighted that there had been public debate, with over 20 parliamentary auditions, over co-adoption but that this legislative solution had been rejected in the final legislation and that it would have limited the scope of adoption to the co-adoption of any descendent of one’s partner.
The President’s statement added that “the best interests of the child should prevail over all others, especially those of children undergoing adoption.”
In the case of the abortion legislation, Cavaco Silva acted to reverse changes made to legislation passed under the former centre-right government that had both imposed hospital charges and requirements to undertake psychological counselling prior to any abortion with the president’s statement saying that removing the latter “reduced patient rights to information.”
The law now returned to parliament would also have excluded conscientious medical objectors from the list of doctors and professional staff providing such counselling that the president in turn adjudged as “a lack of trust as regards the professional neutrality” of such objectors in their provision of such advice.
In early reactions, Vice President of the gay rights group ILGA, Paulo Corte-Real, said that the veto would be overturned at the first opportunity by parliament with the president then required to sign it into effect.
The legislation will come into effect should parliament duly re-approve it with an overall majority.