The Macau Lawyers Association (AAM) is calling on its members to immediately report any difficulties they face with accessing information, documentation, or others while performing their legal duties.
The information comes from a circular letter issued by the AAM to its members late last week. The letter urges that any lawyers confronted with difficulties in their relationships with Magistrate judges, Public Prosecution Magistrates, Judiciary Police staff members, and other judicial operators, should immediately inform the AAM Board of Directors.
Without specifying any cases, the AAM hinted that such problems have already “been occurring and they have not been reported by the lawyers.” The process of complaining to the respective authorities, which exists in order to protect the profession and the rights of its practitioners, can become complex and lengthy.
Sulu Sou questions gov’t about flooding problem
Following the significant floods across the city last week, lawmaker Sulu Sou has submitted an interpellation to the government inquiring about the progress of disaster planning work. He noted that some drainage work had been finished in low-lying districts. The Decennial Disaster Plan sets out a series of anti-flooding and drainage improvement measures. The lawmaker asked about the progress of the plan and the possibility of work being done ahead of schedule. He also asked whether these works, originally planned some time ago, were still capable of managing the deteriorating environmental conditions. Finally, in addition to existing measures, he also questioned whether the government has planned other means of preventing flooding in the future.
Three-tier rainstorm signal to return in September
After several modifications, the city’s rainstorm warning system will be reinstated to the three-tier mechanism this September, the government announced in the Official Gazette. The Yellow signal indicates that a rainstorm will continue. The Red signal is designated for rainfall exceeding 50mm, while the Black signals rainfall exceeding 80mm, which may cause landslides or other hazardous conditions. The Meteorological and Geophysics Bureau took reference from the system in Hong Kong to develop a similar system here, with two tiers of warning. Later, it was expanded to three tiers. In 2004, the authority changed it to an on-or-off one-tier system, which was confusing to some people who said that the forecasting implication of the one-tier system was not sufficiently strong.
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