The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, concluded his state visit to Ireland this Thursday with a message about the ongoing building of democracy, freedom and peace and a toast to Portuguese-Irish friendship.
The head of state spoke to his Irish counterpart, Michael Higgins, to whom he offered a rewards reception at Farmleigh House, in Dublin, where he stayed during his official visit to Ireland.
In an English intervention, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa recalled his visit this Thursday to the Glencree Centre, a non-governmental organization for peace and reconciliation founded in 1974 in response to the conflict in Northern Ireland.
“This morning I thought a lot about what we Portuguese have had to build during these more than 40 years of democracy”declared.
“After living through the revolution at the age of 20, with members of my family who were political leaders in the dictatorship, I was elected president in a democracy. I can give you no other example of what reconciliation within the family and between families means”he added.
The President of the Republic described Portugal as: “a small country, where everyone is cousin to everyone”what is it “a colonial empire, which has left something good, something bad, like all empires leave behind”.
“Peace is not something perfect, it is a process. The building of peace, freedom and democracy is done every day, every day we win or we lose”defended.
In Ireland, the head of state was accompanied by the Foreign Minister, João Gomes Cravinho, and by deputies from the five parties with the largest parliamentary representation: Rosário Gambôa, from PS, Germana Rocha, from PSD, Rui Paulo Sousa, from Chega, Patrícia Gilvaz, of the Liberal Initiative, and Alma Rivera, of the PCP.
At the reception he gave the Irish president before returning to Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa thanked him for his hospitality, as he was received “even warmer” in Ireland than in countries such as Brazil, Angola and Mozambique.
“In these two days I looked at my life and what is really important to me. Friendship first. Life is made up of friendship. Your friendship will never be forgotten”said.
The President of the Republic, who received his doctorate in the afternoon honour at University College Dublin he called “second, the university”, stating that he was, is and always will be a professor.
“Then, books. A big part of your identity comes from your language, your culture, your literature, your poetry”he added.
The head of state praised the Portuguese living in Ireland and raised a toast to Portuguese-Irish friendship, exclaiming: “Long live Ireland, long live Portugal”.
This was followed by a musical moment of Portuguese guitar by Marta Pereira da Costa.
It has been 23 years since a Portuguese president officially visited Ireland. The last was Jorge Sampaio, in 1999, also on a state visit. Sampaio returned to Dublin in 2004, this time not on an official visit, for a conference on HIV/AIDS.
Michael Higgins, President of Ireland since November 2011, was in Portugal for a state visit between 9 and 10 December 2015, when Aníbal Cavaco Silva was President of the Republic.
Source: DN
