The prime minister said Monday that the president of the republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, will send invitations to the heads of state of Portuguese-speaking African countries to attend the 50th anniversary ceremonies on April 25.
António Costa spoke at a joint press conference with Angola’s President João Lourenço in Luanda after the governments of the two countries signed 13 bilateral agreements.
Earlier, the Portuguese Prime Minister had invited the Angolan President to attend the April 25 50th anniversary commemorations, claiming that the Portuguese Revolution was a step that also represented the liberation of Angola.
When asked about the criticism his invitation to João Lourenço receives, António Costa replied: “The President of the Republic will invite the heads of state of all Portuguese-speaking African countries to participate in the 50th anniversary celebrations on April 25”.
According to the leader of the Portuguese government, we are facing “a joint liberation” to some extent.
“I hope that everyone will accept the formal invitation of the President of the Republic. Portugal and the officially Portuguese-speaking countries have a common history, which is also marked by a common struggle against dictatorship and colonialism. We have a double liberation process”defended the leader of the Portuguese executive.
At the time, the Prime Minister defended that the armed struggle for the liberation of African peoples “contributed significantly to the overthrow of the dictatorship and that April 25, 1974 accelerated the process of liberation of all these peoples.”
“That is why in 2024 we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of April 25. In September we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the independence of Guinea-Bissau and in 2025 we will celebrate the independence of all Portuguese-speaking African countries,” he pointed out.
Still responding to criticism, the leader of the Portuguese executive said the issue of the presence of heads of state from Portuguese-speaking African countries “is not a nuisance but a satisfaction”.
At the start of the plenary meeting between the governments of Portugal and Angola, mid-morning today, António Costa conveyed to the Angolan Head of State this invitation to attend the commemorations of the 50th anniversary of April 25, after noting that the two countries are approaching “an important cycle from a historical and cultural point of view, aspects that are also fundamental in the relationship between Portugal and Angola”.
“Next year we celebrate the 50th anniversary of April 25, 1974, and the following year [em 2025], the 50th anniversary of Angola’s independence. The two events are inextricably linked, firstly because of the impact that the Angolan liberation war had on the end of the fascist regime in Portugal, but also because of the step that April 25 marked for the liberation of Angola,” said the leader of the Portuguese, managerial.
In this regard, the Prime Minister stressed that “Portugal would be delighted to count on Angola in these commemorations of the historic moment”.
A historic moment “which allowed us to have a mature, solid and fraternal relationship between our two countries,” he added.
Source: DN
