The Portuguese Head of State’s trip was unanimously approved today during a plenary meeting.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is scheduled to visit Angola from November 10 to 12 for the celebrations marking 50 years of independence, as indicated in the resolution project submitted by the Speaker of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco.
In his communication to parliament, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa requested Aguiar-Branco to designate lawmakers for the trip, if deemed appropriate.
This visit had already been unanimously approved by the parliamentary committee on Foreign Affairs and Portuguese Communities.
During plenary sessions, the President’s trips for celebrations of independence of former Portuguese colonies have consistently received unanimous approval. This was not the case for a recent visit to Germany, which Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa attended at the invitation of his German counterpart.
The party Chega opposed the President’s visit to Germany, with its leader accusing him of attending a burger party in Berlin, though the President participated in a citizen’s festival.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa has been a constant presence at the independence celebrations of Portuguese-speaking countries that were former colonies of Portugal.
Recently, in July, he was in Cape Verde and São Tomé and Príncipe, at the invitation of their presidents.
Earlier, in June, he attended Mozambique’s independence celebrations, invited by Mozambican President Daniel Chapo.
Two years ago, the President expressed his interest in joining the independence celebrations of Portuguese-speaking former colonies, if invited.
At that time, he also expressed a wish for the heads of those states to engage in the 50th anniversary celebrations of Portugal’s April 25, 1974, revolution, which materialized.
In 2023, he attended Guinea-Bissau’s 50th independence anniversary alongside then-Prime Minister António Costa, upon the invitation of Guinean President Umaro Sissoco Embaló.
The authorization from the Assembly of the Republic for the Head of State’s travels is mandated by the Constitution, which stipulates that the President cannot leave national territory without parliamentary consent.
On November 11, 1975, Agostinho Neto, a founding member of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Angola (MPLA), declared Angola’s independence, commemorating what is known as “Dia da Dipanda.”
He served as Head of State until his death, after which Lúcio Lara temporarily assumed leadership. Lara, also a founding member of MPLA, led for ten days until José Eduardo dos Santos took office and governed the Portuguese-speaking nation for 38 years, succeeded by João Lourenço in 2017, the current Angolan President.
