The official celebrations for the Day of Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities return to Portugal, in Peso da Régua, after a decentralized commemoration with Portuguese communities in South Africa that brought together the President of the Republic and the Prime Minister.
According to the program, at 10:30 a.m. there will be a military ceremony to hoist the national flag in the town square in Peso da Régua, but Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa will not arrive until late afternoon.
At the Douro Museum, from 8 p.m., the diplomatic corps accredited to Portugal will present their greetings to the President of the Republic, who will be joined by the Prime Minister, António Costa, for a cocktail and “cultural entertainment representative of the region”.
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa and António Costa will then attend a commemorative concert for Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities Day, open to the public, by the Orchestre Léger de l’Armée, at 9:30pm.
The day’s program concludes with a commemorative fireworks display from the Douro River.
On Saturday, Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities Day, the two leaders will take part in the commemorative military ceremony, which will include the traditional speeches by the Head of State and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces and the President of the celebrations organizing committee, oenologist João Nicolau de Almeida.
This year’s Portugal Day commemorations began on June 5 in South Africa and will end in Portugal, in Peso da Régua, in the Vila Real district, where the military ceremony will take place on June 10.
The current model of dual celebration of Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities Day was launched by Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa in the year of his inauguration, 2016, in collaboration with the Prime Minister, António Costa.
In Portugal, a more solemn and military ceremony is held, associating June 10 with the armed forces. Abroad, the date is celebrated with Portuguese emigrants and descendants of the Portuguese, whom the Head of State considers to be part of the nation’s “spiritual territory”.
In 2020 and 2021, this model was interrupted due to the covid-19 pandemic, and there were only ceremonies on national territory. In 2022, for health reasons, António Costa did not take part in the June 10 ceremonies, which were held in Braga and London.
In 2016, Portugal, Camões and Portuguese Communities Day has already been celebrated between Lisbon and Paris, in 2017 between Porto and Brazil, in 2018 between the Azores and the United States of America and in 2019 between Portalegre and Cape Verde.
