The President of Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, announced his planned visit to Mozambique from June 23 to 26 at the invitation of Mozambique’s President, Daniel Chapo, to mark the 50th anniversary of Mozambique’s independence.
During the plenary session, deputy Rodrigo Saraiva justified the Liberal Initiative’s (IL) vote, emphasizing the “repressive and undemocratic nature of the Mozambican regime since Daniel Chapo’s rise to power,” while acknowledging the 50th anniversary of Mozambique’s independence.
“The President of the Republic is the foremost representative of the state and should adhere to the constitutional principles underpinning our democracy. He is practically the only politician in Portugal who pledges to uphold the Constitution. It is thus a political and ethical duty that Portugal and its chief representative should not legitimize authoritarian regimes with their official presence at such regimes’ celebrations,” argued Rodrigo Saraiva.
The IL deputy and vice president of the Assembly of the Republic reiterated his party’s “critical stance” on the October 2024 electoral process in Mozambique, which he described as “fraudulent elections,” and on the “violent repression of the rightful popular protests that followed.”
The President’s planned visit to Germany on June 7-8 was also unanimously approved in the plenary session. During this visit, he will commemorate Portugal Day in Stuttgart and attend the Portuguese national football team’s match against Spain in Munich in the Nations League final.
On January 15, this year, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa sent a message to Mozambique’s new president, Daniel Chapo, after missing his inauguration, expressing “increased commitment” to cooperation between the two nations.
In his letter to Daniel Chapo, the Portuguese President expressed hope for the realization of the “legitimate aspirations of various political and social sectors” in Mozambique, emphasizing the importance of “safeguarding pluralism and promoting inclusive community dialogue.”
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa assured “all Mozambicans that they can always count on the Portuguese and Portugal” and reaffirmed his intention to attend the 50th anniversary of Mozambique’s independence in June.
Portugal was represented by Minister of State and Foreign Affairs, Paulo Rangel, at Daniel Chapo’s inauguration as President of Mozambique.
Mozambique was chosen by the Portuguese President for his first state visit in May 2016. In January 2020, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa attended the inauguration of Filipe Nyusi following his re-election.
In 2023, the President expressed his desire to participate in the independence celebrations of Portuguese-speaking countries, former Portuguese colonies, if invited, and announced his wish to have the heads of state from these countries celebrate the 50th anniversary of April 25, 1974, in Portugal, which was confirmed.
In November of that year, he joined then-Prime Minister António Costa in celebrating the 50th anniversary of Guinea-Bissau’s independence in Bissau—unilaterally declared on September 24, 1973, after a decade of armed struggle, and formally recognized by Portugal in September 1974, following the April 25 coup—at the invitation of Guinean President Umaro Sissoco Embaló. This visit was unanimously approved in parliament.
The assent of the Assembly of the Republic to the President’s trips abroad is a constitutional requirement, stipulating that the President cannot leave the national territory without parliamentary authorization.
