João Lourenço, who spoke at the commemorative session of the 50th anniversary of April 25, 1974, with the heads of state of Portugal and the former Portuguese colonies, whose independence was linked to April 25, began his speech with a greeting to the overthrow "of the Salazar dictatorship, responsible for the oppression not only of the Portuguese people but also of the peoples of the then Portuguese colonies".

"We recognize the courage and heroism of the April captains and the Portuguese resistants who fought in all forms and ways against the dictatorship, facing the regime's oppressive machine, the PIDE/DGS and its appendages, which did not hesitate to torture and kill the best sons of this land", he stressed.

João Lourenço stressed that while in Portugal there was a struggle "against fascism and the Salazar dictatorship since 1932", the African peoples colonized by Portugal had been fighting since the 15th century "against Portuguese colonization and its consequences such as slavery and the plundering" of wealth.

"We fought to end the abuses, crimes and human rights violations committed by the colonialist regime against our peoples for centuries. We fought for our dignity as human beings that we are, who must have the same right to freedom, the right to be masters of our own destiny", he stressed.

The Angolan President drew a parallel between the fight against the dictatorship in Portugal and the armed struggles for the independence of the former colonies, concluding that they "precipitated the events that led to the uprising and military coup of April 25, 1974 in Portugal".

"Our cause was the same as that of the Portuguese people and, therefore, together we fought and together we defeated the same enemy, colonialism and the fascist dictatorship of Salazar and Caetano", he stressed.

Joao Lourenço then greeted the "fraternal bonds of friendship" between the Portuguese people and the former colonies, while establishing "a fruitful and mutually advantageous economic cooperation".

João Lourenço also warned of the dangers "of the growth and proliferation of extremist movements, xenophobia, neo-Nazism, political intolerance and religious fundamentalism, terrorism, which threaten democracies and seek, by democratic means in some cases but, above all, by unconstitutional methods and paths, to reach power".

"Let us once again join our wills and energies to face and defeat these negative forces that today present themselves with new guises, but that threaten the fundamental freedoms of citizens, human life and the social progress of nations", he proposed.

On the international level, the Angolan President assertively condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and reaffirmed the defense of the creation of the State of Palestine.

"We, who fought for the freedom we celebrate today, have a moral duty to condemn the aggression, occupation and annexation of Ukrainian territories by Russia and to demand respect for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and that the necessary diplomatic efforts be made so that definitive peace can be achieved in Ukraine and in Europe in general", he said.

After condemning the "terrorist action" perpetrated by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas on October 7, "which killed thousands of peaceful Israeli citizens and took hundreds of hostages, who must be released", the Angolan President also condemned the "disproportionate reaction" of Israel.

Recognizing the right of the Jewish state to defend its citizens, João Lourenço said that Israel "cannot have carte blanche, green light to kill indiscriminately children, women, old people, bedridden patients, journalists and workers of international humanitarian organizations".

The commemorative session of the 50th anniversary takes place at the Centro Cultural de Belém and is presided over by the Portuguese President, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, with the presence also of the President of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, and the heads of state of Cape Verde, José Maria Neves, of Guinea-Bissau, Umaro Sissoco Embaló, of Mozambique, Filipe Nyusi, of São Tomé and Príncipe, Carlos Vila Nova, and of Timor-Leste, José Ramos-Horta.

[News updated at 19:19]

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