Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said on Tuesday he feels at home in Portugal and sees April 25 as a “jump into the future” for the country towards “economic development with social justice.”
In his speech to the Assembly of the Republic, the welcome ceremony leading up to the April 25 commemoration, Lula da Silva said that the Carnation Revolution had given “Portugal a real look into the future” by restoring “civil liberties, political participation of citizens, political democratization, labor rights and organizing free trade unions, creating the foundations for economic development with social justice”.
“In the past few days, I have had the unmistakable feeling that I am here in Portugal, at home, a feeling that I am sure is shared by all Brazilians living in Portugal and all Portuguese in Brazil,” Lula da Silva began by saying in his speech. caused applause from most of the deputies, and Chega members pounded on tables and held signs with Ukrainian flags and where one could read phrases like “Enough of corruption.”
Faced with protest, the President of the Assembly of the Republic drew the attention of the far-right Portuguese deputies: “Deputies who wish to remain in the plenary must behave with courtesy, courtesy and good manners, which is required of any representative of the Portuguese people, without degrading the institutions and not dishonoring the name of Portugal “.
At the beginning of his 18-minute speech, Lula da Silva began by emphasizing that it was with “great joy” that he received an invitation from his Portuguese colleague Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa to visit Portugal, timed to coincide with the celebration of the April 25 revolution, accompanied by “admiration and hope” in Brazil.
Referring to José Afonso’s “Grandola, vila morena”, Lula da Silva felt that he also “packaged the struggle in Brazil” and turned the page of the Brazilian military dictatorship.
“However, democracy in Brazil has recently experienced moments of serious threat. Those who are nostalgic for authoritarianism have tried to turn our clock back 50 years and reclaim the freedoms we won after the transition to democracy,” Lula da Silva said, stressing that he brings “news” that “Brazilian democratic forces demonstrated solidity and resilience” and that their country “returned to the international arena”.
In the foreign policy part of his speech, Lula da Silva believes that there is a “growing geopolitical tension.”
“Those who believe in military solutions to current problems fight the winds of history. No solution to any conflict, national or international, will be lasting unless it is based on dialogue and political negotiations,” he defended.
The mention of the Russian invasion of Ukraine came immediately after Lula da Silva said that Brazil “understands the fears caused by the return of war to Europe. We condemn the violation of the territorial integrity of Ukraine. We believe in an international order based on respect for international law and the preservation of national sovereignty,” he added, reaffirming the need to “recognize that war cannot continue indefinitely.”
“We need to talk about the world. To achieve this goal, it is necessary to follow the path of dialogue and diplomacy,” he repeated.
Lula da Silva also defended multilateralism in his speech and believed that “the instruments of global governance have proven insufficient to address the current problems.”
In this sense, he argued that the UN Security Council was “virtually paralyzed” as a result of the composition dictated by the end of World War II and which, in his opinion, did not reflect “the balance of power in the modern world”.
That is why he advocated a reform that would lead to the expansion of the Security Council so that all regions of the world are permanently represented, which would make this UN body “more representative in its deliberative process and more effective in carrying out its decisions.” .
Referring to the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries (CPPS), the President of Brazil said that his country is now returning to its “diplomatic tradition” and supports the entry of a Portuguese-speaking organization as an observer member at the Ibero-American Conference.
Continuing the theme of international politics, Lula da Silva criticized the “demagogue politicians” who in Europe “deny the benefits achieved on the continent during decades of peace, cooperation and development within the European Union.”
“I regard the resulting integration of the European Union as a democratic heritage of humanity. And I saw in Brazil the tragic consequences that always happen when politics is denied, dialogue is denied,” he said.
Prior to his speech, the President of Brazil signed the book of honor of the Assembly of the Republic, and upon his arrival at Parliament, he was greeted by supporters who had gathered in the area through which he entered.
On the other hand, there was a group of opponents of the arrival of Lula da Silva, consisting of supporters of his predecessor Jair Bolsonaro and elements associated with Chega.
Author: Portuguese
Source: CM Jornal
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