President Mercelo Rebelo de Sousa stated this during Portugal's annual celebration of the "Carnation" revolution of 1974, which overthrew the country's dictatorship, that the nation should do more than just apologise, though he did not provide any details.
He stated that his nation has to apologise and accept responsibility for its part in the transatlantic slave trade. This is the first time a national apology from the southern European country has been proposed by its leader.
Six million Africans were abducted and forcibly transported by Portuguese ships across the Atlantic from the 15th to the 19th centuries, where they were mostly sold into slavery in Brazil.
However, Portugal hasn't discussed its past all that much, and schools don't teach much about its role in the slave trade. Rather, the country’s colonial era, which subjugated countries including Angola, Mozambique, Brazil, Cape Verde and East Timor as well as Ghana, parts of India and West Africa is often perceived as a source of pride by most Portuguese.
The president said that the nation should "assume responsibility" for its history in order to create a better future. "Sometimes, apologising is the easiest thing to do. "You apologise, turn your back, and the job is done," he said.
Europe’s top human rights group previously said Portugal had to do more to confront its colonial past and role in the transatlantic slave trade in order to help fight racism and discrimination today.
Immediately following Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's speech to the Portuguese parliament, Rebelo de Sousa made the statements. Lula da Silva was in Portugal for the first time since taking office. In 1822, Portugal was forced to cede control of Brazil.
Source: Vince Owusu-Appiah, London
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