Portugal set to pay last respects to exleader Soares
LISBON: Portugal was on Sunday preparing to pay its final respects to Mario Soares, widely seen as the father of the country’s modernday democracy, after the former president died in hospital aged 92.
Monday sees the start of three days of national mourning, with a state funeral to be held the following day for Soares who served as president from 1986- 96.
The founder of Portugal’s Socialist party and spearhead of the country’s entry into the European Union died Saturday.
Tributes flooded in from across the world for the man who also served as foreign minister and prime minister, and later became a European lawmaker.
The new United Nations secretary-general, ex-Portuguese premier Antonio Guterres, hailed Soares as “one of the rare political leaders who had real stature in both Europe and the world.”
Former Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff said that Soares was “adored by the people and respected by his adversaries.”
The Soares family hopes that the funeral and period of mourning will reflect the former leader’s jovial personality and “closeness to the people,” his former adviser Jose Manuel Dos Santos said.
That connection with ordinary people could be seen on the streets of Lisbon Sunday.
“He was the father of freedom,” said former office worker Maria Fernandes, 70, with tears in her eyes. — AFP