Leonel Mário d'Alva

Leonel Mário d'Alva (* 1935 ) was Prime Minister of São Tomé and Príncipe from 1974 to 1975 .

Political career

He was a co-founder of the independence movement CLSTP, which was renamed Movimento de Libertação de São Tomé e Príncipe (MLSTP) in 1972. The movement campaigned for the independence of the archipelago from Portugal . After the Carnation Revolution , negotiations took place between Portugal and the MLSTP. He became Prime Minister of a transitional government set up by Portugal on December 21, 1974 and held the post until the country became independent on July 12, 1975. He was then Foreign Minister until 1978 .

In the following period there were tensions within the MLSTP and d'Alva went into exile in Cape Verde in 1982 . After the introduction of democracy, he returned in 1990 and became president of the PCD-GR party, which became a reservoir for former MLSTP politicians and independent forces. In the first free parliamentary elections on January 20, 1991, the PCD-GR achieved an absolute majority and he became President of Parliament. The party already lost its position as the strongest party in the next elections in October 1994.

Web links

• History and election results ( Memento of May 9, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
• Diário de Noticias d'Alva for the 30th Independence Day, July 12, 2005 (Portuguese)