The History of Portugal (IV)

 The History of Portugal
From the first inhabitants, to the Celtic tribes, the Roman and Moorish invasions, the Age of Discovery, to modern times

The 20th Century
The beginning of the 20th century was marked by a radical, nationalist republican movement. In 1908, the king and crown prince were assassinated, and in 1910, after an uprising by military officers, Portugal was declared a republic. During WWI Portugal joined the Allies, and in the postwar years, political chaos deepened. Between 1910 and 1945 there were 45 changes of government, often brought about through military intervention. In 1932 Antonio Salazar became prime minister, and during WWII, Portugal was declared neutral. Salazar ruled the country for 36 years, banning political parties and workers' strikes. Censorship, propaganda and force kept society in order. A secret police force used imprisonment and torture to suppress opposition. Salazar also refused to give up Portugal's colonies but India occupied Portuguese Goa in 1961, and local nationalists rose up in Angola. Similar movements happened in Portuguese Guinea and Mozambique. As a result, there were costly military expeditions. In 1968, Salazar suffered a stroke and Marcelo Caetano was his successor. Military officers grew reluctant to serve in colonial wars, and several hundred of them carried out a bloodless coup on April 25, 1974. The African colonies were then given independence, and a new constitution committed Portugal to a blend of socialism and democracy. There were several governments after that, and the country was only considered officially stable in the mid-1980's. In 1986 Portugal joined the European Economic Community (later renamed European Union in 1992). With EU funds, Portugal went through a dramatic change -- it became the EU's fastest growing country (recording an unprecedented 4.5% to 5% annual economic growth rate).

Portugal Today  
Today Portugal is a stable country well integrated in the European Union. With the common European monetary system, it is believed that the country will gradually reach a standard of living on a par with the other major European countries. Attention in future years will focus on bringing the country's level of skilled jobs and educational achievements closer to the European average.
In 1998 Lisbon hosted the World Fair Expo 98, leading to major infrastructure and urban regeneration projects. A year later, the country adopted the Euro as its official currency along with ten other countries of the European Union, and in 2004 it hosted the Euro2004 championship. In July 2007 it took over the European Union presidency when EU members signed the Lisbon Treaty which revised the EU's constitutional framework.
Portugal is now a country looking to the future, while never forgetting its long, remarkable past.

http://www.golisbon.com/culture/history.html

Cavaco Silva Presidente de Portugal

Portuguese Government

Country name: Conventional long form: Portuguese Republic
Conventional short form: Portugal
Local long form: Republica Portuguesa
Local short form: Portugal

Government type:
Parliamentary democracy

Capital:
Lisbon

Administrative divisions:
18 districts (distritos, singular - distrito) and 2 autonomous regions* (regioes autonomas, singular - regiao autonoma):
Aveiro, Acores (Azores)*, Beja, Braga, Braganca, Castelo Branco, Coimbra, Evora, Faro, Guarda, Leiria, Lisboa, Madeira*, Portalegre, Porto, Santarem, Setubal, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real, Viseu

Independence:
1385 (independent republic proclaimed 5 October 1910)

National holiday:
Freedom day, 25 April (1974)

Constitution:
25 April 1976
revised: 30 October 1982, 1 June 1989, 5 November 1992, and 3 September 1997

Legal system:
Civil law system; the Constitutional Tribunal reviews the constitutionality of legislation; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
Chief of state: President Anibal Cavaco Silva (since 9 March 2006)
Head of government: Prime Minister Jose Socrates (since 12 March 2005)
Cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the recommendation of the prime minister
Note: there is also a Council of State that acts as a consultative body to the president
Elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; (eligible for a second term); election last held 22 January 2006 (next to be held January 2011); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president
Election results: Anibal Cavaco Silva elected president; percent of vote - Anibal Cavaco Silva 50.6%, Manuel Alegre 20.7%, Mario Soares 14.3%, Jeronimo de Sousa 8.5%, Franciso Louca 5.3%

Legislative branch:
Unicameral Assembly of the Republic or Assembleia da Republica (230 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
Elections: last held 20 February 2005 (next to be held February 2009);
note: President Sampaio called for early elections after dissolving parliament on 10 December 2004 because he lacked confidence in the four-month center-right government led by PSD's Santa Lopes.

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court or Supremo Tribunal de Justica (judges appointed for life by the Conselho Superior da Magistratura)

Political parties and leaders:
Green Ecologist Party or PEV [Heloisa Apolonia]; Popular Party or PP [Jose Ribeiro e Castro]; Portuguese Communist Party or PCP [Jeronimo de Sousa]; Portuguese Socialist Party or PS [Jose Socrates Carvalho Pinto de Sousa]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Luis Marques Mendes]; The Left Bloc or BE [Franciso Anacleto Louca]; Unitarian Democratic Coalition or UDC [Jeronimo de Sousa]

Note: Government Elections was held in May 2011 and new government was formed, with new PM.