Portugal–South Africa relations

South Africa – Portugal relations refer to the current and historical relationship between Portugal and South Africa.

Portugal–South Africa relations

Portugal	South Africa

South Africa has an Embassy in Lisbon.[1] It also has Honorary Consulates in Porto and Funchal, Madeira.[2] Portugal has an Embassy in Pretoria.[3] In addition, there are Consulates-General in Johannesburg and Cape Town, and Honorary Consulates in Durban, Port Elizabeth and Welkom.[4]

History

Exploration

The Portuguese explored the coasts of South Africa in the late 15th century, and nominally claimed them as their own with the erecting of padrões (large stone cross inscribed with the coat of arms of Portugal placed there as part of a land claim). Bartolomeu Dias did so in 1486, and Vasco da Gama recorded a sighting of the Cape of Good Hope in 1497, en route to India.

Apartheid

South Africa had close relations with Portugal, particularly during the time that Mozambique and Angola were Portuguese colonies. South Africa under Apartheid was ruled by the National Party, which shared common ground with the anti-communist Estado Novo regime of António de Oliveira Salazar in Portugal.[5]

Following Britain's decision to grant independence to its colonies in Africa, the government of Hendrik Verwoerd feared that the newly independent states would fall under the influence of the Soviet Union, and from 1961 onwards, there were frequent meetings of South African and Portuguese intelligence operatives as well as visits of South African politicians to Portuguese-ruled Angola and Mozambique.[6]

Immigration

The early 20th century witnessed a trickle of emigrants from Madeira whose numbers greatly increased in the decades following World War II. Madeiran immigrants, who are traditionally associated with horticulture and commerce, form the largest group within South Africa's Portuguese community.

The largest influx of Portuguese in South Africa occurred when Angola and Mozambique became independent in 1975. While most Portuguese from the two former colonies either settled in Portugal or Brazil, some of them were allowed to enter South Africa.[7] The number of Portuguese South Africans in 2010 was estimated at 80,476.[8]

There has also been a growing number of South Africans buying property in Portugal order to gain residence and retire there and be able to travel within the Schengen area.[9]

Air links

There have been no direct flights between the two countries since TAP Portugal ended services between Lisbon and Johannesburg in 2011.[10] South African Airways, which has also discontinued flights between the two countries, used to fly to Rome, Athens and Tel Aviv via Lisbon, as it was banned from entering the airspace of African countries opposed to its apartheid policies.[11]

Both airlines are now members of Star Alliance, and operate code share flights.[12]

References

1. Embassy of the Republic of South Africa, Lisbon, Portugal
2. South African Representation Abroad, Department of International Relations and Cooperation, Republic of South Africa
3. Embaixada de Portugal em Pretória
4. Portal das Comunidades Portuguesas - África do Sul
5. Sweden and National Liberation in Southern Africa: Formation of a popular opinion (1950-1970), Tor Sellström, Nordic Africa Institute, 1999, page 368.
6. Salazar: A Political Biography, Filipe Ribeiro De Meneses, Enigma Books, 2013, page 532
7. Abundant Portuguese Residents Elude The South African Census, The New York Times, May 29, 1981
8. Observatório da Emigração Indicadores sobre a população portuguesa emigrada Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine, 27 May 2014
9. South Africans buy property to gain residence, retire in Portugal, Business Day, 9 November 2015
10. TAP Portugal Drops Johannesburg Service, 31 May 2011
11. The Atlas of Changing South Africa, A. J. Christopher, Routledge Press, 2001, 175
12. SAA and TAP to further expand code share, South African Airways, 7 March 2012