MEN LARGER THAN THE ISLANDS

Alberto Romão Madruga da Costa (1940–2014), from the island of Faial, and João Carlos Abreu (1935), from the island of Madeira, share the distinction of having served as Regional Secretaries for Tourism in their respective autonomous regions during the 1980s. They also share a particularly close relationship with the Azorean and Madeiran diasporas, which carry the presence of both archipelagos throughout the world.

MADRUGA DA COSTA IN THE AZORES

The three most illustrious figures in the political history of the island of Faial were born in the parish of Matriz, in Horta, and all three are associated with movements across geographical boundaries.

António José de Ávila and Manuel de Arriaga were born here and served Portugal from Lisbon.

To these two, I would add the most important Faial-born political figure of the autonomous era: Alberto Romão Madruga da Costa, who served the Azores from his own city of Horta and who always cultivated a special relationship with every island and with the Azorean diaspora.

In 1996, for example, while serving as press adviser to the President of the Regional Government, I accompanied him to the inauguration of the extensively renovated Casa dos Açores in Rio de Janeiro and to the unveiling, in Santa Catarina, of the monument commemorating the 250th anniversary of Azorean settlement in southern Brazil.

From him—and from his closest partner in the construction of Azorean autonomy, João Bosco Mota Amaral—I learned that the Azores derive their strength from all nine islands, yet are greater still: they are as vast as the Azorean People, wherever in the world they may be found.

He was the first person from Faial to become President of the Legislative Assembly—and he held that office twice—and the only Faial-born politician ever to become President of the Regional Government.

In half a century of political autonomy, he was the only Azorean to preside over both institutions of self-government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores.

He is richly deserving of even greater recognition from his native island.

Like the other two statesmen, his name has already been enshrined in the street names of Horta. Like them, he, too, could be represented in the public statuary of Faial.

The finest way for the island to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of Azorean autonomy in 2026 would be to pay proper tribute to his cherished memory—publicly and permanently—through the unveiling of a bust, perhaps at the initiative of, and within the headquarters of, the Legislative Assembly itself.

It should be a bust that preserves his likeness as a legacy to future generations, embodying everything from his exceptional commitment to autonomy to his extraordinary Azorean heart.

JOÃO CARLOS ABREU IN MADEIRA

João Carlos Abreu was born in the city of Funchal ninety years ago, on December 5, 1935. He is a politician, a poet, and, above all, a human being.

As a politician, he inscribed his name in letters of gold upon the development and international projection of his Autonomous Region of Madeira, through his indispensable and unparalleled service as Regional Secretary for Tourism, Culture and Emigration.

For twenty-three years, from 1984 to 2007, he was Portugal’s most enduring public official entrusted with the stewardship of a tourist destination.

As a poet, he breathes forth the sensibility his heart alone cannot contain. He creates poetry with love and lives life with passion.

He is both a maker of poetry and an awakener of poets—in Madeira, throughout Macaronesia, and across the world.

He is himself a symbol of Madeira, an architect of Macaronesia, a navigator of the world.

He is a friend of the Azores—and of the Canary Islands and Cape Verde as well.

On a beautiful day in 2017, he came to meet us at Ponta Delgada City Hall to propose the organization of an international poetry gathering capable of bringing together and celebrating the islands of Macaronesia.

The challenge was readily embraced by the then Mayor, now President of the Regional Government, José Manuel Bolieiro, and was soon brought to fruition in the place João Carlos Abreu himself christened the City of Poets.

Eight years later, we continue to champion his cause and to be moved by his example—whether in Ponta Delgada (2017, 2019 and 2024), Porto Santo (2018 and 2022), Las Palmas (2021), or Praia (2023).

At these Macaronesian Poetry Encounters, we are twenty-seven islands with three million blue souls, gazing upon the world through eyes of the sea.

All this is owed to the inspiring, unifying, and galvanizing personality of João Carlos Abreu.

Like him, we believe in the liberating power of poetry and place our faith in Macaronesia’s capacity for initiative and creation.

Above the politician stands the poet; above the poet, the human being.

He has received an honorary doctorate in Social Sciences from the University of San Cyrillo, was appointed Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Portuguese Republic, and was awarded the Gold Cordão Valor insignia of the Autonomous Region of Madeira. Yet he prefers to introduce himself in these simple words:

“I am João Carlos, a native of Madeira, a land of great warmth and many banana trees.”

—
Jose Andrade is the current Regional Director for Communities
Government of the Autonomous Region of the Azores

(Translated by Diniz Borges)