Luanda - The Angolan Writers Association (UEA) paid tribute Wednesday, in Luanda, to writer and poet Viriato da Cruz, given his contribution to the enhancement of national literature and culture.
Framed in the 48th anniversary of the foundation of UEA (December, 12, 1975) and 50 years after the writer's death, the initiative is also aimed to distinguish the Angolan writer as an honorary member of the institution posthumously.
On the occasion, the chairman of the Board of the UEA Assembly, Lopito Feijó, awarded an honourable mention to the poet 's daughter, Marília Viriato da Cruz.
Speaking at the opening, the UEA's General Secretary, David Capelenguela, said it was the proper time to honour this great Angolan nationalist.
To him, Viriato da Cruz was a man fully committed to the country, who always defended and permanently searched for the cultural and social renewal of the Angolan originality.
"We are witnessing at this very moment the awarding of honorary membership status of UEA to the Angolan writer, poet and nationalist who contributed a lot and enhanced culture", he stressed.
Lopito Feijó, the chairman of the Board of the UEA Assembly, said that Viriato da Cruz represents one of the greatest figures in Angolan poetry, who should no longer be forgotten.
"This nationalist should not be forgotten in the current literary context, because he was able to show himself to be a great defender of national freedom", adding that he had a legacy that should be valued and studied by the population.
On her turn, Marília Viriato da Cruz, thanked the tribute, highlighting that her father was a patriot who loved the country to the fullest.
Viriato da Cruz was born in Porto Amboim Municipality of Cuanza Sul in 1928 and died on June 13th 1973, in Beijing, in the People's Republic of China. He completed his secondary education in Luanda.
He was a politician and also a writer, who was characterized by his commitment towards African values, both in theme and form.
His work is spread across periodicals and represented in several anthologies, one of which entitled No Reino de Caliban (In the Caliban Kingdom), which gathers his poetic work.
He was one of the main mentors of the Angolan New Intellectuals Movement (1948) and of the Mensagem magazine (1951-1952), besides being a founding member and the first secretary-general of the MPLA, during the first years of the 1960s.
In the year 1957, Viriato Clemente Francisco da Cruz left Angola bound for Paris, France, where he joined the politician Mário Pinto de Andrade, with whom he developed tough political and cultural activity.
The Collection of Poems, produced between 1947 and 1950 and published in 1961, by the Casa do Estudante do Império (Empire Student House) with headquarters in Lisbon - Portugal, and the Collection of Notebooks Capricornio 25 (Capricorn Booklets), published in Lobito municipality of the southern Benguela province, in 1974, make up his literary work. ECC/MDS/VM/MRA/jmc
