According to the conclusions of the meeting sent to DI, “Difficult pasts” related to colonialism and decolonization between Portugal and Mozambique were the central theme of the 1st International Gungunhana Colloquium—Importance and Current Events, which took place in Angra do Heroísmo, Terceira Island, Azores, from 31 October to 2 November.
“More than talking about Gungunhana, we talked about our difficult pasts (Portugal and Mozambique) – colonialism and decolonization,” reads the document drawn up by the IHIT – Historical Institute of Terceira Island, which organized the colloquium.

For the IHIT Historical Institute), the meeting had “moments of great symbolism,” including the unveiling of a plaque in Conceição Cemetery with the Mozambican flag by Eugenio Numayo, a descendant of Gungunhana, and Bianca Zixaxa, a descendant of Roberto Zixaxa.
The choice of venue was also symbolic. The conferences and debates took place in the former Boa Nova Military Hospital, the place where Gungunhana and other African prisoners who were held captive on Terceira Island died.

Another moment that IHIT highlights as “highly symbolic” was the taking of photographs next to Gungunhana’s bust.
The conference was broadcast live online with the support of BPARLSR – Biblioteca Pública e Arquivo Regional Luís da Silva Ribeiro. What was recorded can be reviewed on Facebook and the IHIT website. The Institute’s social media page has reached more than 900% new interactions during the conference days, with several publications of the program, photographs, and videos made on the same platform, according to the conclusions note sent to us by IHIT.
According to the same document, IHIT intends to publish the minutes of this colloquium “due to the high level of communications.”
The Mozambican ambassador to Portugal has since sent IHIT a note of thanks, in which she expresses her willingness to continue working together and hopes to replicate, in coordination with the competent authorities in Mozambique and the Azores, research activities and celebrations to commemorate our history”.

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.