On 19 September 1974, still in the colonial era, some women in São Tomé demonstrated in front of the governor’s palace and demanded the independence of São Tomé e Príncipe. Today, 50 years later and in freedom, the National Women’s Day of São Tomé e Príncipe commemorates these courageous fighters and at the same time celebrates all women in the country. Several parades passed by Independence Square and many ministries had their own all-female delegations. Among those present were the Minister for Women and Health, First Lady Fátima Vila Nova, and the German Honorary Consul Kerstin Schulze.
In the words of Fátima Vila Nova, First Lady of São Tomé e Príncipe: ‘There are no better managers of difficulties … than women.’
In the photos: Parades of women in agriculture, nurses and policewomen.
(Photos: Kerstin Schulze)
