Licínio Pereira da Silva (died April 1, 2008) was a former Portuguese

political prisoner A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention. There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although n ...

under the regime of

António de Oliveira Salazar António de Oliveira Salazar (, , ; 28 April 1889 – 27 July 1970) was a Portuguese dictator who served as President of the Council of Ministers from 1932 to 1968. Having come to power under the ("National Dictatorship"), he reframed the re ...

, an era of Portuguese history known as the Estado Novo. Pereira da Silva was the last political prisoner convicted by the

Polícia Internacional e de Defesa do Estado The International and State Defense Police ( pt, Polícia Internacional e de Defesa do Estado; PIDE) was a Portuguese security agency that existed during the '' Estado Novo'' regime of António de Oliveira Salazar. Formally, the main roles of the ...

, better known as the PIDE, the secret service force used by the Salazar regime to repress dissent during the Estado Novo. Licínio Pereira da Silva was arrested by the PIDE and accused of supporting desertions in the Portuguese colonies in Africa. He was tried by a special court armed with security measures, which was usually reserved for prisoners who were considered to be a major threat to the Salazar regime. Pereira da Silva was convicted and sentenced to six years in prison in 1973. However, Pereira da Silva was released from prison in Peniche on April 25, 1974, following the beginning of the

Carnation Revolution The Carnation Revolution ( pt, Revolução dos Cravos), also known as the 25 April ( pt, 25 de Abril, links=no), was a military coup by left-leaning military officers that overthrew the authoritarian Estado Novo regime on 25 April 1974 in Lisbo ...

. He was the last political prisoner of the PIDE. Licínio Pereira da Silva died of a nosocomial infection at the age of 63 on April 1, 2008, while hospitalized at the Hospital Garcia de Orta in Almada, Portugal. His funeral, with a

cremation Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a Cadaver, dead body through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India ...

, was held at the Cemitério dos Olivais in

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

on April 4, 2008.

References

External links

Licínio Pereira da Silva obituary

Jornal de Peniche: Licínio Pereira da Silva, last political prisoner of the PIDE, dies
Year of birth missing 2008 deaths Portuguese prisoners and detainees Carnation Revolution Place of birth missing {{Portugal-bio-stub