Jaime Gama

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Jaime José de Matos da Gama, GCC, GCIH, GCL, GCMG (born Fajã de Baixo, Ponta Delgada, São Miguel, Azores, June 8, 1947), son of Jaime da Rosa Ferreira da Gama (Matriz, Horta, Faial, Azores, January 1914 – Lisbon, July 29, 2003) and wife Lucília Vaz do Rego de Matos (São Sebastião, Ponta Delgada, São Miguel, Azores, September 12, 1916 – Hospital Militar, Estrela, Lisbon, September 21, 1987), is a Portuguese politician.

He graduated in Philosophy at University of Lisbon. He was involved in the opposition to the fascist Estado Novo (New State) regime, since his youth, and was first arrested, aged only 18, due to an article published in the local press. He was a member of the socialist CEUD in the campaign for the 1969 legislative elections, won by the National Union (the regime party), due to massive fraud. He was a journalist of the opposition newspaper República, in the last years of the fascist regime. He was a founder of the Socialist Party, in the German exile of Bad-Munstereifel. In the 1st Constitutional Government, he was Minister of Internal Affairs (1976-1978), and Minister of Foreign Affairs in the 9th Constitutional Government, from 1983 to 1985. He returned to the same ministry, in António Guterres' governments, from 1995 to 2002, and was also Minister of State and Minister of National Defence, in 1999. He was the chairman of the Presidency of the Council of Europe from January 1, 2002, until April 6, 2002, when he lost his post as foreign minister when the new government of José Manuel Durão Barroso took office in Portugal. In 2005, he became the new and 12th President of the Assembly of the Republic (Assembleia da República), the Portuguese parliament.

Married in Lisbon on September 18, 1971 to Alda Taborda, has one son, João Taborda da Gama, Lawyer and Assistant Professor of the Faculty of Law of the University of Lisbon.