April 25th, 50 years of Freedom
by Mario Barrela
For us Portuguese, April 25th is a very important date. It was on this day that a group of brave men put an end to a tyranny that had lasted for 50 years. I was just over two years old at the time, but according to the accounts of family, friends and many witnesses, those were very difficult times!
Portugal was a poor country, with around 50% of the population living from agriculture and an illiteracy rate of over 75% for women and 70% for men, who were thus deprived of the right to vote. Infant mortality was high.
Culture, such as literature, cinema, theatre, and music, was controlled by the so-called “Blue Pencil,” which was nothing more or less than a form of prior censorship. Everything had to pass through its sieve, which was very difficult. It was all for the benefit of the regime and the interests of the state, thus castrating different ways of thinking.
Anyone who was caught or denounced for speaking out against the state was immediately arrested and violently tortured. Political prisoners were arrested without charge or warrant and subjected to physical and psychological torture, and PIDE (the political police) could decide to extend the time they had to serve in the political prisons of Aljube, Caxias and Peniche.
For these reasons and many more, these men carried out the so-called “Carnation Revolution,” a revolution that had almost no casualties but filled the streets of the whole country with people celebrating. I can’t even imagine such joy and relief.
Returning to the present day, I usually photograph the festivities every year. It’s beautiful to see all the happy people singing the songs that were the password for the start of the revolution, such as “Grândola Vila Morena” by Zeca Afonso or “Depois do Adeu” by Paulo Carvalho. This year was very interesting, because it was a sea of people, much more than in other years (maybe 50 years), but also because there were lots of young people, carrying their placards, carrying their messages, most of them without belonging to political groups or parties.
Finally, I’m proud to see so many young people who won’t let the feat of such heroic men die.
Regardless of whether we have a perfect country or not, I don’t think April should die, and I don’t think April will die.
