Portuguese Communist party

The Portuguese Communist party (in Portuguese: Partido Comunista Português , or PCP ) is a Portuguese political party of left. He claims Marxisme-léninisme as well as Internationalisme and its organization is founded on the democratic Centralisme.

The PCP was founded in 1921 under the name of “Portuguese Section of the International Communist”. Interdict after the coup d'etat of 1926, it will be one of the central elements of resistance to the dictatorship of Salazar. During more than fifty years, the members of the PCP were constrained with living in clandestinity by the secret police in order to avoid the imprisonment, torture or the assassination. At the time of the Revolution of the eyelets, which reversed the dictatorship, the 36 members of the Central committee had on the whole passed more than 300 years in prison.

Under the Republic, the PCP became one of the major political clouts of Portugal. In spite of the loss of influence due to the collapse of the Communist bloc, the party always has a strong electoral base, in particular in the rural regions of Alentejo and Ribatejo like in the working suburbs of Lisbon and with Setúbal, where it holds several municipalities.

The PCP publishes the weekly magazine Avante! since 1931. Its youth movement is the Portuguese Communist youth, which is member of the world Fédération of democratic youth.

History

Origins and foundation of the Party

At the conclusion of the First World War, Portugal undergoes a major economic crisis, partly due to its participation in the war. The degradation of the living conditions of the workmen involves a series of Grève S, who, supported by incipient trade unions, end to some major social progresses, of which the eight hours day.

In September 1919 is founded the first Portuguese trade union, the General confederation of work ( Confederação Geral C Trabalho , CGT). The absence of a political clout able to gather the working class and the strong popularity of the Russian Révolution leads to the foundation of the maximalist Fédération of Portugal in 1919, of tendency Socialist-revolutionist. Pushed by the Comintern, of the members of the FMP create, on March 6th, 1921, the Portuguese Section of the International Communist: they are given for goal to establish a revolutionary party of avant-garde, on the model Bolchévique.

Resistance and clandestinity

Following the coup d'etat of May 28th, 1926, the Party is prohibited and must return in clandestinity. The reorganization will be effective only in 1929, when Bento Goncalves leads the party to be structured in a network of clandestine cells, which enables him to avoid the massive arrests. In 1938, the PCP is excluded from the Komintern. The reasons advanced by Dimitrov are its weak internal structuring, which makes it sensitive to the internal conflicts, the noticeable decrease of its activity as well as charges of embezzlement by its leaders. The PCP will join again bonds with the the USSR only in 1947: its only contacts with the international communist movement are then the Communist parties French and Spanish.

In 1933, with the accession with the capacity of Salazar and the installation of the Estado Novo, repression becomes even more severe. The party must face massive arrests and executions, and its stopped members are tortured then sent in the concentration camp of Tarafal, with the Cape Verde. Bento Goncalves itself will be off-set there, and there will remain until its death. The massive arrests of 1940-41 oblige the party with a total reorganization: thus, the congress of 1943 decides on a strategy of union with all the forces opposed to the dictatorship, as well as investment of the army. The Party then obtains a real clandestine organization, structured by a network of frameworks, which will appear a fundamental asset for resistance to the dictatorship.

In 1945, the defeat of the forces of the Axe obliges Salazar to operate reforms in order to present its mode under one day more democratic. One of these reforms was the authorization given to the democratic opposition to constitute a political movement, the Movimento de Unidade Democrática (MUD). The MUD is initially controlled by the moderate ones, but the PCP reinforces very quickly its influence there, in particular via its youth movement. The direction of this last is indeed made up for a big part of Communists, of which Octávio Pato, Salgado Zenha, Mário Soares, Júlio Pomar and Mário Sacramento. In answer to the weight taken by the PCP, Salazar strongly represses, then prohibited completely the MUD in 1948.

In 1946, Álvaro Cunhal is charged to carry the conclusions of the fourth congress of the PCP, held in July, until in Yugoslavia: it ruled on the need for organizing a popular resistance movement, directed by the Party, against the mode in place like on the reinforcement of clandestine work. The goal of this voyage was to improve the relations of the organization with the socialist Bloc: it is accordingly that it leaves, in 1948, in the USSR to meet Mikhaïl Souslov. At the conclusion of these voyages, the PCP joins again bonds with the international communist movement. Álvaro Cunhal on the other hand is stopped by the political police as of her return of the USSR.

The fifth congress proceeds in September 1957, not in Portugal but with Kiev, in the USSR. The Party adopts there for the first time a program and statutes; it is there too that he will decide clearly against the Colonialisme and for the right to self-determination of the people, thus affirming his support for the liberation movements in the Portuguese colonies such as MPLA Angola is, the Mozambican Frelimo or PAIGC bissau-Guinean.

In January 1960, ten members of the PCP succeed in escaping from the prison of high security of Peniche. Among them several leaders are, in particular Álvaro Cunhal, which is elected general secretary the following year, and Jaime Serra, which organizes the Acção Revolucionária Armada , the armed wing of the PCP which will be at the origin of several military actions against the mode in the years 1970.

In 1961 also the colonial wars in the Portuguese Empire begin, initially in Angola, then in Mozambique and in Guinea-Bissau. The war, which lasts thirteen years, ruins Portugal and conduit of the thousands of Portuguese to emigrate in France, Germany or Suisse to escape the conscription. The PCP is then very related to the African independence movements, of which it ensured the formation, in particular with the techniques of Guérilla, with the assistance of the USSR. He is opposed as of the beginning with the war and posts his support for the national movements. The dissatisfaction due to the years with war will be one of the elements which will lead to the end of the mode of António Salazar.

One year later, in 1962, the government decides to prohibit several of the main organizations coeds; their members, for the majority Communists, are excluded from the University, even imprisoned. The students answer while organizing, with the assistance of the PCP, the demonstrations in all the country, of which the principal one with Lisbon, on March 24th: it is violently repressed by the police force, which makes hundreds of wounded among the students.

The sixth congress of the PCP, in 1965, sees the publication of an headed document “ the way of the victory: duties of the Party for the national and democratic Revolution ”. The text takes again eight major goals laid down by the PCP to make of Portugal a democratic regime: end of the economic monopolies, an agrarian reform driving with the redistribution of the grounds or the democratization of the access to education and the culture. Widely distributed, the document very largely influences the democratic movement.

April 25th, 1974, the Mouvement of the armed forces is at the origin of the Révolution of the eyelets, a coup d'etat which has reversed the dictatorship places from there for 48 years in less than 4 p.m. The PCP can then leave clandestinity.

The Revolution of the eyelets and beginnings of the democracy

April 27th, two days after the revolution, the political prisoners are released; the 30, Álvaro Cunhal leaves clandestinity and makes its return to Lisbon, where it is acclaimed by several thousands of people. May 1st, the Labor Day is celebrated for the first time since 1926: a half-million Portuguese come to listen to the speeches of Álvaro Cunhal and the socialist director Mário Soares, joined together at the great stage of Lisbon. May 17th leaves the first not-clandestine number Avante!, the newspaper of the PCP.

During the following months, the country knows important changes, implemented by the junta and supported by the PCP. In less than one year, the Guinea-Bissau, the Angola, the Mozambique, the Cape Verde and Sao Divide into volumes-and-Principle obtain their independence.

Six months after the revolution, on October 20th, 1974, the 7th congress of the PCP joins together more than one thousand of deputy as well as hundreds of Portuguese and foreign guests. The 36 members of the Central committee elected by the congress add up then more than 300 years of prison joined together on January 12th, 1975, the PCP is the first party with being officially recognized.

March 11th, 1975, a military coup attempt of State, advanced by the line, is pushed back. The revolutionary process is directed then clearly on the left, and led to the nationalization of the principal sectors of the economy: banks, transport, metallurgy, mining industry and communications, in particular. The country is then directed by Vasco Gonçalves, a member of the military junta which supports the PCP. This last supports the nationalizations fully, as well as the land reform which leads to the collectivization of the agricultural sector. The Party organizes the latter, while pushing in particular with the creation of several thousands of country co-operatives.

The Party is represented with the the European Parliament, with two deputies: Ilda Figueiredo and Pedro Guerreiro. It obtained 9,2% of the voices to the European elections of 2004. It belongs to the group European Unified left, Scandinavian green left.

Electoral results

Ten last elections

( Source: Electoral commission of Portugal)

Notes:

  • In 2004, following the widening of the European Union, the number of European deputies for Portugal passed from 25 to 24.

  • the figures of the municipal elections count only the voices for the Municipal council, and does not take into account the possible coalitions, as with Lisbon between 1989 and 2001. The PCP generally obtains higher scores at the time of the election of the municipal Assemblies and the parochial Assemblées (respectively 11,7 and 12% in 2005).
  • the number of seats corresponds to the number of city council men to the local elections, deputies to legislative and European deputies to the European elections.
  • the unit democratic Coalition (CDU) is made up of the PCP, the Verts and democratic Intervention.

Presidential elections

( Source: Electoral commission of Portugal)

Notes:

  • In 1980, the candidate Carlos Brito desists, with the profit of António Ramalho Eanes.

  • In 1986, the candidate supports initially the candidature of Ângelo Veloso, which desists finally in favor of Salgado Zenha.
  • In 1986, the PCP supports Mário Soares with the second turn.
  • in 1996, Jerónimo de Sousa desists in favor of Jorge Sampaio.

Statement of principle and internal organization

Statement of principle

The statutes of the PCP define it as a party of class: he wants to be the party of the Prolétariat and the workers. He is also a party of avant-garde: its role is to mobilize and gain the support of the workers.

The PCP wishes to bring together all the workers who fight for the democracy and the Socialisme, that they are workmen, employees, farmers, professional workers, technicians or small shopkeepers. He regards himself the legitimate heir to the long tradition of fights of the Portuguese people and as the defender of the assets obtained by these fights.

The Party asserts Marxisme-léninisme, which he regards as a vision Dialectique and materialist of the world and a scientific tool for the analysis of the company. He affirms also his attachment with the proletarian Internationalisme, and thus with the need for organizing at the same time the co-operation between the Communist parties and all the forces progressists and revolutionists and solidarity between the workers of all the countries. Its publication was consequently irregular, according to the waves of repression organized by the political police against those which diffused or printed the newspaper. It however never ceased appearing, and was one of the rare newspapers to freely publish articles on the Second world war, the Colonial wars, the movements of Grève or the student Mouvements against the dictatorship.

Publication of Avante! continued after the Révolution of the eyelets and the newspaper obtained an online edition. The festival of Avante! also continues to be held each year.

During the countryside for the legislative elections of 2005, the Party added to its Web site a Webradio as well as a forum. To the last congress, its site was added in the statutes like one of the official mediums of the Party. The webradio created for the countryside continued to exist after the elections and is called now Communic : it diffuses interviews of the members of the Party on various subjects as well as music.

The PCP also has a Publisher, the editions Avante! ( Edições Avante! ) which publishes books in connection with the history of the Party or its doctrines. One finds in his catalog traditional Marxisme-léninisme, like the Manifeste of the Communist party , the Capital , the Jewish Question , That to make? , several works of Portuguese authors on the history of the PCP, official publications of the Party such as the statutes or the program, of the translations of foreign works such as the Ten days which shook the world John Reed as well as a great number of other books.

Youth movement

The youth organization of the PCP is the Portuguese Communist youth ( Juventude Comunista Portuguesa ). She was created on November 10th, 1979, following the fusion of the Ligue of the communist students and the Ligue of Communist youth. She is member of the world Fédération of democratic youth (FMJD). She takes part regularly in the world Festival of youth and the students , organized by the FMJD.

The JCP has an organization close to the PCP, also founded on the principle Léniniste of the democratic Centralisme. It is independent of the Party, although the two structures maintain the cooperative relations.

Mainly made up of young people provided education for as well as part of young employees, the action of the JCP is worried mainly education system, which she wants free and public to ensure an education throughout the life, like with the questions of employment, peace and housing. It also engages in the international solidarity by sending brigades to Cuba, in Palestine or with the Venezuela, only or in collaboration with the Greek Communist youth (KNE) or SDAJ (youth organization of German KPD ).

The JCP is mainly present in the colleges and universities, and its militants are very present in the student trade unions.

Avante celebrates!

Each year, the PCP organizes a Festival very attended, the Festival of Avante! ( Festa C Avante! ). It was held until the Années 1990 in the neighborhoods of Lisbon ( Feira Internacional de Lisboa , Ajuda, Loures); it is held henceforth on a ground bought by the Party thanks to a campaign of gifts, close to Seixal. The PCP considered that it was the only means of avoiding the systematic refusal of the owners of the grounds - refusal which will prevent the Festival from being held in 1987.

The Festival accommodates hundreds of artists and groups which come to play on the five scenes, as well as debates, a fair of the books and music, representations of Théâtre ( Avanteatro ), gastronomical stands and sports events. Several Communist parties of the world is also due to it of the stands. It thus attracts several hundreds of thousands of visitors each year.

Many famous artists, Portuguese or not, occurred with the Festival, of which Chico Buargue, Baden Powell de Aquino, Ivan Lins, Zeca Afonso, Buffy Sainte-Marie, Johnny Clegg, Charlie Haden, Judy Collins, Richie Havens, Tom Paxton, The Band, Dexys Midnight Runners, Hevia, Brigada Víctor Jara, Adriano Correia de Oliveira, Carlos Paredes, Jorge Palma, Manoel de Oliveira and much of others.

The preparation of the Festival is the one year work, which starts again with each time the back issue is completed. Hundreds of members and sympathizers of the PCP, for the majority of the young people, install each year the small town which it constitutes.

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