1. There were two secret signals in the mili-
tary coup: first the airing of the song E
depois do adeus, by Paulo de Carvalho,
Portugal's entry in the 6th of April 1974
Eurovision Song Contest, which alerted the
rebel captains and soldiers to begin the
AGRUPAMENTO
coup. A few hours later the national radio DE ESCOLAS JOSÉ
broadcast Grândola Vila Morena, a song CARLOS DA MAIA
by Zeca Afonso, a folk singer forbidden on
Portuguese radio at the time. This was the
signal that the MFA gave to take over stra-
tegic points of power in the country,
37 YEARS OF
"announced" that the revolution had started
and nothing would stop it except "the pos-
DEMOCRACY!!!
sibility of a regime's repression".
Despite repeated appeals from the "April
captains" on the radio inciting the popula-
tion to stay at home, thousands of Portu-
guese descended on the streets, mixing
themselves with the military insurgents. REAL FREEDOM:
One of the points of these gathering was PEACE
the Lisbon flower market, then richly stoc- BREAD
ked with carnations, which were in season. HOUSING
Some military insurgents would put these
HEALTH
flowers in their gun-barrels, an image
EDUCATION
which was shown on television around the
world. This was the origin of the name of
this "Carnation revolution".
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2. F R E E D O M D A Y militia officers and recruited students, A period of great social, political and military
many of them college students. This unreast followed, known as the PREC (Ongoing
The Carnation Revolution was a period movement was born around 1973, initially Revolutionary Process), marked by demonstra-
in the history of Portugal, triggered by a tions, occupations, provisional governments,
based on corporatist claims, as the fight
nationalization and military confrontations,
bloodless military coup that took place for the prestige of the armed forces and
which finished with an attempted coup failed on
on April 25, 1974, which overthrew the eventually extended to the current politi- 2 5 N o v e m b e r 1 9 7 5 .
Estado Novo dictatorship, in power since c a l r e g i m e . With a more stable situation, it was possible to
1933 and began a process that would end After the coup, the National Salvation continue the work of the Constituent Assembly
with the implementation of a democratic and to reach a new democratic constitution,
group was created, responsible for the
which was establi-
regime with appointment of the President, the program
shed on 25 April
the entry into of the Provisional Government and its 1976, the same day
force of a new organic. Thus, on May 15, 1974, General of the first election of
Constitution Antonio de Spinola was appointed Presi- the new republic.
on 25 April Following these
dent of the Republic, who in turn assigned
events, a national
1 9 7 6 . the post of prime minister to Adelino da
holiday was establi-
This scam, P a l m a C a r l o s . shed in Portugal on
commonly April 25, called "Freedom Day".
known by the
Portuguese as
25 April, was conducted by a military
movement, the Armed Forces Movement
(MFA), composed of intermediate offi-
cers of the military, mostly captains who
had participated in the Colonial War