Marques Mendes delivered a lecture today about November 25, 1975, to senior students at Queen D. Leonor School in Lisbon, just before the 50th-anniversary celebrations of this date, which have sparked political controversy regarding its equivalence to April 25.
The candidate used a football metaphor, which he admitted might be “a rough comparison,” but felt would help clarify his stance on the hierarchy of the two dates.
“When a football club wins a championship, it celebrates that victory, right? A week later, there’s the Portuguese Cup, and the winner celebrates too, but clearly, everyone understands that winning a championship is more significant than winning the cup,” he stated.
He opined that April 25 is “without a doubt” the more significant date, “the founder of the new democratic regime.”
“This is the major date; whoever doesn’t see it is engaging in some demagoguery,” he commented.
During the Q&A session with the students, the candidate was asked whether some people might commemorate November 25 to undermine April 25. He responded, acknowledging that “some right-leaning radicals” might intend this.
“These people have no grounds; history is what it is. April 25 is a unique date; none can contest its place. They are a minority, but they exist and are not being serious or honest with the people, society, or history,” he said.
Marques Mendes, who was 16 at the time of the Revolution, acknowledged there might have been “failures, misunderstandings,” or unfulfilled expectations, but emphasized that this date ushered in freedom, democracy, ended the colonial war, and allowed for the continuation of free elections.
“Now, I think we can also commemorate November 25; it was also significant, restoring the purity of April’s ideals, introducing moderation where there was radicalism, and preventing the country from sliding from a right-wing dictatorship to an extreme-left dictatorship,” he explained.
The candidate, supported by PSD and CDS-PP, was adamant in identifying the political victors of November 25: PS and Mário Soares, “the ones who most confronted the extremist forces.”
In the military realm, he highlighted General Ramalho Eanes, the strategist of November 25, who would become President of the Republic a year later.
Mendes called for “balance and common sense,” acknowledging different opinions on the relative importance of the two dates, but emphasized “we cannot rewrite history”: “There wouldn’t be November 25 without April 25,” he stressed.
Thus, in times when the two dates are often pitted against each other, Marques Mendes urged for “common sense, balance,” for everyone to stay informed, and for gratitude towards the politicians and soldiers responsible for both April 25 and November 25.
“Democracy is a space for tolerance. People can have different viewpoints; let’s respect the right to individual opinions, but there’s one thing that unites us all: whether more or less critical, April 25 gave us democracy, and November 25 ensured its consolidation,” he advocated.
The events of November 25, where opposing military forces clashed on the ground and the so-called moderate wing of the Armed Forces Movement (MFA) emerged victorious, marked the end of the so-called Ongoing Revolutionary Process (PREC).
Upon arriving at the school, Mendes was greeted by many students, with some even forming a line to take photos with the candidate for Belém. “My grandmother adores you,” one of the students remarked, as she made sure to give him a kiss.
