The ceremony, attended by the Socialist Party (PS) from the left-wing parties, began at 08:57 with the National Anthem played by the Air Force Band and a 21-gun salute executed from the Portuguese Navy Ship (NRP) Figueira da Foz, stationed in the Tagus River.
Among left-wing parties, only the PS was present; the rest indicated they did not intend to participate in the parade, criticizing the celebrations organized by the Government, which they considered a historical distortion that diminishes April 25.
The President of the Republic, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, who presided over the parade, reviewed the troops in formation in the square’s center, composed of the three branches of the Armed Forces, before attending a ceremony honoring those killed in action, which included a flyover by four F-16 fighters and a minute of silence.
Attending the ceremony were Prime Minister Luís Montenegro, the President of the Assembly of the Republic, José Pedro Aguiar-Branco, and various government officials, including the Ministers of Defense, Finance, Internal Administration, Justice, Health, and Agriculture and Fisheries.
In a speech at this military parade, Lieutenant-General Alípio Tomé Pinto, who leads the government commission for the 50th-anniversary celebrations of November 25, addressed the controversy by emphasizing that this date “has been forgotten, contested by a few, but remembered by many with joy and recognition for bringing to fruition the promised objectives of April 25.”
The lieutenant-general noted that after March 11, 1975, “a worrying path was taken,” leading to “social indiscipline, fear, nationalizations,” the “occupation of companies and homes,” or people fleeing.
Alípio Tomé Pinto stated that, with November 25, the path to a European parliamentary democracy was restored, creating conditions for joining the European Economic Community (EEC) and successfully “normalizing economic and financial life,” “ensuring the autonomous policy of the island regions,” and “stabilizing the Armed Forces.”
“April 25 and November 25 do not belong to anyone; they belong to the people who, in a free and secure vote, elected their representatives and assigned them the responsibility to create conditions of security and confidence to safeguard constitutional rights, freedoms, and guarantees,” he stated.
Following these speeches, the parade displayed aerial and motorized units, before concluding shortly before 10:00.
