The program for the upcoming commemorations is set to begin next Tuesday, November 25, with a military parade at Comercio Square in Lisbon at 9:00 a.m., stated General João Vieira Borges, one of the coordinators, during an interview.
This military parade will be presided over by the President of the Republic and Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, according to the general.
The Ministry of National Defense will also unveil a documentary featuring ten interviews with key participants of the November 25 events, utilizing archival footage from RTP.
The commission’s activities, announced by the Minister of Defense Nuno Melo in August and led by Lieutenant General Alípio Tomé Pinto, are expected to continue until May of the following year. Additional initiatives are planned, including a book about the November 25 events.
This book, scheduled for release in May, is being coordinated by General Vieira Borges, who notes that it will be “a different book” by incorporating testimonies from soldiers and sergeants involved in the military operation, rather than just generals, colonels, or other well-known personalities.
In addition to launching a podcast about these historical events, the commission will also hold several debate conferences “across the country” until May, with the first event taking place on the 27th in Madeira.
General Borges mentioned that on the 24th, an exhibition titled “April 25 to November 25” will open at the Maritime Museum in Lisbon.
“This exhibition, to be inaugurated by the Minister of Defense, was embraced by the commission as it had already been initiated by the Ministry’s General Secretariat,” he added.
Besides the commission’s activities, on the 25th, the Assembly of the Republic will host a formal session for the second time to mark the 50th anniversary of the military operation.
The Socialist Party will also have its own program, having declined participation in the government-established commission, criticizing it for attempting to “rewrite history” and downplay the “central role” of Mário Soares and the socialists.
The events of November 25, involving confrontations between opposing military forces and culminating in the victory of the moderate wing of the Armed Forces Movement (MFA), marked the end of the so-called Ongoing Revolutionary Process (PREC).
