Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa delivered this message at the closing of the seminar “25 de Novembro de 1975, 50 anos depois,” held at the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation in Lisbon, and reiterated it later to journalists, expressing regret over the postponement of a project for an Interpretative Center of April 25.
“Sometimes it’s stupid for such an old, persistent, and eternal country to not take good care of its history,” criticized the head of state, in his statements to the media on this matter.
According to the President of the Republic, “the atmosphere around the April 25 Commission started very intense in the early years, but then the political environment, the change of governments, and the shift in public opinion, more focused on other realities” led it to lose priority.
“Even in the previous administration, it became difficult to convene the National Commission, it ceased to be a priority for the government in office the National Commission of April 25. For a greater reason, as you can imagine, this trend did not change in the new government, and there the absence has been practically total – there was one meeting,” he noted in his speech.
Regarding the project for an “Interpretative Center of April 25, which is basically a mini-museum,” Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa stressed that its implementation is important, still “with the protagonists alive,” to explain the before and after and the various phases of the revolutionary process.
“I regret that it is not during my term, but the presidential term is not fatal. Fatal would be if my successor starts their term, carries out their term, and that project, which was important from the point of view of Portugal’s history, suddenly disappeared,” he added.
At the beginning of his speech at this seminar on November 25, the head of state addressed Maria Inácia Rezola, executive commissioner of the Mission Structure for the Celebrations of the 50th anniversary of April 25, and told her that “she has been performing her duties under not always easy conditions” and that “the life of this Commission has been an adventure.”
Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa noted that the structure set up for the celebrations includes “a National Commission, chaired by the President of the Republic, including the president of the Assembly, the prime minister, presidents of the Higher Courts, the president of the April 25 Association, who has been a fighter every day as well.”
“And then an Executive Commission, which is basically a commissioner who does a little of everything, assisted by the April 25 Association. And that’s how we lived,” he concluded.
According to the President of the Republic, “by the end of 2021, still from 2021 to 2022, the spirit of commemoration was felt, from 2022 to 2023 it was lost, from 2023 to 2024 it was dwindling.”
Concerning the period of PS governance, until halfway through last year, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa stated that, “having witnessed the birth of that commemoration,” he had “the unique experience of being a right-wing President doing more for it than the left could have done.”
In his opinion, later, with the “sharp turn to the right,” towards the current PSD/CDS-PP governance, “it’s natural that the narratives accompanied the speed of that turn,” and this was seen “in the April 25 Commemorative Commission,” more specifically “in the atmosphere surrounding the Commission.”
“Our professor Maria Inácia Rezola resisted all this, infinite patience. Colonel Vasco Lourenço, less infinite patience, protested and still protests weekly, monthly, semi-annually,” he commented.
“There are goals that were achieved at the so-called minimum possible, the center of Pontinha [Museological Center of the Armed Forces Movement Command Post], and others that we are fighting for, like the Interpretative Center,” he added.
[News updated at 23:59]
