Prime Minister be increased, the planned general elections be put off until 1976, and instead an election for President be held immediately PHONY DEMOCRACY Their aim was to avoid an electian which would expose the extreme weakness of the capitalist parties, and reflect the immense popular support for the parties of the left (Socialist and Communi51).
At the same time they wanted to give the new regime a phony "demOctalio imago through a President-l election. This would have out-man oeuvred the Socialist and Communist Parties, who have given total and unchilical support to Premdent Spinchi and would therefore have been un able to put up any effective oppositjon.
However the young officers of the Armed Forces Movement were not yet prepared to accept such a deviation from their pledge to restore bourgeois democracy in Now one of their own number, Colonel Vasco Concalves (reported to be on the left of the Armed Forces Movement), has taken over as Prime Minister.
Underlying this claborate game of musical Governments is a simple reality: the coalition Government was and will be firmly commitled to al, while the country's basic problems - the colonial wars, the demands of the working class, the economic difficuities cannot be effectively tackled within this framework For this reason all the efforts of toe somanst and communs rares CON ('operation continental command"'), is ominous. Under the direcLion of one of the key leaders of the 25 April coup (recently promoted from major to general and appointed military Governor of Lisbon), this body is charged with ensuring the implementation of the programme of the Armed Forces Movement and with the coordination of security operations throughout Portugal. COPCON will have its own specially selecled troops and will be concerned with problems of "civil unrest"
COPCON is thus both a new attempt to build up an effective repressive force at the disposal of the ruling class, and u new centre for the political activity of the armed forces. If coallon Government hecomes unworkable, COPCON could become the basis for establishing direct and permate nt military rule Such a development would in no way be in the interests of the Portugue e workers and peasants - can only be hocked by immediate. mass political action The first step to thwart the ruling class's manocuvres with the coalition Government is by pressing forward the demand for immediate, democratit elections to a constituent assemblyThe only way to bar the road to a military tale over is through agitation and demonstrations against the colonial wars, and through the slimulation of democratically elected the maintenance of a capitalist Portug- soldiers and sailors committees.
Once again the Communist and Socialist Parties reveal their total bankruptcy by refusing to carry out such activities, and instead placing all their faith in the 'good will of the officers of the Armed Forces Movement, bique liberation movement told a meeting of representatives of leftwing organisations in London last Thursday.
then went on to explian how the decision to open a new military result we now have an armed force lude many who were armed by the Portuguese but have now joined which FRELIMO extravagant. But they were rapidly conJuly, the liberation forces captured the have lutherto boen confined to the country sac.
were not in London to proclaim victory trary, they were sent to Furope by the be used as a cover to perpetuate the ressive foroes in it. We are pleased to be able to tell you that on 1 July FRELIMO opened a new front in the province of Zambesia', two spokesmen of the MozamOscar Monteiro and Daniel Mbanze front bad only been taken after years of steady political preparation. Asa of 2,000 men in the area. These incTo some these claires may have seemed firmed in action. The very next day, 12 Jorcing the cacuation by air of the colonial administralors, This was the fiest such saccess in ten years for the guerrillas, who DANGER But Oscar Monteiro and Darlie Mbanze over Portugaese colonialism. On the condanger that democracy in Portugal could As Moanse explained: "The Portugues Government is still a colonialist Govern ment, ten a taere are acmoctowe, pral Unfor tonately, the Warning of dangers in new situation fact that there are anti-colonialist forces in the Government crales thie hitipression that the Government as a whole is anticolininist und this h3s lended to domot ilse pubbe opinion internafionally:"
One might also add that it is unfortunate - if anderstandable - that FRELINO apparently fails to grisp the real nature of these democratic, progresshe forces, and to understand that the Communist Pirty and way to say what the initials stand foc, in Sociatist Party will in the last resort always remain tied to the coat-ails of imperialisin But FRELIMO's determination to continue the armed strugglo until final victory -ceasetire hetore indenendence would have been a betrayal of the revolution, remarked Mhanze - holds out guad prospocts for revolutionary marxists in the struggle to remedy this weakness.
MANOEUVRES
Cortainly FRELEMO has proved mor: than capable of countering recent Portuguone manoeuvres to seaken the position of the liberation forocs: the attempt to buld up third force groups like GIMO: the FRELIMO guerrillas to attack civilian targets; the attempts to foster tribal divis dums and 'sclf-determinntion' to cloud the issue of independence; and finally which led up to last manch's abortive 'negotiations" at Lusaka in Zambia.
Oscar Monteiro also told of growing South African interference, aimed at creating a polarisation between blacks and whites and fostering a climate of racial war in which a declaration of UDI might stand some chance of success, He pointed out that must of the DGS (secret police agents had fled to South Africa after the Portugues coup, and were now working in a special unit with BOSS (the South African secret police)
It was these agents, he declared, who were behind a now while berrorist group called AMA which had atracked the Dem MULI TELEI grouping which support PRELIMO, AM was an attempt to repeal the OS experi ence in Algeria even refusing in the sam ECONOMIC FORCES Bat this should not, be warned, be used as an argument in Portugal for going Now on moves towards independence for the colonies. On the contrary, he pointed out, rapid independence for the colenies was mexencanty pound up with tre establishment of democracy in Portugal 'Fascism has been defeated, bur it has which usod fascism are still strong, they have not boen dismantled. These are the and It is they who will act as a rosers of power for the fascist foroes in Portugal There can beretore be na contrudic boc herween the fight against these forces for independenco in the colonies and the consolidation of democracy in Pornigal.
True enough; hut unfortunately the "democratic, progressive forces" ol' the Communist and Socialist parties sec things ratber differently indood, hav chosen to work hand-in-glove with the represcotatives of these capitalist econom ic foroes in the Portugucas Government. It is only the revolutionury forces in Portugal - Including our comrades of Ge LCI who have consistently raised and total independonce for the African MARTIN METEYARD