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EDITORIAL
Four hundred Portuguese soldiers dead, two aeroplanes downed, military
vehicles, store houses, administrative posts and bridges destroyed -
such is the balance of our military operations of the last few weeks.
The offensive capacity of our forces are more and more intense, soon
we will be in a position to extend our armed struggle to all parts
of Mozambique.  Our chances for victory are becoming more certain.
The knowledge of this state of affairs leads, in a direct line, objectively,
to this conclusion: the position of Portugal in Mozambique is irretrievably compromised.  A revolution is like a violent wind which constantly
grows in intensity and amplitude.   Five hundred soldiers have been
killed so far.  Our successes encourage our fighters.  In contrast,
the moral of the Portuguese troops is decreasing.  Our victories will
follow one another, as time goes on; the final victory is inevitable.
Is Portugal aware of this situation?  The heavy losses which she has
suffered, in men and materials, and the prospect of future defeats in
Guinea, Mozambique and Angola - will they force Portugal to reconsider
her position in respect of her colonial problem?
The most positive fact known to us in connection with this point is
illustrated in the newspaper "Gazette de Lausanne" of 15 December,1964.
A Reporter, Laslo Nagy, sent by this newspaper to Portugal, had
interviews with members of the Portuguese Government, among whom were
two Ministers.  Laslo Nagy relates that, in the course of conversations,
he was told that Salazar does not ignore that the colonial war threatened
the very existence of metropolitan Portugal, whose economic and social
structures are extremely fragile.  But in spite of all this, the
Portuguese political position remains unchanged*  The reporter of the
"Gazette de Luusannen called the attention of his listeners to the fact
that this intransigence might lead the Portuguese nation to suicide.
The answer which he was given also relates to the question which we
have posed above.  The answer was :  "All right, sir: let it be a suicidel"
The political position of Portugal might seem irrational; but it is understandable.  In examining the problem in all its implications, the
position of Portugal is, in large measure, logical and coherent.  In fact,
throughout the centuries Portugal depended on her colonial wealth for
her existence.  Today, more than ever, the colonies are of vital
importance to her.  To lose them, without altering the political,
economic and social structures of Portugal, will surely be catastrophic
for the Portuguese nation.  Here is the proofs-
Prom 1945 to 1962 the deficit in the balance of payments of Portugal was
79 million contos (£964 million),  From 1951 to 1962 the average annual
deficit in the balance of payments with foreign countries rose to 500