18
PRESENCE     A F K I C A I N E
•:
he adds, « history has always been familiar with convulsions8. »
Some people attribute these « convulsions »  to subversive and
incendiary winds  from outside.  This was done  by  Dr.   Salazar,
the  Head of the Portuguese  Government, in  one  of his recent
speeches.
But the reality is quite different. It must be said quite clearly that
economically and sociologically, the relations between Portugal and
the « Overseas Provinces » are of the colonial type. The « Provinces » remain « Colonies ».
And it was therefore impossible that the Portuguese colonies
themselves should not also begin to « stir ». The ideas and movements of political and social emancipation could not fail to come
to light in the territories under Portuguese  domination  as well
as elsewhere.
The Portuguese colonial system is challenged too.
This challenge to Portuguese colonialism is not solely due to
external influences, as the Portuguese authorities claim, but also
to internal forces. The interaction between these two currents
must nevertheless be emphasized, because Afro-Asiatic events of the
past few years have caused the outburst of anti-colonialist demonstrations in the Portuguese  colonies.
To illustrate this, we will merely recall the dockers' strike in
the port of Lourenc;o Marques in 19.01, following which the men
« designated » as agitators were interned in concentration camps;
the Saint Thomas Island affair, in 1953, known as the « Saint
Thomas Massacre » and recent events in Portuguese Guinea and
Angola.
But let us rather listen to the Delegate of the Union of the
Populations of Angola (U:P.A.) at the peoples' conference held at
Accra in December 1968; « Since its creation in 1904, the U.P.A.
has actively waged a constant war. In December 1955 the general
discontent of the people was expressed in public demonstrations
in which the North of the country systematically took a stand
against forced labour and other abuses. In February 1906 the
Portuguese authorities carried out mass imprisonments and deportations. Ambrosio Luyanzi, one of the leaders, was tortured, while
other patriots like Lello Figueira, Liborio, and Nefwane were interned in the concentration camp of Silva Porto (a town in Angola —
Author's note).
« Because of the veritable iron curtain separating Angola from
the rest of the world, it has been difficult to succeed in conducting
a systematic campaign on the international plane to denounce the
tragedy of Angola. Nevertheless, a mission from Ghana to Angola
• Pierre and Renee Gosset, Figaro,  a 1-2 a November 1957.
PORTUGAL  AND  THE  COLONIES   OF  ANGOLA  AND GUINEA
19
touched the hearts of the Angolese who interpreted this act as a
gesture of active solidarity. This visit from our Ghana brothers
provoked mass round-ups on the part of the Portuguese authorities as a result of which men, women and children were arrested. »
« Even to-day the population still does not know what has
become of the patriot leaders Julio Afonso Issaias Kamatuke,
Cunha, Alfredo Benga, Loureiro Joao Sequeria and their families9. »
It therefore seems that it is no longer possible to cast any doubt
on the existence of emancipation movements in the Portuguese
colonies. Though clandestine, they nevertheless conduct incessant
action for the liberation of the country.
Then how is it possible to explain these professions of faith
« unity and integrity of the nation, social peace, equality between
Angolans, Goans and Portuguese, etc... » too often repeated not to
conceal a lamentable truth ?
Only a profound study of the Portuguese colonial tradition, and
the political, social and economic structure of Portugal, the ideology
of the present Portuguese leaders and the economic and political
relations between Portugal and its colonies could explain them.
That obviously goes beyond the scope of this record.
We will confine ourselves to recalling that Portugal itself remains an under-developed country. Fascist dictatorship backed
by the unhappily celebrated P.I.D.E. (Political Police) and the
Army has reigned there for more than thirty years. It is with the
hacking of this structure that the Government pursues an obsolete
and outdated colonial policy which still feeds on the « greatness »
of the age of discovery.
The handful of concessions made by the Portuguese leaders are
no more than eye-wash for the benefit of world opinion, including
the change of name from « colonies » to « Overseas Provinces »
in 1961.
Professor Adriano Moreira, Director of the Higher Institue of
Overseas Studies, in his work « Politica-Ultramarina » p. 284,
commenting on this change of label, writes; « The international
problem was not absent from our minds when we discussed the
repeal of the Colonial Act and the integration of its provisions in
the constitutional enactment itself, which had so far limited itself
to specifying the constitutional nature of the provisions of the
Colonial   Act10.   »
In support of his wishes, Professor Adriano Moreira cites, among
others, the speech of the deputy, Miguel Baston in the debate in
• Speech  by  the U.P.A.   Delegate at the Peoples'  Congress,  Accra,   December
10 Published by the Overseas Research Department,  Lisbon.
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