Torres Novas paid tribute to political prisoners on the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution (w/audio)

The rally that began in Praça 5 de Outubro crossed the streets of the city of Torrejona this Thursday, in a celebration of freedom and the fight against fascism. The moment, which brought together dozens of people, culminated in Parque da Liberdade, next to the Monument to Freedom, where a tribute was paid to political prisoners born and resident in the municipality of Torres Novas.

For the Mayor, Pedro Ferreira, this was a moment of great relevance not only for the country, but also for the municipality over which he presides and which is marked by a high number of political prisoners, both natives and residents of Torres Novas. .

“Torres Novas, at a national level, has a very special characteristic in terms of political prisoners. At the level of the district of Santarém, it has always been a municipality with many factories and with many people who before the 25th of April did not feel well… the money was not enough for their children to study, there was also no great opportunity for them to settle here”, he explained. the aedile.

“The wave of immigration hit, especially to France, Canada, etc. Some poles were created, also linked to communities, of discontent, of anti-fascist organization and which culminated, until the 25th of April, with many political prisoners, some deaths already in prison and it was a very sad but glorious period in history of Torres Novas”, he considers.

Thus, within the scope of the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the Revolution, the municipality felt the “obligation” to carry out a “small great tribute” to all those “who have already left and to all those who gave their lives, even if they did not die as a result of fascism , but until the end of their lives, already very old, they never stopped fighting for the ideals of the 25th of April”, says the mayor.

The fight for freedom, according to Pedro Ferreira, cannot be forgotten, especially in a period “at a national and global level (…) when many bad things are happening”.

“We have the obligation, those who believed and believe in the spirit of April 25th, to be attentive and convey to young people that they have every right to be happy, always demanding it with decency, but with a sense of ennobling themselves as men and women and who have full rights. There are examples behind them that are as gratifying and exemplary as the ones we have just seen”, he highlighted.

Next to the Monument to Freedom, a mural was placed that includes the names of citizens or residents of Torres Novas, who were arrested for political reasons between 1926 and 1974. In honor of all of them, a bunch of carnations was placed, a symbolic element of the Revolution Of april.

“Already today, throughout the morning, we offered a lot of carnations to the population of Torres Novas and these, perhaps in a little while, won’t be there, go and get them… and the names that are there, maybe that’s exactly what they want, that the people are excited, that whoever looks at the monument, which is a beautiful monument of freedom, recognizes the effort of the oldest people”, said the mayor.

For Pedro Ferreira, it is important that each citizen, in their own way, is “awake, at home, in schools, in companies, in the City Council… we always have that little spark of genius and demand for things that are rightful that the 25th of April allowed , because they are absolutely necessary, whether in the field of health, in the field of social action, at all levels… even on a spiritual level, to feel better and more fulfilled as independent, which any human being should be”.

In order to mark the 50th anniversary of the Carnation Revolution, the official commemorations are part of a vast program of municipal activities, which will run until 2025 and which fit into the objectives and purpose of the celebrations, validated by the Executive Committee, made up of elements from the various parties and political movement with a seat in the Municipal Assembly of Torres Novas.

The mayor emphasizes that the 50th anniversary celebrations “will not end here”, so the program that “starts in 2025” includes “several activities, shows, a lot of connection to schools, so that the message remains very permanent”.