The Portuguese Communist Party, the Nationalizations, worker’s control and the “battle of production”. Case study in the Portuguese revolution (1974-75)

Abstract

The Portuguese revolution began on April 25, 1974 following a military coup directed against the Salazar-Caetano regime and its colonial war and was defeated only 19 months later, again by a military coup on 25 November 1975. It was during the Portuguese revolution that the main sectors of the economy – banks, insurance and energy – were nationalized. In this article we?ll study the history of these nationalizations, the relation the Portuguese Communist Party had with them and above all whether they meant workers control over production and economic activity or, on the contrary, they were a means for the Portuguese bourgeoisie to subtract companies and factories to workers control and rescue them from financial collapse after the economic crisis?s impact.