Jeune Afrique 28th. October (Translated By Contact)
How does Salazar keep himself in power in spite of growing opposition in Portugal plus the enmity of the Afro-Asian countries and the United Nations? How is he able to continue his campaign of extermination in the Portuguese colonies? One can put the question in another way: what are the interests, what are the hidden forces which kecp him in power? There are, of course, the giant mining companies in the Rhodesias, in Katanga, in South Africa which give money to political groups (and governing Parties) with policitus of White domination for central Africa. But there are also certain foreign monopolies which derive considerable benifits from their activities in Portugol itself. One gets an idea of the influence of these monopolies by looking °+ the net profits of the large electricity companies in Portugal: in 1960, Hidro—ilectrica do Cavado made a proft of £1,175,637 on a capital investmont of £8,875,000 and the Gas and ‘jlectricity Company a profit of £884,312 on an investment of £1, 262,500.
Although the monoPlies, among them the American company Standard ‘ilictric, with offices in Lisbon, are making these enormous profits, Portugal itself is going through a serious economic and political crisis. The government has had to raise taxation by £12,500,000 a year to pay for the colonial war in Angola and preparations for war in Mocambique. To help relieve the economic pressure on his regime, Salazar is trying to enter the -uropean Common llarket together with Portugal's colonies. He has declared that he is propared to offer large concessions to foreign investors, provided they support his policies in Angola and the other colonies. Western participation in Portugel's efforts to maintain her territories overseas speak for themselves. A West - German consortium has financed, at a cost of £15,000,000, the mining of iron ore in Angola. The French are to establish an aluminium industry there. Americans are on the point of building a rubbor factory costing more than a million pounds. In order to keep its bases on Portuguese soil (in the Acores Islands), the American government has offered the Portuguese 55 million dollars, and a group of American banks a further 20 million.
The list can be added to indefinitely. But if the numerous foreign companies have an interest in the maintenance of the status quo in the Tortuguese colonies, it goes without saying that the Salazar government receives strong support too from the large Portuguese companies which derive considerable advantage from the pYesent position. Companies operating in Angola have paid large sums to the Portuguese government under a special tax to help finance the campaign against the freedom movement in the territory, and the Angola Diamond Compamy (Diamang), an affilato of de Beers, the South African divond empire, has lent the Portuguese government £1,500,C00. There is little doubt that without the sup, ort he is receiving from large companies and corporations with interests in Portugal and Angola, Salazar would not today b2 Prime Minister of Portugal.