The 47th edition of the Festa do Avante (Avante Festival), organized by the Communist Party of Portugal (PCP) and its youth wing, concluded on Sunday, September 3, at Atalaia, Seixal, with a massive rally of communist militants, other sections of the Portuguese working class, international delegates from progressive political parties, youth groups and trade unions. The central theme of this year’s 3-day festival, which started on September 1, was the 50th anniversary of the April Revolution or the Carnation Revolution of April 25, 1974, which brought down the authoritarian Estado Novo regime.
While addressing a rally on Sunday, PCP Secretary General Paulo Raimundo denounced the contradiction between the reality of the hard life of working people and the propaganda of the rich. “When the vast majority is the target of injustice and inequality and when the workers and the people become aware of the strength they have, the strength of their struggle, and the strength of their unity, then this will really change,” added Paulo Raimundo.
According to reports, the 47th Avante Festival featured more than 70 debates regarding various issues faced by the working class, the youth, and women, as well as on fascism, imperialism, international solidarity, peace, public health, agriculture, housing crisis, and the climate crisis. A number of musical concerts, film screenings, exhibitions, literary events, food festivals, and sports events also took place. Members of the PCP and Portuguese Communist Youth (JCP) actively volunteered over three days for the smooth conduct of the festival.
Since 1976, the PCP has been organizing the Festa do Avante named after the party’s publication Avante (Forward), which was first published in 1931.
