estic labour in the home.
of women into the international working class.
"What political group are you from?' *We're from the women's movement in England, and we've come to Portugal for the Week of Action organised by the MLM."
The response was usually a blank stare or an attack on the MLM.
*They re just bourgeois women -they're lesbians, of course I sympathise, but you can't expect the people to relate to them - they re divisive — there's no point in concentrating on abortion when we've got to defend the revolution. If the fascists get back into power there won't be any legal abortion any way first things first."
When the MLM held a demonstration in January to make public the many ways in which women consultation with the ror whatsoever as much because it is an influential political force as because it holds certain responsibilities in the Government."
As tor wnat response me working class should make, now that this 'right turn' was 'openly' underway, the PCP called for 'vigilance, firmness and calm on the part or me workers and the pop ular masses. in case anvone snould get the mistaken notion that this was an underhand call for any kind of action the PCP added: "It is also necessary to be extremely vigilant with regard to demagogy, adventurism and the violent initiatives of irresponsible ultra-left elements. In other words the PCP did noting.
While we're at it, let's take a look at some of the vet more rotten fruit born from comrade Fauvet's '14 calls'. Cunhal, in the speen quoted above, Turtner stated: "We firmly condemn, without any hesitation whatsoever, the provocation carried out against the Spanish EmDassy unis mornig. Well, comrade Fauvet. do vou also endorse this lickspittle attitude towards tne rascist dictatorsnip in Spain which your "14 calls have given rise to?
Nor is that the end of this particular scandal. In the same issue of the PCP.S paper Avante which published Cunhal's speech. an editorial argues: Counter-rev olution and oseudo-revorumonary orovocation have at their service mercenaries and foreign adventurers who establish them selves in Portugal without any control whatsoever. It is necessary to institute a strict contror or ne ure and activites ot toreigners resident in the national territory and expel from Portugal those who take part in whatever form in the disturbance of the democratic order (my emphasis).
well. comrade rauvet. do vou also subscribe to this lumping together of the revolutionary left and the far right? Do vou endorse police state supervision of foreign revolutionaries living in exile in Portugal? Are you in favour of their deportation - perhaps to the tender mercies of Franco's butchers in conpensation for 'the provocation carried out against the Spanish Embassy' (it is well known Inat a number or minants or PhAr are exued in rorrucal and were active in the demonstrations against the execution of their comrades? Do you still deny that this constitutes flagrant class collaboration? the magazine Spare Rib, describes a visit by a group of women to Portugal in August this year. It shows how little has been done to alleviate tne plight of women in Portuguese society today, despite tne advances made by the Portuguese revolution.
The MLM (Portuguese women's movement) is relatively new and weak, given the immense tasks of educating the working class on the need for women to be liberated in order that tney may play a positive role in the struggle for socialist revolution. This means organising the fight against all present restrictions on women's rights; for equal pay and opportunity; and for freely available social facilities to relieve the burden of domThe international movement has a big responsibility in giving all possible practical aid to the struggle of Portuguese women. Such a campaign not only helps the fight for socialism in Portugal, but helps to bring the struggle for the liberation in Portugal are oppressed, it was rereported in the press as a striptease and thousands of men turned up to mock and physically attack the women. Women were beaten, stripped and insulted, and the kids with them were attacked.
The situation of women in Portugal has been appalling. has the highest infant mortality rate in Europe. There are almost no free maternity and medical services - housing conditions are bad, only 20 per cent of dwellings have a kitchen, lavatory and bathroom.
There are almost no nursery provisions. Abortion is illegal and punishable by up to eight years' imprisWith men working as immigrant labour elsewhere in Europe and serving in the colonial army, large numbers of women had been taken into the industrial and agricultural labour force as low paid workers; although in theory there is now equal pay, this won't be easy to maintain the report in Republica that there every year in Portugal?
the wishes of the people ular power). When we know that tion we will make sure that this happens."
La vital force that can be won for the socialist revolution, IT It takes up the struggie for women s iberation tion. What did the AFM think about were still 150,000 illegal abortions •We are here to express and effect - this is the meaning of poder popular (popmany people want to legalise aborthem into practice. and stuck together against the men, suggesting that the men should take a turn in the kitchens and see if the work was so easy.
Ideas about medicine in the occupied clinic in Linave which provides free treatment, mainly to mothers and children - were the same as those we've developed in the women's movement here and they really seem to be putting The emphasis Portuguese cotton goods. Many of these factories are in small villages in ne naren-commated nortn o. Portugal, and if women are pushed out of work with no understanding of why this is happening their response is likely to be to join the for ces of reaction. This seems to be a clear example of a situation in which an explicitly feminist movement could play an important role CONTRADICTIONS The occupation of the Soganta. factory brings out many of the contradictions of the situation of Portuguese women. The MLM has been involved in helping the women at Sogantal, and during the week of action we saw the play the workers had made of their own struggle.
Sogantal was a French factory producing track suits. Over a year ago the boss tried to introduce speed ups and lay-offs, and when the women refused to co-operate he threa tened total redundancy and closure The women went on strike and pick eted the factory for several weeks.
One weekend the boss sent in 12 thugs, with alsations and guns who broke through the gates and tried to move the equipment out. Everyone in the village mobilised and the women took over the factory. They have continued to pro auce goods and at one ume wert selling clothes to their friends when other markets were blocked.
But now they are stuck - they need money to buy raw materials to continue production. If they were a co-operative they could get help from the State, but they can't legally form a co-operative without the consent of their husbands and fathers, and the men are refusing to sign.
PROPAGANDA The MLM has a real role to play in making sure that women recog nise the important part they are playing in the struggle and do not allow their demands to be seen as somehow secondary; this also involves women knowing that other women all over the country are engaged in similar struggles and facing similar problems. This could mean more intensive propaganda work at a national level or greater involvement at the base.
But it has to happen. As one woman in the MLM put it: 'If people don't see their everyday lives changing because of the revolution, they get discouraged by inflation and hardship. After 40 years of fascism they'll want to go back to having a Daddy figure to rely on. A factory occupation is important, but a woman sleeps with her husband every night and looks after the kids every day. Those are the things that have to be revolutionised for people to be lieve in and fight for the revolution