Demands for action against Salazar Museum

Almost 6,000 people have already signed a public petition for intervention by the Socialist Government to prevent the installation of a museum on the former dictatorship of the Estado Novo and its leader, Salazar, in Santa Comba Dão, Viseu.

in World · 23 Aug 2019, 01:00 · 5 Comments

The digital document was posted on the Internet this week and has ben signed by former union leader Carvalho da Silva, political analyst Pedro Adão e Silva, writer Maria Teresa Horta, former rector of the University of Lisbon José Barata Moura and the intervention singer Francisco Fanhais, among others.

The text “Museu de Salazar, não!” supports an open letter to the Prime Minister, António Costa, on 12 August, in which 204 former political prisoners demanded action from the PS executive, in addition to expressing “the most vehement repudiation”.

According to the petition, the Santa Comba Dão project would be “far from being aimed at enlightening the population and especially the younger generations” and would be “an instrument at the service of the bleaching of the fascist regime (1926 – 1974) and a centre for the nostalgia of the regime overthrown on 25 April.”

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Comments

What utter nonsense! Like any country, Portugal cannot deny its past, and Salazar was a large political figure of the last century. He cannot simply be airbrushed out of history. Opening a museum to a dictator is not the same thing as honouring him or validating his regime or policies, but is simply a display of what his regime entailed. It should be educating and informing us of this period of Portugal's history. Perhaps this is too much of a stretch of imagination for the small-minded people who are signing the petition.

By Billy Bissett from Porto on 23 Aug 2019, 13:27

His birthplace is a listed building, as his grave in the local cemetery. A street is named after him in the village ( Avenida Dr. António de Oliveira Salazar ), as well as the school complex Escola Cantina Salazar built in 1946, which is also a listed building since 1999. The public statue of him had it's head blown off in the 1974 "Carnation Revolution" and discussions on it's replacement are planned. This looks more like a celebration than an education.

By richard hick from Beiras on 23 Aug 2019, 19:09

Will Robert Mugabe be the guest of honour at the opening ceremony? What a ridiculous proposition to be spending time and money in memory of a tyrant.

By Victor Jose from Other on 24 Aug 2019, 10:22

How quaint, the english talking about another country's fascism while promoting brexit at the same time. Go home and fix your country

By Jose de Avila from Lisbon on 24 Aug 2019, 19:39

If you want to educate and memorise... you simpel start up an ANTI-FASCIST museum.... and tell the story of Salazars brutal and cruel dictatorship in which the oligarges got richer and richer and the ordinaire people were kept in medieval poverty and slavery, totaly depending on their master. Besides that Salazar was also one of the pillars of Hitler worldwar as he was the main food producer for the NAZI'S at the Costa of the ordinary Portugese.

By Rob Maatman from Alentejo on 25 Aug 2019, 00:00