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Azores Liberation Front


The Azores Liberation Front, more commonly known as the FLA (Portuguese: Frente de Libertação dos Açores) was a right-wing terrorist paramilitary organization with the goal of forceful independence of the Azores, appearing right after the Carnation Revolution and whose actions included violent attacks in 1975.

Originally, it was founded by José de Almeida in London, on April 8, 1975, a former representative of the Acção Nacional Popular (English: Popular National Action Party) in the National Assembly, who modeled his actions on the Frente de Libertação do Arquipélago da Madeira (FLAMA). As Almeida would state:

In the beginning, the movement was primarily responsible for intimidation tactics, markedly hostile to groups or organizations counter to their own political sensibilities. Although it was supported by the local merchants and entrepreneurs on the island of São Miguel, fearful of the possible nationalization of businesses, the group was sociologically popular with the agrarian-classes on the island, having its origin in the seigneur system of inheritances that had existed in the archipelago during its settlement. There was some fear that the lean towards socialism on the continent would result in the loss of land rights and personal possessions in a presumed collectivization. As the Communists accumulated more power, fear of Portugal becoming a pro-Soviet puppet state started to grow and was nourished by the right-wing. Besides, the PREC (with its nationalization policies) became very unpopular among Azorean farmers and industrialists, mostly from São Miguel island who organized themselves to resist the "red danger".


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