Background Notes: Portugal
PA/PC
Source: Office of Public Communication, Bureau of Public
Affairs
Date: May 15, 19905/15/90
Category: Country Data
Region: Europe
Country: Portugal
Subject: Cultural Exchange, Resource Management,
Military Affairs, History, Trade/Economics,
International Organizations, Development/Relief Aid
[TEXT]
Official Name: Republic of Portugal
PROFILE
Geography
Area: 94,276 sq. km. (36,390 sq. mi.), including the Azores and
Madeira Islands; about the size of Indiana. Cities: Capital-Lisbon
(pop. 2.1 million in the metropolitan district). Other city-Oporto
(1.7 million in metropolitan district). Terrain: Mountainous in the
north; rolling in central south. Climate: Maritime temperate.
People
Nationality: Noun and adjective-Portuguese (sing. and pl.)
Population (1989): 10.3 million. Annual growth rate (1989): 3%.
Ethnic groups: Homogeneous Mediterranean stock with small black
African minority. Religion: Roman Catholic 97%. Language:
Portuguese. Education: Years compulsory- 6. Attendance-60%..
Literacy (1985)-83.3%. Health: Infant mortality rate (1987)-
14.2/1,000. Life expectancy (1985)-73 yrs. Work force (4.7 million,
1989): Agriculture-19%. Industry-35%. Government, commerce,
and services-46%.
Government
Type: Parliamentary democracy. Constitution: Entered into effect
April 25, 1976; revised October 30, 1982 and June 1, 1989.
Branches: Executive-president (chief of state), Council of State
(presidential advisory body), prime minister (head of government),
Council of Ministers. Legislative-unicameral Assembly of the
Republic (between 230 and 235 deputies). Judicial- Supreme Court,
district courts, appeals courts, Constitutional Tribunal. Major
political parties: Social Democratic Party (PSD), Socialist Party
(PS), Portuguese Communist Party (PCP), Center Social Democratic
Party (CDS), Democratic Renewal Party (PRD), Popular Monarchist
Party (PPM). Suffrage: Universal over 18. Subdivisions: 18
districts, 2 autonomous regions, and 1 dependency. Central
government budget (1990): $23.2 billion (expenditures). Defense
(1990): 2.2% of GDP. Flag: A vertically divided field-one-third
green along the staff, two-thirds red; centered on the dividing line
is the Portuguese coat of arms encircled in gold.
Economy
GDP (1989): $45 billion. Annual growth rate (1989): 5. 4%. Per
capita GDP (1989): $4,363. Avg. inflation rate (1989): 12.6%.
Natural resources: Fish, cork, tungsten, iron, copper, tin and
uranium ores. Production (percentages of 1988 total gross value
added): Agriculture, forestry, fisheries (7%). Industry (44% of GDP):
Types-textiles, clothing, footwear (9%); construction (7%); food,
beverages, tobacco (6%). Services (49%): Main branches-commerce
(20%), government and nonmarketable services (15%), housing and
other marketable services (10%), banking and finance (8%). Trade
(1989): Exports- $12.7 billion: clothing, footware, electrical
machinery and appliances, automobiles. Imports-$18.9 billion:
electrical and nonelectrical machinery, automobiles, fuel,
apppliances. Partners-European Community, US, European Free Trade
Association (EFTA). Official exchange rate (May 1990): 149
escudos=US$1.
Membership in International Organizations
UN and its specialized agencies, Council of Europe, North Atlantic
Treaty Organization (NATO), European Community (EC), Western
European Union (WEU), Organization for Economic Cooperation and
Development (OECD), International Energy Agency (IEA), INTELSAT,
African Development Bank (ADB), African Development Fund (ADF),
Coordinating Committee for Multi-Lateral Export Controls (COCOM).
GEOGRAPHY
Portugal is made up of the mainland and the Azores and
Madeira Islands. Mainland Portugal is divided into two distinct
topographical and climatic regions by the Tagus River, which flows
into the Atlantic at Lisbon. North of the Tagus, Portugal is
mountainous, with a rainy, moderately cool climate; the south has
rolling plains, less rainfall, and a warm climate, particularly in the
interior.
The Azores consist of nine rugged, mountainous islands (2,300
sq. km.-888 sq. mi.) of volcanic origin lying 1,300 kilometers (about
800 mi.) west of Lisbon. Their climate is moist and moderate. The
regional capital is Ponta Delgada (pop. 35,000) on Sao Miguel Island.
The Madeira Islands, located about 560 kilometers (350 mi.)
west of Morocco, are more rugged than the Azores. The archipelago
consists of two main islands and many uninhabited islets (790 sq.
km.-305 sq. mi.). Mild year-round temperatures attract many
tourists.Macau, on the southern coast of China, is an autonomous
entity under Portuguese administration. In April 1987, Portugal and
China signed an accord to return Macau to Chinese administration in
1999. The former overseas territory of Goa, on the west coast of
the Indian subcontinent, was annexed by India in December 1961.
The former colony of Portuguese Timor, the eastern half of Timor
Island in the Indian Ocean north of Australia, was annexed by
Indonesia in July 1976. Portugal's former overseas territories in
Africa-including Angola, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique,
and Sao Tome and Principe-achieved independence between 1974
and 1975.
PEOPLE
Portugal's earliest recorded inhabitants-members of an Ibero-
Celtic tribe known to Imperial Rome as the Lusitani and first
mentioned in the second century B.C.-have mixed with Germanic,
Celtic, Roman, Arabic, and African peoples to form today's
relatively homogeneous Portuguese population. Portuguese citizens
of black African descent, who emigrated to Portugal after
decolonization of Portugal's African territories, make up the
country's only significant and distinct minority group but probably
number fewer than 100,000.
Portuguese Culture Luis Vaz de Camoes (1524-80) is the most
famous poet to have written in Portuguese and is a Portuguese
national hero. His best-known work, The Lusiads, is an epic poem in
10 cantos about Vasco da Gama's discovery of a sea route to India in
1497-98.
The Portuguese concept of saudade-nostalgia mixed with a
melancholy acceptance of fate-finds its clearest expression in the
songs of fado, heard most often in restaurants in Lisbon's older
districts, such as the Alfama.
Portugal has many ancient and medieval monuments and
buildings, that include the Pena and Sintra palaces; the ex-royal
residence of Queluz; the walled city of Obidos; the cathedrals at
Batalha and Alcobaca; the castle of Sao Jorge in Lisbon; Roman
temple ruins in Evora; and the castle of Afonso Henriques in
Guimaraes, near Oporto, where the Portuguese nation was founded.
HISTORY
Portugal is one of the oldest states in Europe. It traces its
modern history to A.D. 1140 when, following a 9-year rebellion
against the King of Leon-Castile, Afonso Henriques, the Count of
Portugal, became the country's first king, Afonso I. Afonso and his
successors expanded their territory southward, capturing Lisbon
from the Moors in 1147. The approximate present-day boundaries
were secured in 1249 by Afonso III.
By 1337, Portuguese explorers had reached the Canary Islands.
Inspired by Prince Henry the Navigator (1394-1460), explorers such
as Vasco da Gama, Bartolomeu Dias, and Pedro Alvares Cabral made
explorations from Brazil to India and Japan. Portugal eventually
became a massive colonial empire with vast territories in Africa
and Latin America (Brazil) and outposts in the Far East (East Timor,
Macau, Goa).
Dynastic disputes led in 1580 to the succession of Philip II of
Spain to the Portuguese throne. A revolt ended Spanish hegemony in
1640, and the House of Braganca was established as Portugal's
ruling family, lasting until the establishment of the Portuguese
Republic in 1910.
During the next 16 years, intense political rivalries and
economic instability undermined newly established democratic
institutions. Responding to pressing economic problems, a military
government, which had taken power in 1926, named a prominent
university economist, Dr. Antonio Salazar finance minister in 1928,
and prime minister in 1932. For the next 42 years, Salazar and his
successor, Marcelo Caetano, appointed prime minister in 1968,
ruled Portugal as an authoritarian "corporate" state. Unlike most
other European countries, Portugal did not play a combatant role in
World War II. It was a charter member of NATO, joining in 1949.
In the early 1960s, wars with independence movements in
Portugal's African territories began to drain labor and wealth from
Portugal. Professional dissatisfaction within the military, coupled
with a growing sense of the futility of the African conflicts, led to
the formation of the clandestine "Armed Forces Movement" in 1973.
The downfall of the Portuguese corporate state came on April
25, 1974, when the Armed Forces Movement seized power in a
nearly bloodless coup and established a provisional military
government.
Gen. Antonio de Spinola was installed as president after the
coup but resigned in September 1974 to protest the growing power
exercised by communist and leftist forces. He was replaced by
another general, Francisco da Costa Gomes, who retained a
procommunist, Gen. Vasco dos Santos Goncalves, as prime minister.
On March 11, 1975, a rebellion by rightist military officers failed,
and former President Spinola fled the country.
On April 25 (now Portugal's national day), the first
anniversary of the 1974 coup, Portuguese voters chose a
Constituent Assembly to draft a constitution. The vote gave an
overwhelming majority of 72% to candidates of three democratic
political parties: the Socialists (PS), Popular Democrats (which
later changed its name to Social Democrats-PSD), and Center Social
Democrats (CDS).
The communists and their allies in the Armed Forces
Movement attempted to play down their relative lack of popular
support (the Communist Party won only 12.5% of the vote) by
tightening their hold on the provisional government and by seeking
to diminish sharply the role of political parties.
Goncalves resigned under mounting civilian and military
pressure, and a new provisional government (the sixth since April
1974) took office in September 1975, led by Adm. Jose Pinheiro de
Azevedo.
The political tug-of-war continued until November 25, when
left-wing military elements seized control of several strategic
military bases, only to surrender peacefully the next day after a
determined show of force by loyal units under the direction of Lt.
Col. Antonio Ramalho Eanes.
Portugal's new constitution took effect on April 25, 1976,
when elections for a parliamentary Assembly of the Republic also
were held. In June, Eanes was elected president with 62% of the
vote after gaining the support of the three major democratic
parties. He chose Mario Soares, whose Socialist Party had won a
plurality in the parliamentary elections, to serve as prime minister
of Portugal's first democratic government since the 1920s.
Soares' minority socialist government fell in December 1977
and was followed by a succession of short-lived coalition and
minority governments. In the July 1987 parliamentary elections,
PSD leader Cavaco Silva led his party to a stunning victory,
resulting in the first absolute majority for a single party. The PSD
received a slight majority (just over 50%) of the popular vote but
won 148 of the then-250 seats in parliament. Mario Soares, who
had been elected president in February 1986, consequently invited
Prime Minister Cavaco Silva to form a government, the first that
appeared likely to complete its 4-year term since the 1974
revolution.
Since entering office, the Cavaco Silva government has
implemented economic and social reforms intended to put Portugal
on a more competitive footing with its European partners. The
government and the Socialist Party also cooperated in the assembly
to eliminate Marxist rhetoric from the constitution and to pave the
way for full privatization of public sector enterprises. In the June
18, 1989, European Parliamentary elections, the ruling Social
Democratic Party won 32.5% of the vote (vice 37% in 1987). The
socialists increased their vote to 28.5%. Nearly half of the
registered voters stayed away from the polls.
GOVERNMENT
The April 25, 1976, constitution defined Portugal as a
"Republic....engaged in the formation of a classless society." The
1976 constitution was revised in 1982, and again in 1989. The
1982 revision placed the military under strict civilian control,
trimmed the powers of the president, and abolished the
Revolutionary Council (a non-elected committee with legislative
veto powers). The 1989 revision eliminated much of the remaining
Marxist rhetoric of the original document, abolished the
communist-inspired "agrarian reform," and laid the groundwork for
further privatization of nationalized firms and government-owned
communications media.
The four main organs of national government are the
presidency, the prime minister and Council of Ministers (the
government), the Assembly of the Republic (parliament), and the
courts.
The president, elected to a 5-year term by direct, universal
suffrage, also is commander in chief of the armed forces.
Presidential powers include appointing the prime minister and
Council of Ministers (in which the president must be guided by the
assembly election results), dismissal of the prime minister,
dissolution of the assembly to call early elections, veto over
legislation (which may be overridden by the assembly), and the
declaration of states of war or siege.
The Council of State, an advisory body to the president, is
composed of the incumbents of six senior civilian offices, any
former presidents elected under the 1976 constitution, five
members chosen by the assembly, and five chosen by the president
himself.
The government is headed by the presidentially appointed
prime minister, who names the Council of Ministers, subject to
presidential approval. A new government is required to define the
broad outline of its policy in a program and present it to the
assembly for a mandatory period of debate. Failure of the assembly
to reject the program by a majority of deputies confirms the
government in office.
The Assembly of the Republic is a unicameral body, composed
of between 230 and 235 deputies elected by direct universal
suffrage according to a system of proportional representation. The
term of office for deputies is 4 years, unless the president
dissolves the assembly and calls for new elections.
The constitution provides for district and appeals courts. The
national Supreme Court is the court of last instance. Military,
administrative, and fiscal courts are designated as separate court
categories. The constitution also provides for a nine-member
Constitutional Tribunal to review the constitutionality of
legislation.
The constitution gives substantial autonomy to the locally
elected governments of the Azores and Madeira Islands. A regional
autonomy statute for the Azores, establishing the Government of
the Autonomous Region of the Azores, was promulgated July 25,
1980, and amended in 1987. The Government of the Autonomous
Region of Madeira operates under a provisional autonomy statute in
effect since 1976.
Finally, the constitution provides for the progressive
decentralization of administration, calling for future
reorganization on a regional basis. Apart from the Azores and
Madeira, the country is currently divided into 18 districts, each
headed by a governor appointed by the Minister of Internal
Administration.
Principal Government Officials
President of the Portuguese Republic-Mario Soares
Prime Minister-Anibal Cavaco Silva
Ministers: Defense Minister and the Presidency of the Council
of State-Fernando Nogueira
Minister of Foreign Affairs-Joao de Deus Pinheiro
Minister of Interior-Manuel Pereira
Minister of Justice- Laborinho Lucio
Minister of Finance-Joaquim Ferreira do Amaral
Armed Forces Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces- Gen.
Antonio da Silva Osorio Soares Carneiro
Service Chiefs of Staff-Gen. Mario Firmino Miguel (Army),
Adm. Manuel da Cunha Esteves de Andrade e Silva (Navy),
Gen. Tomas George Conceicao Silva (Air Force)
Ambassador to the United States-Joao Pereira Bastos
Portugal maintains an embassy in the United States at 2125
Kalorama Road NW., Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-328-8610);
Consulates General in New York City, Boston, and San Francisco;
Consulates in Providence, RI; Newark, NJ; and New Bedford, Mass.;
and Honorary Consulates in Honolulu, Los Angeles, Houston, New
Orleans, Chicago, Philadelphia, Miami, Puerto Rico, and Waterbury,
Conn. The Portuguese National Tourist Office in the United States
is located at 548 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10036 (tel: 212-354-
4403).
ECONOMY
The Portuguese economy has made impressive economic gains
both since the tumultous post-1974 revolutionary period and since
the recessionary period of 1983-84. In 1989, GDP grew by 4.5%
(over 1988), exports by 14%, gross investment by 28%, and
unemployment fell to 6.7%. Foreign investment in Portugal has
grown at an annual rate of 50% since 1984, reaching $1.2 billion in
1989. This occurred because the majority government has pursued a
comprehensive plan of structural economic reform with objectives
to:
-- Promote investment-led growth;
-- Modernize industry and agriculture;
-- Privatize most state-owned enterprises;
-- Reduce the public sector deficit; and,
-- Hold down inflation.
The most ambitious element of the plan has been to privatize
firms that were nationalized in 1974-75. In 1988, the government
began the partial privatization (49% of the shares) of two
enterprises, the country's largest brewery and a mid-sized bank.
Both share offerings were several times oversubscribed. Future
partial privatizations, including another brewery, a cement
company, and other financial and insurance institutions, including
the country's largest commercial bank, are planned. The major
obstacle to majority privatization of state enterprises was
overcome by the June 1989 revision of the constitution that
removed restrictions on private ownership in industry.
Portuguese economic structure has changed dramatically
since the 1974 revolution. Finance and commercial relations with
the former colonies are less important, and the large industrial-
financial groups that once controlled much of the economy have
been dismantled. Since 1960, the proportion of the labor force
engaged in agriculture has dropped from 42% to 19%. Agricultural
production now contributes only 7% of the country's GDP. Portugal
imports a substantial share of its food and animal feed.
Industrial employment has risen from 21% to 35% of the labor
force since 1960. Industry contributes 44% of the GDP. Major
products are textiles, clothing, cork products, electronic equipment,
machinery, steel, woodpulp and paper, cement, tomato paste, canned
seafood, olive oil, assembled automobiles, and refined petroleum
and chemical products. Portugal also has large shipbuilding and
repair yards. Tourism has expanded and now accounts for more than
5% of GDP.
The volume of foreign trade has increased from $873 million
in 1960 to $31.6 billion in 1989, with imports of $18.9 billion and
exports of $12.7 billion. Portugal's main trading partners are
Western Europe (EC countries now account for nearly 70% of all
Portuguese trade) and the United States.
Since 1979, Portuguese governments have sought to expand
the scope for private investment in the economy. The 1982
constitutional revision modified many of the socialist features of
the 1976 constitution and set the stage for legislation that opened
up several sectors, including banking, to private enterprise. In
1984, six foreign banks (including three from the United States) and
four Portuguese private banks began operations. Portugal's foreign
investment legislation, liberalized considerably in 1986,
streamlined the approval process. Investment proposals from EC
countries and, in practice, those from other countries, generally are
approved on a pro-forma basis by the Portuguese Government's
Office of Foreign Investment Services of the Foreign Trade
Institute.
Inflation continued to rise in 1988-89, forcing the
government to raise its inflation target for 1989.
A plan to restrict consumer credit, increase bank reserves,
and reduce credit ceilings was imposed in March 1989 to deal with
the inflation problem. Nevertheless, inflation by the end of 1989
reached 12%.
The Portuguese current account balance has gone from a
modest surplus of $200 million in 1987 to a deficit of $650 million.
The March 1989 plan to curb inflation may have a mitigating effect
on the current account imbalance since consumer purchases have
accounted for most of Portugal's imports: up 15% in 1989. The
imbalance is partially offset by substantial capital inflows that
should lead to greater productivity in coming years.
The public sector deficit has fallen from 12% of GDP in 1985
to 7% in 1989. The government continues efforts to pare
employment roles and streamline programs. Further reductions may
prove more difficult, but the government expects the sale of shares
in state enterprises to reduce the debt service on behalf of these
ailing businesses and to generate revenues sufficient to retire
government debt.
Portugal joined the European Community (EC) in January 1986.
Transition periods to bring Portuguese agricultural prices and
tariffs in line with those of other EC countries and to liberalize
capital movements generally will continue through the mid-1990s.
EC structural adjustment assistance- about $650 million, net of
Portuguese contributions in 1988-and future flows will help the
Portuguese Government modernize its industry and agriculture.
Portugal's entry into the EC and the concomitant obligations to open
its markets and compete freely with its EC partners by the 1992
Single Market have been the primary stimulus for many of the
recent reforms and will continue to influence much of Portuguese
economic policy and business strategy.
Labor unions-before the revolution mainly instruments of
government policy-have become active, independent agents. Two
major labor confederations have emerged. The oldest, the General
Confederation of Portuguese Workers (CGTP-Intersindical), is
communist controlled. In January 1979, the General Union of
Workers (UGT) was formed as the democratic alternative. The UGT
has become a major force in the Portuguese labor movement and has
gained international respect.
FOREIGN RELATIONS
Portugal's foreign policy reflects the country's geographic,
cultural, and historic roots in the Western community and the
determination of the post-1974 elected governments to reinforce
those bonds and the democratic values they help sustain. The
government took a major step in that direction by formally entering
the European Community in January 1986. A charter member of
NATO, Portugal seeks to modernize its armed forces to play an
enhanced role in alliance defense.
Five proud centuries of exploration have bequeathed to
Portugal a significant legacy of ties with Africa, the Western
Hemisphere, and Asia. Since granting independence to the former
overseas territories of Angola, Mozambique, Cape Verde, Guinea-
Bissau, and Sao Tome and Principe, the Portuguese Government has
made major efforts to maintain and strengthen diplomatic,
economic, and assistance relationships with those nations. In
recent years, Portugal also has sought to broaden diplomatic
contacts with moderate Arab states in order to lay the basis for
expanded economic and commercial relations. Portugal maintains
relations with Israel at the ambassadorial level.
Following the 1974 revolution, Portugal opened relations with
the Soviet Union and East European communist regimes. Trade and
cultural exchanges, however, remain at a low level. As a NATO and
EC member, Portugal approaches East-West issues in the framework
of its own strong political, economic, and military ties to Western
Europe.
Portugal continues to administer the overseas territory of
Macau, near Hong Kong. Portugal and China concluded an agreement
on April 13, 1987, to return the territory to Chinese rule in 1999.
Portugal and Indonesia broke relations on December 7, 1975,
because of a dispute over the status of Portuguese East Timor.
Indonesia then annexed East Timor in July 1976. Portugal does not
recognize the annexation as an act of self-determination by the
East Timorese and has contested the Indonesian action in
international forums. In 1982, the UN General Assembly asked the
UN Secretary General to consult with both governments in an effort
to resolve the issue; both countries subsequently have held
discussions under the auspices of the Secretary General.
More than 2 million Portuguese reside in Europe, Africa, and
the Western Hemisphere as permanent emigrants or-particularly in
the case of Western Europe-as temporary workers. Through cultural
and educational programs as well as diplomatic efforts, Portugal
seeks to maintain ties to these emigrant communities and to
support efforts by emigrant workers to secure adequate social
benefits from their host countries.
US-PORTUGUESE RELATIONS
Bilateral ties date from the earliest years of the United
States. On February 21, 1791, President George Washington opened
formal diplomatic relations between the two countries, naming Col.
David Humphreys as US Minister. Portugal's history of looking
toward the Atlantic, rather than toward continental Europe, and the
US position as an Atlantic power, have long brought the two nations
into close contact. Emigration has furthered this relationship, and
sizable Portuguese communities in the United States represent a
strong cultural bond.
The United States encourages a stable and democratic
Portugal that is closely associated with the industrial democracies
of Western Europe and NATO. Portugal's nearly bloodless transition
from authoritarian rule to constitutional democracy during 1974-
76, the exclusion of communists from its parliamentary
governments, and its excellent human rights record demonstrate the
commitment of the Portuguese to democratic values. The United
States has supported Portugal's successful entry into the West
European economic and defense mainstream.
US Economic and Developmental Aid
Since 1975, US economic assistance to Portugal managed by
the Agency for International Development (AID) has totaled $1.2
billion, including refugee and disaster assistance, agriculture,
schools and rural education, health, low income housing and Housing
Guaranties, basic sanitation, consultants and training, balance of
payments loans, PL 480 loans and Economic Support Funds (ESF)
cash transfers.
In fiscal year 1989, the program included disbursement of $50
million in ESF and $25 million in previously authorized low-income
Housing Guaranty loans, as well as authorization of an additional
$25 million in new Housing Guaranties. In addition, the
USAID/Lisbon manages grants funded in previous years for technical
consultants and training and supports trilateral cooperation with
Portugal on assistance to some African countries. The last of the
project activities directly managed by USAID/Lisbon will be
completed in December 1989.
The Government of Portugal has used ESF support, in part, to
build the endowment of the Luso-American Development Foundation
to promote and support enduring professional and institutional
linkages with the United States in education, science and
technology, private sector development, culture, public
administration, and regional development. Since 1985, the
foundation has received $110 million and through 1988 had made
grants, loans, and equity investments in nearly 600 development
projects.
DEFENSE
US-Portuguese defense cooperation traditionally has been
excellent. Under the 1951 bilateral defense agreement and
subsequent technical agreements, US Armed Forces enjoy access to
the Portuguese Air Base at Lajes in the Azores. The United States,
together with other NATO allies, also provides security assistance
to Portugal. This includes modern equipment and training to support
increased Portuguese participation in NATO defense.
In addition to US use of facilities at Lajes Air Base, Portugal
also has agreed in principle to accept a US satellite observation
station in southern Portugal.
Principal US Officials
Ambassador-Everett E. Briggs
Deputy Chief of Mission-John W. Penfold
Political Affairs-Jeffrey Millington
Economic Affairs-David Norman Miller
Consular Affairs-Arturo Macias
Administrative Affairs-Thomas Widenhouse
Public Affairs (USIS)-Gail Gulliksen
Commercial Affairs-Carlos F. Poza
Agricultural Affairs-Daniel Berman
Agency for International Development- David C. Leibson
Military Attaches Defense and Air-Col.Van C. Sanders Army-
Col. Robert G. Hasty Navy-Capt. Richard J. Burns Military
Advisory Assistance Group (MAAG) Chief-Col. Robert A. Young
Consuls Oporto- Herbert Yarvin
Ponta Delgada-Mahlon Henderson
The US Embassy is located at Avenida Forcas Armadas, Lisbon
1600 (tel. 7266600). The Oporto consulate is located at Rua Julio
Dinis 826, 3d Floor, Oporto 4000 (tel. 63094). The Ponta Delgada
Consulate is at Avenida Infante D. Henrique, Ponta Delgada, Sao
Miguel, Azores 9502 (tel. 22216). The consular agent in Funchal,
Madeira is Antonio Drummond Borges (tel. 47429).
TRAVEL NOTES
Entry requirements: A visa is not required of US citizens for
stays of up to 60 days, but a valid passport is necessary.
Immunizations are not mandatory. Travelers may import or export
foreign currency in any amount, provided it is for "touristic
purposes." No more than 5,000 Portuguese escudos per traveler may
be imported into Portugal, although up to 25,000 escudos may be
exported.
Climate and clothing: Wear summer clothing during the
temperate sunny days and cool nights May-September. Fall-weight
clothing and a topcoat or warm raincoat are appropriate for winter.
A rainhat or umbrella is recommended. Health: Health and
sanitation standards generally are good. Tapwater is potable year
round in large cities and in outlying areas during rainy seasons.
Bottled spring water is available.
Telecommunications: Telephone and telegraph circuits are
available to Western Europe and to almost all other points
worldwide. Lisbon is five time zones ahead of eastern standard
time. AT∧T card services are available through Marconi Operators.
AT∧T cards can only be used for calls to the United States.
Transportation: Direct flights are available from the United
States, and worldwide connections are good. Domestic air services
fly to Oporto in the north, Faro in the Algarve, and to several other
provincial cities. Railroads and buses serve the entire country.
Lisbon has good, inexpensive taxi, bus, streetcar, and subway
service.
National holidays: The US Embassy and Consulates are closed
on the following holidays: January l (New Year's), February 7
(Carnival), March 24 (Good Friday), April 25 (Liberty Day), May l
(Labor Day), May 25 (Corpus Christi), June l0 (Portugal Day), June l3
(St. Anthony's Day-only in Lisbon), August l5 (Assumption Day),
October 5 (Portuguese Republic), November l (All Saint's Day),
December l (Portuguese Independence), December 8 (Immaculate
Conception), December 25 (Christmas Day).
Further Information
These titles are provided as a general indication of the
material published on this country. The Department of State does
not endorse unofficial publications.
Buneau, Thomas C. Politics and Nationhood: Post-
Revolutionary Portugal. New York: Praeger, 1984.
de Macedo, Jorge, and Simon Sarfaty, eds. Portugal Since The
Revolution: Economic and Political Perspectives. Boulder,
Colo.: Westview Press, 1981.
Gallagher, Tom. Portugal: A Twentieth-Century Interpretation.
Dover, N.H.: Manchester University Press, 1982.
Graham, Lawrence F., and Harry M. Makler, eds. Contemporary
Portugal: The Revolution and its Antecedents. Austin:
University of Texas Press, 1979.
Graham, Lawrence F., and Douglas L. Wheeler, eds. In Search of
Modern Portugal: The Revolution and its Consequences.
Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1983.
Kay, Hugh. Salazar and Modern Portugal. New York: Hawthorn
Books, 1970.
Marques, A. H. de Oliveira. History of Portugal. New York:
Columbia University Press, 1972.
Payne, Stanley G. A History of Spain and Portugal. 2 vols.
Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1972.
Porch, Douglas. The Portuguese Armed Forces and the
Revolution. Stanford, Calif.: Hoover Institution Press, 1977.
Robinson, Richard Allen H. Contemporary Portugal. Boston:
Allen and Unwin, Inc., 1979.
Available from the Superintendent of Documents, US
Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402: US Department
of Labor. Foreign Labor Trends.
US Department of State. Key Officers of Foreign Service
Posts.
Published by the United States Department of State -- Bureau of
Public Affairs -- Office of Public Communication -- Washington,
DC -- May 1990 -- Editor: Juanita Adams. Department of State
Publication 8074--Background Notes Series -- This material is in
the public domain and may be reprinted without permission;
citation of this source is appreciated.For sale by the Superintendent
of Documents, US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC
20402.(###)