Communist Party of the Portuguese Workers

PCTP/MRPP - Partido Comunista dos Trabalhadores Portugueses

Last modified: 2014-12-20 by klaus-michael schneider
Keywords: pctp | mrpp | pctp/mrpp | hammer and sickle (yellow) | hammer and sickle: solid star | partido comunista dos trabalhadores portugueses | movimento reorganizativo do proletariado portugues |
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• Description of the flag
• Presentation of M.R.P.P.

• Portuguese political flags
• Portugal

Description of the flag

Their flag is a red field with a yellow sickle and hammer in the canton, and «PCTP/MRPP» in yellow below it.
Jorge Candeias, 26 Sep 1997

It is interesting to note that the star is solid yellow, not red with yellow outline, as usual in soviet-inspired regalia. This maoist party may have been influenced thence by P.R.C. flag’s solid stars (the chinese mainland communist party flag has no stars, and the sickle has a very typical round handle), or may be due simply to carelessness or sheer chance.
António Martins, 20 May 2004

There’s a possibility that they have a variation with a centered emblem, but if they do, I’ve never seen it. And I’m pretty sure that the official flag has the emblem in the canton, for having seen it a number of times in the party’s propaganda times on TV during electoral campaigns.
Jorge Candeias, 20 May 2004

Presentation of P.C.T.P./M.R.P.P.

The Communist Party of the Portuguese Workers / Reorganizational Movement of the Proletariate Party (PCTP/MRPP - Partido Comunista dos Trabalhadores Portugueses / Movimento Reorganizativo do Partido do Proletariado) is a maoist party, very active in the 70s, especially with big mural paintings (they got known as Meninos Rabinos Pintam Paredes, that is «Nasty Children Painting Walls»)
Jorge Candeias, 26 Sep 1997

This maoist party was very active after the 1974 revolution (some even said it was secretely backed by the US, to undermine the main communist party) and in a way it still is. Though it never managed to elect any MPs, a number of its members are well known polititians, notably some former members who are now right-wing liberals, including the current prime-minister [Durão Barroso, later president of the European Council].
António Martins, 20 May 2004

The party started out simply as MRPP (Movimento Reorganizativo do Partido do Proletariado) right after the portuguese 1974 revolution. At the time it already used the current symbol, but, of course, the sigla was simply "MRPP". Several examples of this can be seen in the party's website that can be found at http://www.pctpmrpp.org/ . Just wait that all the old posters download, or go to the link that say "Murais" (mural paintings) to see some examples.
Jorge Candeias, 15 Aug 2005

Later on, the party adopted an alternative name, Partido Comunista dos Trabalhadores Portugueses, which was added to the first one (resulting in the largest party name I'm aware of anywhere in the world). The party emblem reflected the change, of course, and the two siglas started to appear one above the other in the flag. This is, as far as I know, the current official flag of the party and it's the flag that we currently show.
Jorge Candeias, 15 Aug 2005

You may notice in the party homepage that there's an animated GIF of a flag flying with the sigla of the newest name only (PCTP). This is a variation that I've never seen in any flag in the cloth but that is relatively common in other materials. You'll see some examples in the posters I mentioned above and the said GIF-image. As far as I know, it's unofficial, but in a sort of official unofficial manner, if you know what I mean.
And that's it for this old maoist party, that never elected a single deputee, but that would have elected 1 or 2 in all elections since 1975 if the portuguese electoral system was perfectly proportional and didn't benefit the two largest parties.
Jorge Candeias, 15 Aug 2005