Brawl for offices

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33985, 28 October 1975, Page 17

Brawl for offices

Z P A -Reuter—Copyright) LISBON. Octoter 27. Fist fights broke ou in the local governmen offices of the southen Portuguese town of Fart early today when Social ist supporters went in t< evict extreme Leftist; occupying the building a military spokesmat said. About 10 people wer< slightly injured in the brawl he said. Windows wen broken and fumitun smashed. The 300 Leftists who occu pied the building last nigh were pan of a demonstratioi protesting at the dismissa last week of the coasta town’s pro-Communis mayor.

■ The Socialist Party immedliately called on its militants •to converge on the offices. ' (They were joined by memlt;bers of the Centrist Popular it Democrats. A Socialist spokesman said townspeople went to the i home of the new Mayor, Dr *■ Julio Carrapato, and carried to him shoulder-high into the [s municipal offices. The mili- ™ tary spokesman could only confirm that he had gone into in !the building. He said that although most re of the Leftists had escaped -l. frdm the* building a small re group had barricaded themre I selves inside one room. The •situation was under control, a- Tie said. it I Meanwhile. President Costa inlGomes resumed control of al( the country after a series aljof coup scares swept the st (country during his four day I visit to Italy and Yugoslavia.

Tension evaporated as the people of Lisbon took advantage of a spell of sunny lateOctober weather and headed for the nearby beaches of Estoril and Cascais.

The armed forces were put on alert on Friday, when fears of an imminent Rightwing coup increased after a succession of bomb explosions in Lisbon.