"No Portuguese troops had been stationed in Macau since the Carnation Revolution in 1974."

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Is this true? When I lived in Hong Kong in 1979 I'd go to Macau every month via hydrofoil. One time I sighted a chap in full Portugee camo, brown beret and 'Forces Especials' shoulder flashes carrying a dog noose. Maybe they were only dog catchers but there seemed to be a military presence.Foofbun (talk) 23:55, 25 April 2012 (UTC)Reply

  • Interesting sighting but it does seem certain that formed Portuguese military units (as opposed to individual liaison officers or aides on the governor's staff) were withdrawn after the Carnation Revolution. Perhaps the 'Forces Especials' man was a specialist seconded to the still-Portuguese officered civilian police during the interim period before the final takeover by the mainland government. At any rate the authorities in Lisbon seem to have realized that there was no point in maintaining any fiction that the colony could be militarily defended after 1974. Buistr (talk) 02:48, 28 September 2014 (UTC)Reply