Henrique Galvão

Who was Henrique Galvão?

Henrique Galvão was a Portuguese military officer, writer and politician. He was initially a supporter but later become one of the strongest opponents of the Portuguese fascist regime, the Estado Novo under Salazar.

In the 1940s, while serving as the Angolan Deputy to the Portuguese National Assembly, Henrique Galvão read his "Report on Native Problems in the Portuguese Colonies" before the Assembly. In this report, Galvão condemned the "shameful outrages" he had uncovered, notably the forced labour of "women, of children, [and] of decrepit old men." In his report, he concluded that, in Angola, "only the dead are really exempt from forced labor". Galvão further claimed that as many as 30% of all Angolan forced labourers died. Galvão cited the government's policy of replacing deceased native workers, without directly charging the employer, as being instrumental in encouraging the poor care of the workers. Galvão further claimed that this practice would often then result in their death. Galvão claimed that this state policy, which he said differed from policy in other colonial societies, eliminated the employer's incentive to maintain the welfare of the workers.