Abstract

In view of the general offensive against agrarian reform cooperatives being launched by the rightist government, it may seem inopportune to underscore the differences among cooperatives. Given the urgent need to close ranks, it would seem more logical to consider them in terms of a homogeneous model. But that makes sense only at first glance. The analysis of the fundamental models for agricultural cooperatives is equally urgent precisely because its effects will be to reinforce their defense. In the last six years, Portuguese experience seems to show that agrarian reforms offer only one alternative: that of the Portuguese Communist Party. Circumstances have imposed a Manichean view: either one favors “the PCP agrarian reform” or one supports the agrarian counterreform.