World Notes PORTUGAL

Lieut. Colonel Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho was a hero. A leader of the bloodless coup of 1974 that brought democracy to Portugal after 48 years of right-wing dictatorship, Otelo ran unsuccessfully for President in 1976 and again four years later. But last week, after a 19-month trial, he was sentenced to 15 years in prison for "undermining" the government. The court ruled that an organization Otelo founded was a front for the Forcas Populares 25 de Abril, the shadowy terrorist group responsible for a wave of assassinations and bombings since 1980. Forty-seven co-defendants were also convicted. Protesting his innocence, Otelo insisted, "History will absolve me."