The blue represents the environment that characterizes the island and represents nobility and serenity. The yellow mirrors the climate of the Archipelago, a symbol of richness, strength, faith and purity. The five shields, which are also present in the Portuguese flag stand for the five wounds of Christ (Portuguese: Cinco Chagas de Cristo) when crucified, and are typically associated with the legend in which Count Afonso Henriques (future Afonso I) "killed the five Moorish kings of the Seville, Badajoz, Elvas, Évora and Beja taifas. Hence, in gratitude to Jesus, he incorporated five shields arranged in a cross—representing his divine-led victory over the five enemy kings—with each one carrying Christ's five wounds in the form of silver bezants. The sum of all bezants (doubling the ones in the central shield) would give thirty, symbolizing Judas Iscarot's thirty pieces of silver". The flag was first raised on 20 July 1975, in FLAMA's first high-profile act. Main events On 20 July 1975, FLAMA's first high-profile action took place when several walls in Funchal, Madeira's main city, were sprayed with phrases and expressions such as "Independence for Madeira" and "Out With The Portuguese", which FLAMA's signature at the bottom. One of the common expressions in the graffiti that became FLAMA's signature action, was the expression "Cubans" to describe the mainland Portuguese. This came from the fact that Otelo Saraiva de Carvalho, a well-known Portuguese military officer and main strategist of the 1974 Carnation Revolution, was an admirer of Fidel Castro's communist policies in Cuba. In the beginning of August 1975, FLAMA released several statements in which it promised violent acts in case no action was taken to start the process of independence. The expression "Friday, it's João's birthday" (Portuguese: "Sexta-feira, o João faz anos") was supposed to be a code for violent acts that were going to be taken. As a response, Madeira's military forces launched operation "Happy Birthday" (Portuguese: parabéns), in which 200 military officers and police officers were given orders to find the group. At 2:45am of 9 August, a Saturday, a bomb attack was perpetrated and its target was the national news station, Emissora Nacional. The attackers made use of 200 grams of dynamite, but the attack did not cause much damage and was intended to serve as a warning. On 23 August, FLAMA struck Emissora Nacional once again, and at 3:16am, a bomb exploded at its headquarters in Funchal. The