From
Goa’s great Konkanni agitation to the student’s movement, the Konkan Railway movement to
save Goa, Meta Strips to the Village Groups of Goa. The discussion about
activism is kind off activated once again with Mumbai’s Aarey issue.
The issue is why we don’t see the large number of people gather
like before at the Azad maidan in Panaji or be it the Lohia Maidan in Margao
and agitate against government decisions that are harmful to Goa’s ecology.
Note activist, vocal leader and well known lawyer, Radharao
Gracias from Majorda takes a religious stand on this issue. He firstly cite how
Goans across four generations are very accustomed to migration be it East
Africa, later the Gulf, then Canada and the USA or now Europe especially UK.
“Most activism in Goa originated from Salcete and most activists
to raise issues were Catholics. Today most of our Catholic Goans have chosen to
route to migrate for good unlike before where Goans migrated for a better
earning but returned to Goa on retirement. Earlier Goans also migrated for
premium and high level jobs but today Goans are migrating for C and D class
jobs but they also fund their children’s education and then their children stay
abroad or move to premium jobs abroad,” explains Radharao.
He says cites all this discussion to say that earlier every Goan
household had one member working abroad but now every Goan household has more
than two members who have permanently migrated abroad and that’s the decline of
our people and there are not even people to agitate like before.
“ Agitations originated from the towns of Goa not from Goan
hinterland but our people are migrating because of the lack of opportunities in
Goa and hence who is really here who cares for this land, cares for atrocities
and exploitation of Goa who are willing to come out on the streets and protect
Goa. The reality lies in the empty and shut homes in our Goan villages since
people have migrated and the few that are there are uninterested because they
know the outcome is not like before,” explains Radharao.
While Goa’s fighter for its water bodies, fields and bundhs, a
former IITian who gave up everything to be in Goa and fight to conserve its
ecology Abhijit Prabhudessai, looks at the complexity of activism and fighting
in public to conserve one’s ecology and explains to us, “ Earlier Goans were
very dependent on an economy that was supported by nature. Goans were affected
by Metastrips, Nylon 66, Konkani Railway re-alignment, Regional Plan because it
affected their agriculture, fisheries and farming activity. Today we are not
dependent on these sustainable development economies. Our focus now is real
estate, ghastly infrastructure and hotel driven tourism, construction that
supports the cement, sand mining and gravel crushing industry which paves way
for large highways and roadways and hence the hue and cry of activism is looked
down.”
Abhijit also agrees that Goans have migrated and that a lot of
non Goans have taken up the business space in Goa who want to commercially
exploit Goa’s beauty but want to do very little to conserve it.
“Fisheries, farming, agriculture is replaced by water sports,
hotel industry, casino business and the people coming in to work here are
different and have no value for the Goa of yesteryears and definitely have no
interest to agitate against the governments anti people policies.
While Dr Oscar Rebello of the previous Save Goa Abhiyan asserted
that activism holds no value in Goa if you can’t convert it to a political
movement. Goans come out on the street to agitate politically made policies but
the same Goans make sure they vote and elect the same kind of politicians. Also
no Goan activist has been successful in getting elected and representing the
voice of the activist in the Assembly, which has a lot to say of what activism
is capable of in Goa and also what it is incapable of doing. Activism in Goa
has clearly failed to driven the political class to adapt it viewpoint.
But Claude Alvares, Goa’s hero in the anti-mining agitation
believes that Goans are busy in their government jobs or work related travel
abroad or within Goa or even their daily chores in Goa and hence we may not
have the time to come out on the streets like before but he feels that lots of
Goans are playing their active role in fighting issues across Goa.
“In my 35 years of activism it’s vital to acknowledge that every
Goan is fighting the Coastal Zonal Management Plan in their respective gram
sabhas.” Claude asserts that now most protest is court driven and is time
consuming and involves visits to the courts unlike before when the government
reversed decisions based on large gatherings held across Goa.
Today be it the potholes issue where Goans filed online
complaints or issues related to hotel projects and coal where different Goans
are fighting it in court or be Goans who take to social media to raise
concerns. These are all activist groups. Maybe the mode and medium of activism
is changed in Goa but definitely not on the decline believes Claude.
While anti casino activist Sabina Martins believes that activism
continues but less or no reporting takes place of these as in the past. She
feels probably the media feels that this form of news is too regular. Sabina
asserts that there are new facets though to activism in Goa.
But
there is no debate on the fact that democracy exists and survives only when
people’s voices are heard on the streets and the corridors of power and Goans
will do disservice to themselves and their land, if they don’t make their
voices heard.
