Goa is reeling under the shock of the sad and shocking untimely death of one of her eminent sons Adv. Satish Sonak on April 7. Post liberation History of Goa is incomplete without a chapter on the famous ‘half ticket agitation’ of January 1979 and the brilliant leadership provided by the then young dynamic student leader Satish Sonak from Dhempe College of Arts & Science, Miramar-Panjim. He provided sensitive and serious leadership to many a movement in Goa’s chequered post liberation History. A lawyer by vocation, he was honest to the core a rarest of the rare gems in social and human rights activism. His recent leadership to the Vanarmare tribes of Nirankal village in Ponda taluka is one of the several examples of his sensitivity for a human cause. A man of serious disposition Satish Sonak never compromised on his principles. He was above board in all matters. A staunch patriot I recall his powerful speech full of patriotic fervour and zeal on the occasion of the installation of the bust of 21-year-old martyr for Goa’s liberation Shaheed Karnail Singh. He was an inspiration to the youth of our organisations. He was sensitive towards particularly to the cause of human as well as women’s rights and fought many a battle for it.
A lover of trees his famous agitation was to protect the Tambdi Mati Mango tree for which he courted arrest along with Patricia Pinto in October, 2006. He was always ready to take up a cause. Along with his wife renowned artist Harshada Kerkar Satishbhai joined our Save Coconut Valentine Chipko Andolan too last year on February 14, 2016. He had a compassion for the downtrodden, the marginalised and the subaltern. Injustice made him restless. He was very sad at the political scenario of Goa. He joined Anna Hazare’s movement against corruption and became its Goa-based national leader. He never indulged in any criticism or gossip of any kind. Never ever spoke ill of anyone. He addressed the cause and not the person. His activities for the Anam Prem orphan differently abled children every year can never be forgotten. His sensitivity towards transgenders cannot be forgotten.
Everyone will miss him. Whenever I thought of organising a patriotic programme the first person that came to my mind was Satish bhai.
In his death, we have lost a brilliant, a brother of Goans and a great son of Mother India & Goa. I salute this great soul. History will always remember this upright social activist.
