This government has decided to go against its own people by exploring possibilities of forming a censor board– officially for all stage productions but targeted completely at gagging tiatrs and other forms like khel tiatrs and one act plays. And it has decided to do this in a sly and backhanded manner, by surreptitiously drafting rules and getting it examined by departments. This is not just an absolutely foolish step taken in the mistaken belief that a government can slip in, stifle the voice of an art form which highlights people’s sentiments and holds a mirror to society. It is a sign of arrogance and misplaced supremacy, by a government which is ungrateful to the same protagonists, who are true blue sons of the soil. If the ills of corruption, misrule and family raaj of the Congress government was brought home to the people of Goa, it was due to these brave hearts who brought reality home through their scripts and songs. And your newspaper, stood by them, supported them and fought with them, hand in hand. It will do the same now.
Let us understand what the government is indeed trying to do. Rattled by the fact that the tiatrists, can do the same work of bringing home harsh realities of non-governance, misrule, unkept promises and U turns of the BJP government, it has responded to a demand by a rabid right wing group to have control and a regulatory mechanism to dictate what words will be spoken and what songs will be sung to our tiatr loving audiences. Does the government think that the people of Goa will allow that? Does it think that Herald will allow that?
Over 400 very upset tiatrists in a memorandum to the government on Monday said “It is ironical that the government the tiatrists helped bring to power is now seeking to suppress the same voices.”
The outrage against the government has been led by the most renowned, respected and loved senior tiatrists-Prince Jacob, Roseferns, Mario Menezes, Augustine and others. And by doing so they have given hope and courage to younger tiatrists like Francis de Tuem and Tousif de Navelim, whose tiatrs highlighting the activities of Sri Ram Sene leader Pramod Muthalik and calling for his ban in Goa, sparked off a row between right wing activists and the people of Goa. All responsible senior tiatrists have always maintained that freedom of expression is a given right, and this right has to be enjoyed responsibly. If at any point of time a tiatr production crosses the line of sensibility and hurts sentiments, the police and the courts are there to address it. But pre- censorship gives undue power in the hands of handpicked people whose competency can always be challenged, to decide what song can be sung or what words can be spoken in a tiatr.
There’s another important point to be addressed here. While the focus of attention is on the gagging of tiatr, this is, in reality, an attack on free speech. If we do not fight this, this government will come down heavily to censor any art form in any language including Marathi plays, if they dare to be critical of the government. This will not be a censor board against tiatr but against creative freedom.
If we the media do not rise against this, this government will introduce pre- censorship for print and electronic media. In the Goa of today, it’s only tiatrists and a section of the media like Herald, “which act as vehicles of honest expression of public discontent” (to quote a line from the memorandum submitted by tiatrists). Tomorrow when Marathi plays and other forms of artistic expression become the same vehicles, they will be stopped too.
But what really is the government afraid of? It isn’t really difficult to fathom what. Since the opposition has failed, it is the media and our playwrights who are the most serious watchdogs. If corruption has not just been tolerated but has thrived in this government, it is only us who will investigate and report. If the land of Goans is being taken away for projects that mean nothing to Goans and do not give them jobs and security, Herald will campaign and the tiatrist will sing and act. If ministers, MLAs, vendors and contractors travel the world on junkets and have no way of proving how Goa has been benefited, Herald shall write and someone like Francis de Tuem will sing.
We are brothers in arms and when we work fearlessly because we survive only on the love of our people, we become obstacles in the path of any government which gets elected by the people but become servants of those who fund their personal coffers.
All we can say is that we are watching. And will never stop watching.
We have only one message to the government. STOP THIS.
We ask the Laxmikant Parsekar government to give up any move or examination or exploration, towards creation of the censor board and give an immediate assurance to all playwrights, singers, writers, poets and other creative voices that freedom of expression shall not be curtailed. If there is room to believe that any of our expressions in any form is incorrect and anti people, we are prepared to fight this in any court of law, where we can present our stand.
And since we are fearless, and not obliged to tow anyone’s line except those drawn by the people of Goa, no battle worries us. Therefore, we will take to the streets and be one with those who are fighting this move to have a censor board for tiatr and other stage performances.
We challenge the government to go ahead with its censor board move and ask the chief minister to be ready for the consequences.
