WITH INCIDENCES of rape and molestations increasing by the day, reports emanating from the state would suggest that Goa today is the most insecure and perilous of locations as far as the foreigners are concerned, especially females. But is it really so? One seriously doubts it! It would appear that the Goans have suddenly woken up to the nubile and shapely demeanors of the sultry sirens from overseas and are rather unrestrained in checking their libidinous overtures!

But the fact is that for years together the serene locales of Goa have had a steady stream of foreigners flitting in and out of the state in gay abandon; such was the fascination for this land of sun-and-sand that they never tired of waxing lyrical about it. The westernised culture, thanks to the Portuguese influence, the proximity of the foreigners and the candidness of their social interaction with the locals have always given one the false notion of Goa being a foreign land. With emigrations to European countries and the ‘cruise-line boom’ opening up new vistas for the young generation of Goans vis-à-vis better employment opportunities, one could safely vouch that the ‘ogling and leering at the white skins’ as traits that one would generally associate with the visitors from outside the state has never been a peculiarity that could be attributed to a quintessential Goan.

Yet the kind of publicity we seem to attract these days is indeed dismaying, to say the least - One is unwittingly being led to believe that Goa is an immoral land of drugs and rapists! One sincerely feels that where there is an urgent need to condemn rape in the meanest of terms. In all fairness, the administration should also take an unprejudiced stance on the issue and, after thorough investigation, book the culprits and clear the veils of secrecy surrounding such incidents. As things stand, it would seem that a well-planned conspiracy is being hatched to systematically wipe Goa off the world-tourism map. Undoubtedly, tourism is the main nerve of the state’s fiscal outlay and alleged remarks to the contrary will have far reaching consequences on the image of the state. Rather than air pompous and ill-conceived views on the subject, local politicians would well be advised to take a serious note of the matter and accelerate damage-control measures.

Pachu Menon
Margao.

ENEMY WITHIN

THE first chapter in economics tells us that our wants are unlimited and the truth is they are insatiable too. And in the quest to be the masters of commerce and economics, greed evolved as the worst evil that has taken over in totality the human mind, body, heart and soul. As vision is blurred by greed, people fail to see the long term disasters that await them in their pursuit for short term gains. Goa is the prime example of this great folly.

We have heard the moralist story of the goose that laid the golden eggs, umpteen number of times since we were kids, yet we fail to learn the ethical moral of the story when faced with reality. It’s not just a story for building up morals in kids, but also for grown up adults, not to fall prey to glandular greed.

Today, tourism is the bread and butter of most Asian developing countries, each competing with the other to get a larger slice of the tourism pie. Tourists were attracted to the natural beauty of Goa, fields lush and green, springs, rivers and, most of all, the endless clean pristine beaches. The generosity, simplicity and goodwill of Goans added to the flavour, more than making up for the lack of basic infrastructure that the western world was used to.

Now the seeds of evil greed have been sown. Politicians and bureaucrats forget their promises to work for the good of man and have sold their souls to the devil, looking for ways and means, more foul than fair, to enrich themselves.

Mining has no doubt contributed a great deal to the coffers of the Goa government, but we don’t seem to care about the devastation and havoc caused to the crowning glory of the Western Ghats, displacing its very inhabitants, the wildlife and destroying water bodies.

The cities too are congested and polluted with the infrastructure crumbling, sewage overflowing, garbage becoming a monstrous issue with no solution in sight, traffic ever increasing, parking vastly inadequate and unplanned, taps more often dry than running, bulbs and tubes more often off than lit. Life in urban Goa, is already mired in misery, so how will rural and coastal Goa survive in urban Goa? More importantly, will Goa survive?

Mining and tourism are the main sources of income for the Goa government, but at what cost? When nature is destroyed, the ambience changes and this, in turn, can lead to a catastrophe, as we all saw in the case of floods at Canacona. The fury of nature is what man has failed to conquer. To survive, we have to respect nature and live in ambience with nature.

We blame the politicians for all the ills in Goa and it’s true, they are the culprits, they are the traitors, they are the rapists, but the million dollar question is, who elected them? The enemy is within, we need not go far in our search; it’s each one of us contributing to the rape of our beloved Goa by our inaction, doing nothing to right the wrong we did in electing the corrupt, the selfish and the heartless; we are our own worst enemies. We need to get our priorities right and elect people with ethics, honesty, perseverance and those who have true love for Goa in their hearts. This is the only choice we have. Are there any takers?

Freddy Fernandes,
UAE.