Standing on the cusp of the New Year, it
is useful to reflect on the year gone by. This we do with the hope that the inevitable
new beginning will be better than what we experienced in the past, in terms of
our personal and public existence. And in that spirit, I think, we should take
every opportunity to evaluate our political, social, and cultural existence during
the past year.
Environmental and cultural concerns can
be argued to have dominated the political discourse in Goa in 2017. Indeed, the
protests articulated in places like Mopa and Sonshi demonstrated how
environment and culture influenced the present discourse on Goan identity. The
year witnessed a massive public hearing on an environmental issue. Choking on
coal dust, many gathered in Vasco to make their grievances heard. This
unprecedented event signaled yet again the growing sense that Goa’s environment
and ecological health is endangered, and, if not addressed urgently, will lead
to an unmitigated disaster.
Similar to the urgency to address the
issue of coal handling and pollution to stop Goa’s environment from
deteriorating, the resistance to the development of mega infrastructure
projects, such as the new greenfield airport at Mopa, in Pernem, was also in
the news. We are also witnessing opposition to other projects, like the
double-tracking of the Konkan railway route, the re-starting of mining and the
effects there of. This time around, many activists have successfully tried to
shift the discourse to demonstrate how aspects of Goan economy fit in a larger system
of global capitalism. An increasing number of Goans can be said to have
realized that they are being reduced to cogs in the larger system of
capitalism. There is awareness that a remote Goan village is not isolated, on
the contrary it is linked to distant industrial or commercial hubs. However,
the awareness of how global capitalism is a continuum of feudal (or feudal
like) system of land ownership and control prevalent in Goa is still lacking;
one hopes that it will be a part of mainstream political discourse soon.
There are instances where the issues are
old but the sites of protest and resistance have shifted to new villages or
areas. Nonetheless, it is becoming increasingly clear to all that urban and
rural Goa is categorically speaking out: Goa’s ecology and the quality of life
of Goans are under threat.
Concerns with the environment were
closely linked with those of preserving Goa’s culture. In fact, one’s identity
cannot exist without the interplay of the environment and cultural productions.
Identity, then, was a common thread that ran through the various protests and
grievances articulated in the course of this year, as it has been over the last
several years. The allusion to the intertwining of identity and environmental
issues does not simply refer to the utterly cynical politicking over the
coconut tree – being de-notified and re-notified on governmental whims – but
rather upon instances wherein Goa’s identity and the belonging of Goans in a
wider world was debated;
indeed the discussion only deepened by acknowledging the complex history and
culture of Goa.
António Costa, the Portuguese Prime
Minister, who visited India in January, provided the occasion for re-thinking
the cultural belonging of Goans; particularly their connections with Portugal
and other Lusophone spaces. Costa, who has Goan ancestry, was celebrated in Goa
as well as in India for possessing Indian roots. Minor details like Costa or
his father, Orlando Costa, having no
connection with the modern Indian nation-state did
not deter the grandiose celebrations of homecoming. Even those most critical of
Goa’s continued contacts with Portugal and Portuguese culture maintained a
somewhat uneasy silence. Of course, it helped matters much that Costa came with
the intention of fostering business ties with India and Portugal. But even while
Costa’s Indian roots were celebrated, one thing became inevitable clear: Goa
and Goans are still undeniably connected with Portugal through history, culture,
and migration.
The major events within the spheres of
environment and culture – the protests, debates, and discussions of future
visions – occurred within a political system. This is the system that needs to
hear our grievances and resolve them. We, the people, elect our representatives
who are entrusted to run the system. Indian democracy that is built on periodic
elections is based on the assumption that one person – or one citizen – has one
vote, and this vote has one value. This means that everyone in the country, who
has the right to vote, indeed exercises this franchise, are equal with other
citizens of the country. This, however, is not the case in reality as caste and
class differences obstruct the true realization of democracy in India.
In short, because of the existing social
and economic conditions, the political system is unable to represent the
interests of all – or at least most of us. Laws and policies are therefore made
not to protect the interest of all constituents in the polity, but only to
further the interests of a few. This is why one witnesses draconian laws
enacted and executive fiats beings issued that impinge on the rights and livelihood
of millions of people in the country. Of the many challenge in the New Year,
and those that will follow in the years to come, the most important one is to
make good of the promise that political representation would lead to the
empowerment of all citizens.
(First published in O Heraldo, dt: 20 December, 2017)
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