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Tourism: bringing in the moolah, with racism and uncertainty thrown in
By Joseph Zuzarte
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Goa's recent political upheaval has also up-ended a number of
tourism-related businesses, at least in north Goa. As soon as the
BJP government fell, a prominent "nightclub" in Vagator, which
attracted hundreds of ravers everyday, shut shop, starkly revealing
the political proximity of the management.
With the new "interim" Congress government installed, a number of prominent
restaurants in the Candolim-Calangute beach belt had to close shop because
their permissions were "reviewed", amongst them a famous Zen garden
restaurant which suddenly closed down in February, an early end to the
season.
The entire tourist police force was also disbanded, only to come back in a
new avatar after the end of the "interim" government, while the lamanis,
protected by the earlier tourist police, have been sent packing.
Meanwhile, nobody is sure if the River Princess is going to be towed away or
not. What initially promised to be a bumper season is turning out to be a
bit of an anti-climax, even though there was a steady inflow of charter and
other tourists.
Things got off well with the Exposition attracting the pilgrimage tourists,
besides the excitement generated by IFFI. The tourism industry here was
finally coming to terms with the post-Millennium party blues; the previous
season had been good and Goa was emerging as an year-round destination.
Then came the tsunami at the peak of the tourist season in south Asia. Even
though it did not hit Goa, its repercussions could be felt in the last
two-three months as a large number of European tourists have preferred to
stay away, specially since there have been earthquakes in the south Asian
region almost on a daily basis.
More than 5,000 European tourists perished in the tsunami. After which came
the political tsunami here, which resulted in the closure of a number of
popular tourism-related establishments.
With the clamp-down on raves, the scene in Anjuna-Vagator too has
cooled down and there has been an exodus of tourists from there. All
of which once again brings to the fore the fragile nature of the
tourism business, as also Goa's un-natural dependence on the tourism
industry.
Why is Goa stuck in the tourism boat? In an interview some months ago with
this writer, Matanhy Saldanha, one of the previous Tourism Ministers, said
it's because Goa is naturally suited to tourism and it comes naturally to
Goans. This is a statement echoed by almost everybody in the Goan tourism
industry.
That Goa is naturally beautiful is of course an indisputable fact, though
whether tourism related activities also come naturally to Goans is a matter
of debate. Much has been made of the famous Goan hospitality. However, even
a cursory review of the people in the touristy villages like Calangute will
reveal that that "hospitality" is nothing but pure fiction.
It would be more apt to call the people mercenary and racist. The tourist
taxis are a familiar example of these "mercenaries". Tourists who prefer to
walk short distances rather than take a taxi are routinely threatened with
violence and showered with the choicest of abuse (mostly in Konkani),
heckled and somehow or the other forced to take a taxi ride at least once
during their short holiday; all so that the taxi driver makes some easy
money.
Then, there is the racism. All along the tourist areas there's a type of
Goan who considers himself superior to his fellow Goans and Indians because
of his proximity to foreign tourists. Almost all Goans at one time or
another must have reached a point, maybe in a shack or some such, where they
encounter the above-mentioned type of Goan, who will block your way with a
firm hand and say strongly, "No Indians allowed."
Recently a shack owner told me proudly, "This area is popular because there
are no Indians here." European tourists are also encouraged to show racist
behaviour towards Indian guests staying in the same resort, even though
these days the average Indian tourist probably spends more.
According to a villager in Calangute this is because the Goans were made
excessively servile through the long Portuguese rule, though there are
probably other reasons for this. It's clear the taxi drivers are the way
they are simply because of the hefty loans which have to be paid back.
The off-season starts now and goes on till the beginning of the next season
in mid-November. Most hotel and restaurant employees -- managers, chefs,
cooks, waiters, etc. -- are hired at the beginning of the season in October,
sacked after the peak December season, and a fresh lot hired for the "lean"
months, who are then sacked as the "off-season" begins.
What are all those people who will be left with hardly any or no
business at all during the off-season, going to do? They try to make
as much money as possible during the four months of the season, even
if it means being racist and mercenary.
In recent years it's becoming increasingly obvious that there has been too
much of a dependency on the tourism industry. It is because of this
dependency that the government and trade bodies are making huge efforts to
stimulate the growth of this vital (to Goa) industry.
Nobody however seems to have considered the possibility that the tourism
industry might not be the best thing. It surely is fool-hardy to rely
excessively only on the tourism industry to bring a livelihood to the
people.
Besides, tourism also has deleterious side-effects, like the racism and the
general "pimping" which goes on everywhere (you can get anything on the
beaches these days; all of Goa, with everything and everybody in it is for
sale!).
That it is hardly a steady business with steady profits and employment has
also been proved beyond any doubt by events over the years. A couple of
seasons ago, it was the 9/11 effect. Goa is lucky the recent oil spill was
not huge and did not strike the beaches; otherwise it might have been a
rather disastrous ending to yet another promising season.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Joseph Zuzarte is a long-time journalist, resettled in Goa
from Bombay, and a regular commentator in the local media.
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