Cornel's query regarding "true blooded Goan" can be
best summurized by an appropriate, though not equal,
Konkani words, Aum Nix Goenkar.
It's just for emphasis. Or, rather hyperbole. Those
who often say these words mean that they are Goans to
the core. It defies defination.
As as extenstion, Indians often says, Aum Bharatiya
Aye. No literal translation, but it means we are
Indians through and through.
In this context, RDK's reply to my post on Britain and
immigrants and Rene's subsequent queries are relevant.
As RDK says what he said was obvious in relation to
the "outsider" factor in Goa.
Goans in Goa, when convenient, blames outsiders for
many of the state's problems -- from employment to
corruption to shortages of essential items.
Migrant labour comes where there is demand such as
Biharis going to Punjab to work the fields and
settling there in quite a good number. Some of them
have become "baptized Sikhs". However, these new Sikhs
are not welcomed with open arms.
Native Sikhs look upon these Sikhs as people who have
embraced the religion to gain communal acceptance and
for economic reasons.
In contrasst, a white person converting to Sikhism is
often welcomed with open arms and warm hearts.
Ami Goenkar was a battlecry some years ago when the
employment problem rose its ugly head in Goa.
Similarly, sons-of-the-soil campaign in Goa started
but never got a boost.
Some political leaders wanted to exploit this
ill-conceived slogan for political gain, just as the
Shiv Sena used it to gain political mileage from
Maharashtrians in the early history of the party.
The Congress was powerful in the state and the Shiv
Sena used every gimmick to make inroads into the
Congress vote banks, large parts of it being
Maharashtrians.
So, Cornel take heart. Sharon probably wanted to show
that she is a brave Goan who weathered the monsoon
mayhem and survive to tell a story. Her story is one
of the many that may have been heard in those trying
-- and crying - monsoon tales.
Eugene Correia
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