Journalism in Portuguese India 1821-1961 By Henry Scholberg, Former Director, Ames Library of South Asia, University of Minneasota
Journals are like pastries: we must eat them as soon as they come out of the oven. -- A nineteenth century Goan saying. INTRODUCTION: Goa is an area of the approximate size of an Indian district, and out of Goa came a torrent of well over 300 journals in the course of 140 years. In this paper, the terms 'Goa' and 'Portuguese India' will often be used interchangeably. The purview of this paper is * Geographically, the territory known in history as Portuguese India, and * Chronologically, from 1821 when Goa's first journal was published, until 1961 when Goa ceased to be Portuguese India. However, journalist publishing by and for Goans was not confined to the area known as Portuguese India, but should include Bombay, which over the years has caught the brunt of the Goan diaspora. And the world did not end in 1961. Journalism today is as alive, well and thriving as it was in the area when it was Portuguese India. Goa has bragging rights for bringing the first printing press to India in 1557, but Hickey's Gazette in Calcutta in 1780 was India's first periodical. Goa did not bring one out until 1821. Joao Nicolau de Fonseca in his history of Goa explains the reason for this delay: From a document bearing the date 1754, it appears that the Home Government was averse to the establishment of printing-presses in the territory of Goa, either by the local Government or by private individuals, and that accordingly, instructions were issued to the then viceroy, the Count of Alva, recommending the adoption of stringent measures in the matter. For nearly a century, this narrow-minded policy was rigidly followed, regardless of the inhabitants of the settlement, and it was only in 1821, the same year in which the constitutional system of Government was introduced, that a government press was established for the first time.[1] Since then, Portuguese India produced approximately 340 serial titles. This includes newspapers, magazines, government publications, and annual reports of companies and social organisations. Many of these periodicals are dying a slow death in the Central Library of Panjim, due to the humid climate of monsoonal India. Many are utterly lost and their existence is known only because their titles appear on someone's list. A number of these periodicals were exceedingly short-lived. At least two of them produced only one known issue. Many of them lasted a year or less. In his 'Subsidios para a Historia do Jornalismo na Provincias Ultramarinas Portuguesas', Brito Aranha, writing in 1885 reported that: The development of the press in the Portuguese colonies began around the year 1829.... There was an epoch of resistance in the Homeric period of their definitive establishment of constitutional government in 1834. After that it continued with some intermittence in making itself remarkable available all in Portuguese India, in Macau and in Angola, the vast regions where the power and prestige of the Portuguese had to maintain themselves in their energy and their luster. In the space of fifteen years, we have counted 150 journals of which 70 pertain to Portuguese India, 15 to British India (Bombay), 40 to the four provinces of Portuguese Africa (19 in Angola) and 24 in Macau and in the British Asiatic possessions where there are Portuguese families.[2] The fact of the longevity, or lack thereof, of these journals begs the question: Porque? A number of reasons might be given: bad journalistic management, censorship, lack of advertising support, or, simply, the lack of readership. But the real cause for the downfall of numerous journalistic attempts during the nineteenth century may have been the poor economy of Portuguese India. "On the economic front," writes Sarto Esteves in his 'Goa and Its Future', "the Portuguese rule in Goa is a record of complete disinterestedness if not dismal failure. There is no serious attempt to industralize the place or even to encourage and help people to exploit its natural resources. Iron and managanese ores which were discovered as early as 1905 would have been sufficient to radically transform the economic face of Goa." [3] A significant indicator of the poor state of Portuguese India may be found in the decision of the government to disband the army in 1870. Writes Claudio Saldanha in his 'History of Goa': For economic reasons, the poor state of the finances of modern Goa could ill afford such a huge army, whose upkeep was a heavy drain on the treasury. Besides, one could also not see why the army was necessary at all, since all the surrounding territory was subject to the British, who were age-old allies of the Portuguese [4]. It must be said of journalism in Portuguese India that there was diversity. In addition to those in Portuguese there were journals in Konkani, Marathi and English, and there were political, literary, scientific, legal, historical and religious journals. There were also periodicals devoted to women, to sports, to hygiene, to agriculture and even to satire. This paper is divided chronologically as follows: * First Period: 1821 to 1859. * Second Period: 1859 to 1895. * Third Period: 1887 to 1932. * Fourth Period: 1932 to 1961. THE FIRST PERIOD: In his section, 'The First Journal', da Cunha tells us that 'Gazeta de Goa' was off to a good start and was received "with much praise," but that after the death of its second editor, Luis Prates de Albuquerque, it "became a vehicle for dissension and animosity until 1826 when the Junta... issued, on 29 August... a decree ordering th ecessation of its publication ... on the ground that 'the government has always gone without the press and without the 'Gazeta' until the unfortunate period of the revolution [presumably the French Revolution[, and in these disastrous times it has produced evils, and since the typefaces are currently unusable, there is no disadvantage in suspending the 'Gazeta'."' [5] The 'Gazeta' carried government news such as treasury accounts and proceedings of the Sentdo de Goa, along with items from Portugal and international news. Though a government publication, the 'Gazeta' occasionally attacked government corruption. When it was shut down, its typefaces and printing press were confiscated. Thus, there is a picture of the administrators of the period being fearful of a Revolution which occurred two or three generations earlier. Nine years after the demise of the 'Gazeta de Goa' another official journal appeared in Goa: the 'Chronica Constitucional', which lasted a little over two years, from 13 June 1835 to 30 November 1837. The journal operated under government restrictions which prohibited criticism of the King of Portugal, the Viceroy or others in high position; however, it campaigned for better representation of Goans in the Cortes and for better schools. The 'Chronica' was followed in December 1837 by 'Boletim Governor da Estado da India' in response to a degree of the previous December that a bulletin be published by the secretary of the government. Both the 'Gazeta' and 'Chronica' were weekly, as was the 'Boletim' which later underwent several name and periodicity changes and became the longest lasting journal in Portuguese India. Da Cunha mourned the changes that occurred with the Boletim after 1899: From 1899 on... it no longer published its news and history section, which as its unofficial part made those pages illustrious, especially in the days of Cunha Rivara, Eduardo Balsemao and Tomas Ribeiro, secretaries general... and as such, editors of the official period who were truly of rare vigor and admirable literary activity. [6] In those early days of journalism in Portuguese India there was little journalistic competition due to the paucity of journals, and there was little excitement until Joao de Sousa Machedo, a major in the Mocambique army, brought forth his 'O Vigilante' in 1838. Sousa Machedo attacked government officials, and, according to da Cunha, "O Vigilante had the sympathy of most of the country, but it was not to the liking of the powerful, and therefore its editor's life was at times actually in imminent danger."[7] Although there may have been a certain amount of political excitement during the early period of Goan journalism, da Cunha writes: At this point it is necessary to know what influence the political press exercised at that time ime the Goan milieu. We must confess that our impression is that it must have been profoundly negative. [8] Until the advent of the private press in Goa the journalists were often Europeans; however, many indigenous Goans were becoming journalists of no mean ability. Vimala Devi in her section on journalism in her work, 'A India Portuguesa', looks upon the early years of Goan journalism from a different perspective: Upon appearing in its modern form in the nineteenth century, the journal rapidly transforms itself into a tremendous vehicle for progress and culture. The ideological arguments of the period naturally took advantage of its flexibility for the most ardent controversies in which the destiny of the world was at stake. In the cultural sector, nothing was out of reach of the journal -- art, literature, science, sociology -- and the terrible consequences of super vulgarization and banalization of culture that occur today were not yet to be feared. Nevertheless, even in these heroic beginnings in which the journal constituted a force of progress and culture, one cannot afford it any literary merit. Journalism is always too rushed and superficial for art to exist in it. Nevertheless, it is not possible to deny the great "literary" importance of journalism.[9] THE SECOND PERIOD: As one searches for the defining moment in the history of journalism in Portuguese India, the date 1859 stands out clearly, for in that year the first private press was established in Goa. Journalists no longer needed to publish their periodicals at the Imprensa Nacional in Nova Goa. A private press was installed that year in Margao, to be followed by the establishment of presses in Mapusa, Calangute and Bastora. Tipographia Rangel at Bastora became one of th emost prolific and illustrious publishing houses of Portuguese India. The journal, which inaugurated private journalism in Portuguese India, was O Ultramar, founded by Bernardo Francisco da Costa, one of the most illustrious journalists of Portuguese India. Jaime Rangel in his 'A Imprensa em Goa' writes: By the mid-nineteenth century people in Goa already felt the need to emancipate the periodical press from official support. The first step given by Bernado Francisco da Costa, a daring and enterprising spirit, whose initiative took him to set up, in 1859, in Margao, a shop where the first weekly journal, with its own press, released on 6 April of the same year 'O Ultramar' which, under the da Costas, had remarkable prestige and a chequered life. [10] The first issue of 'O Ultramar' was published with Bernardo Francisco da Costa as editor-in-chief and his brother, Antonio Anastacio Bruto da Costa, as assistant editor. Eight years later Bernardo was elected to the Cortes, and Anastacio took over as director and served in that capacity until his death in 1911. The initiation of the first private press is described in glowing terms by da Cunha. With the introduction of the first private typography by Bernardo Francisco da Costa there began in 1859 the most fertile period of the press and literary progress in Goa. Typographic publications were rare up to the time, as they could be printed only on the government press [Imprensa Nacional] since there were no others. To the progressive and enterprising genius of Bernardo da Costa fell the everlasting glory of founding the first journal on a private typography, 'O Ultramar', having the advantage of turning out within a short time all kinds of publications which he produced in great abundance, giving free rein to literary activity which up to that point of time had been totally unknown. [11] In the decades that followed the first issue of 'O Ultramar' there was a spate of seven journals which were published, one of which, 'A India Portuguesa', achieved a long, if on-again-off-again, life: 1. A India Portuguesa, Margao, 1861-1961 2. A Phenix de Goa, Mapusa, 1861-1862 3. A Aurora de Goa, Calangute, 1861 4. A Sentinella de Liberade, Benaulim, 1864-1869 5. Illustracao Goana, Margao, 1864-66 6. Almanac Popular, Margao, 1865-? 7. Jornal de Noticias, Ribandar, 1868-1869 And in the fifty years that followed the first private press were a number of firsts: * 1862, the first scientific journal: 'Jornal de Pharmacia e Sciencias de India Portuguesa' * 1862, the first journal for women: 'Recreio das Damas' * 1872, the first Marathi journal: 'Dexassudharanetxu' * 1872, the first journal with an English section: 'Gazetta de Goa' * 1885, the first English newspaper, 'The Times of Goa' * 1900, the first daily newspaper, 'O Heraldo' Nineteenth century Portuguese India was peaceful for the most part, not being scorched as British India was with the Revolt of 1857. However, there were moments of the tranquility of the place was interrupted. In 1835, a massacre occurred at Fort Tiracol, the scene, incidentally, for a slaughter of 'satyagrahis' more than a century later during Goa's last freedom struggle. In 1852, the Ranes of Satari, headed by Dipaji, revolted, and in 1870 the army revolted. But the movement that had serious, if only temporary effect on the progress of journalism in Goa was the Revolt of the Ranes in 1895. Time and space do not permit going into detail here concerning this event, but to summarize: The Revolt was brought about when Dada Rane led a campaign in support of Hindu sepoys who objected to being shipped to Mocambique. In 'O Brado Indiano' one finds the beginning of genuine Indian protest as indicated in its title. Founded by Antonio Francisco Xavier Alvares and edited by Bernardo da Silva, it called upon Goans to go on the attack against the Portuguese authorities. In one of its editorials in 1895, it cried: "Spit in the faces of Europeans who call themselves Portuguese. Drive these beggars out. Viva Independencia." [12] THE THIRD PERIOD: The journalistic effect of the Rane Revolt was the suspension of the publishing for a period of two years. Thus, the end of da Cunha's second period is 1895, but the beginning of the third period does not occur until 1897, when the Conde de Mahem founded 'A Era Novo', that any new journals would appear in Goa. This was followed in short order by two journals of varying subject matter: 'O Portuguez', edited by Francisco Mourao Garcez Palha, and 'A Athleta', edited by Joaquim Casimiro Araujo. the former came out in 1897 and the latter in 1899. However, the major event, which initiated the history of journalism in Portuguese India in the twentieth century, was 'O Heraldo', founded by Aleixo Clemente Messias Gomes (1873-1957) and making its first appearance 22 January 1900. According to Frederick Noronha, a Goan journalist: 'O Heraldo' is still publishing a this writing (31 January 1998]. it switched, in 1983, from being a Portuguese tabloid paper to being an English-language daily... at that time, it was claimed to be the only Portuguese daily to be published in Asia, if one recalls rightly. But it had to switch languages, since the number of Portuguese speakers was not growing due to the lack of education in that language and other factors. On the contrary, English was being more widely used. [12] Messias Gomes directed the journal until 1901, after which a number of distinguished journalists and writers edited and contributed to 'O Heraldo', among them: Antonio Maria da Cunha, F X Sales de Andrade, Zacarias Dias, Alvaro de Santa Rita Vaz, Amadeu Prazeres da Costa and Evagrio Jorge. Writes Vimala Devi: Though 'O Heraldo'... have passed the best Goan journalists of our century, and it was collaborated on by the most important writers. Its role in the social and cultural life of Goa has always been very important.[14] Another journalistic light of the twentieth century was Luis de Menezes (1884-1962) who had founded the Konkani journal 'Amcho Gao' in 1929 as a supplement to his 'Diario da Noite', which he founded in 1919. 'Diario da Noite' lasted until May 4, 1967 after which he founded a monthly, 'O Globo'. Another famous journalist of the modern period was Leopoldo Cipriano da Gama (1843=1920) who collaborated on 'A Conviccao' and 'A Vida' and participated in many political controversies of the time. Luis de Menezes Braganza is quoted as saying of him: A journalist in the legitimate sense of the word. Rapidity of mental elaboration, energy of a fighter, slid and... cutting way with words... His articles revealed with each step his humanistic education. And history! How he knew how to evoke it in his luminous and suggestive international vignettes, in appropriate parallels, not in the undigested mush of facts, but in his profound reaching, in his long repercussions. In polemic he was a jouster, one to be feared. he was the argument that convinces, the sarcasm that diminishes and the burst of laughter that disorients. [15] 'O Heraldo' in its early days called for the Indianization of Goan Christians, and in this placed itself in opposition to members of clergy who urged Goan Christians to distance themselves from Indian customs and wearing apparel. Perhaps the most distinguished of all the journalists of Goa was Luis de Menezes Braganca (1878-1938), after whom Instituto Vasco da Gama was renamed. He fought in the 'Nacionalista' and in his own weekly, 'O Debate', and in 'Pracasha' ideals of progress. He was not afraid to take on the established church or government. writes Vimala Devi: He was a polemicist of great vigor, of sharpened irony -- one of the most important figures of Goan journalism. He was such a dominant figure that when a wave of anti-Lusitanism swept Goa after the invasion, it was necessary to change certain nomenclatures. While it was not enough merely to suppress the word 'Portuguesa' in the title 'A India Portuguesa', it was his name that arose to replace Vasco da Gama, producing the Menezes Braganca Institute. [16] Menezes Braganca in 1911 founded 'O Debate', perhaps in celebration of Portugal becoming a republic the previous year. He also wrote in the Marathi journal, 'Pracasha', editorials critical of the church and the government. THE MARATHI JOURNAL: The Marathi journal has a long history in Portuguese India, dating back 126 years to 1872. The first Marathi journal, 'Dexassudaranetxu' or 'Desudharanecchu' (difficult to pronounce for persons not fluent in that language) is translated into Portuguese as 'Amigo do Progresso da Patria' and in English as 'Friend of Progress of the Fatherland'. It was founded by Atmarama Purxotama Sunctancar. Beginning as a monthly periodical, its first issue appeared in January 1872 and its last issue of the first series appeared in September of that year. A second series began March 1, 1877 as a weekly and continued until January of the following year. Published in Ribandar, it contained a section in Portuguese. It was critical of the government's educational policies and, like other Marathi journals, strove to make the government understand the Hindu community. A number of short-lived Marathi journals came forth in the succeeding years, each with sections in Portuguese and each with Portuguese titles or sub-titles: * Journal das Novas Conquistas, 1882-1886 * Aryabandhu. Arya Bondu. Irmao Aria, 1885-1886. * O Goatma. A Alma de Goa: Jornal Dedicadeo a Defensa dos Interesses Hindus, 1885-1890. * Govapancho. O Goapancha: Revista Mensal, 1885-1892. * Gomantac. 1890-1891. By the time da Cunha wrote his article on journalism in Portugese India in the early 1920s, over 30 Marathi journals had been or were being published. A Glitch occurred early in the twentieth century when "some extremist in British India tried to wage, in the Marathi journal... 'Satsang', a campaign of hostility against British sovereignty, which they could not sustain with impunity in British territory." [17] The life span of 'Satsang' was from 1902 o 1922. Founded by Laxman Padma Bhandari, after 1908, it was edited by Ramachandra Nayak Kharand Shastry who vigorously championed the message of the Congress party in British India. Most of the journalists of Portuguese India have been men, but some women were outstanding. One of these was Sarasvatibai Vaidya, editor of 'Prachi Prabha: A Luz do Oriente', a literary magazine in its second series, which began in 1921. Her husband, Ramchandra Vaidya had founded the journal in 1909. Sarasvatibai was the first woman to make her mark in language and literature in Portuguese India. The Marathi journal was aimed at the Hindu community of Goa, and it has been as varied in its output as its counterpart in Portuguese. 'Govapancho', and 'Goa Punch' in its later title, was devoted to satire. 'Pathea-Bodh: Instruccoes Higienicas', was a medical journal, as its title suggests. 'O Niyaya-Cacxu: Olho da Justica' was a legal journal, 'Halad Cuncu' was devoted to women, and a number of journals were dedicated to spiritual or religious concerns. * Kalikadarshan: Visao de Kalika * Sudarshan: Disco de Vishnu * Chitacarxan: O Bem Estar Espiritual * Hindu-Mat: A Opinao Hindu There was even a journal for minstrels, 'Gadgadat: A Trovado', which came out with a single number in 1921 as a supplement of 'Pragati', and one for barbers, 'Napitoday: Progresso da Classe Napita'. Many of the Marathi journals contained sections in Portuguese, but left no space for Konkani. THE KONKANI JOURNAL: If the Marathi journal has a long and varied history, the Konkani journal has one that is longer, but perhaps not as varied. In fact, the Konkani journal, slow to appear in Goa, predates many of the journals from Portuguese India; for the home base of many of the Konkani periodicals was not Goa, but Bombay. The first Konkani journal, 'Mensageiro Bombayense', was published just ten years after Goa's first journal, 'Gazeta de Goa, and four years before Goa's second journal, 'Chronica Constitucional de Goa'. The Konkani periodical titles, if one is searching them in the da Cunha lists, may be found in those labeled 'Jornais Publicados em Bombaim, Concanis e luso-concanis'. Da Cunha begins his list with 'O Concanim', which did not start publication until January of 1892. However, it may have been the 19th Konkani journal to have been published. It is the part of irony that not until early in the twentieth century did any Konkani journals appear in Goa, Konkani being, currently, the state language of present-day Goa. Here are a few titles: * O Bardezano -- Mapuca, 1904-06. In Portuguese with a section in Konkani. * Niz Bharati: O Crente -- Bastora, 1930-31. In Konkani and Portuguese. * Vauradeancho ixtt: O Amigo dos Operarios -- Pilar, 1933-? In Konkani with sections in English and Portuguese. * Jivit S Juanv Britachem: O Crente -- Pilar, 1947--? In Konkani, devoted to the life of Joao de Brito. * A Vanguarda: Seminario Informativo e Doutrino -- Mapusa, 1954-1958. In Portuguese and Konkani. * Sahitya -- Margao, 1968- In Konkani with Kannada script, published by the Bharatiy Konkani Sahity Parisad. It is evident, from the study of Goan journalism, that one of the languages that comes into play, besides Portuguese, Marathi and Konkani, is English. The fact is that the most-read journals in Goa today are those in English. The first journal to dabble in English in Goa was 'The Times of Goa', published by Antonio Francisco Xavier Alvares. It lasted about four years, beginning in 1885. Ten years later came 'O Liberal', the journal of Aleixo Casimiro Lobo. Portuguese, English and Konkani, and the first journal out of Goa to accord any space to Konkani. 1913 'Jornal da India' had an English section, as did 'A Vida Nova', also a 1913 newspaper. Bombay was much kinder to the English language. THE FOURTH PERIOD: With the coming to power of Salazar in 1932, press censorship became the order of the day. A decree of 3 January 1934 required that anything to be published in Goa must first be submitted to the government for review. When an attempt was made on the life of Salazar in 1938, all the newspapers of Goa congratulated him on his escape -- all, that is, except the Marathi journal 'Pracasha'. Even 'O Heraldo', which had been founded as an independent journal, became ardently pro-Portuguese and anti-Independence in 1948. A difficult period for journalists in Goa was that which existed between 1946 and 1961, a time identified with the movement to bring the blessings of Independence to Goa. Thus it was that Bombay became the place for "freedom literature" which was often smuggled into Goa. Some of it was pamphleteering. The major journals were the 'Goan Tribune', published between 1956 and 1960 by Aloysius Soares and Lambert Mascarenhas, and 'Resurge Goa', published by Telo Mascarenhas. Other periodicals included the 'Goa Tribune' and T B Cunha's 'Free Goa'. Cunha also brought out a Konkani newspaper with the title 'Azad Goa', meaning 'Free Goa'. Freedom fighting journalists who dared to operate in Goa were subject to imprisonment. The noted crusader, Evagrio Jorge, was jailed in 1946 and again in 1947, on the latter occasion for three years. THE POST-INDEPENDENCE PERIOD: Today English has become the dominant language of journalism in the former enclaves of Portuguese India, if the basis of readership. In newspapers in Goa as follows: [18] English, 6; Marathi, 4; Konkani, 3; English, Konkani and Portuguese, 3; English, Konkani and Marathi, 1; English and Konkani, 1; English and Marathi, 1, and English and Portuguese, 1. What is the state of journalism today? This question is relevant because today's output is the result of 140 years in which first the Portuguese, and then Goan journalists, produced over 300 periodicals: some below par, some above average, and some brilliant. 'Navhind Times', founded in 1962, boasts rightfully of being the oldest English daily in Goa. It also has the largest circulation. 'O Heraldo' is the second-largest daily in Goa, and the third is 'Gomantak Times'. 'O Heraldo', sometimes referred to simply as 'The Herald', switched in 1983 from being a Portuguese language tabloid to becoming an English-language broad sheet. 'Goa Today', a monthly magazine in English, is published by the Salgaocars, a mining house. It was founded in 1966 by the noted novelist and freedom fighter, Lambert Mascarenhas. There are three Marathi newspapers in Goa today: 'Gomantak' and 'Navprabha', published in Panjim, and 'Rashtramath' from Margao. A Konkani daily, 'Sunaparant', is also published in Margao. Another Konkani newspaper, 'Novem Goem', came out after 1961, but died, as did two English journals, 'Goan Weekly' and 'West Coast Times'. In assessing the situation today, Frederick Noronha, who provided much of the above data concerning post-1961 journalism in Goa, reports that "Goa currently appears to have a large number of papers for a state with just 1.3 million or fewer inhabitants. But the circulation is small of most papers, with the largest hovering around 25,000 copies-per-day mark."[19] It is sad to relate that as of this date the 'Boletim', the scholarly journal of the Instituto Menezes Braganca, has been out of circulation for the past year because of conflict between the Institute and the Government of Goa. CONCLUSIONS: Most of the journals discussed in this paper have been weekly newspapers; that is, weekly in the sense that they came out every seven days, and not weakly meaning that they were not strong. Some obviously feel under the second definition because they were so short-lived. More than one of these produced only one issue. We know that many of the older journals existed only because a writer has discovered they existed and has told us so. Therefore, we are left to depend for our knowledge of them on secondary sources. What is appalling to the unsuspecting observer is the journal titles in a colony ruled by a foreign power. One finds in this list, as one translates them into English, the spirit of the French Revolution -- the yearning for liberty, for justice, for progress, for independence; and, yes, even for friendship for and affinity with India. Here is a sampling: Friend of the People, Friend of the Goan People, Democracy, The Independent, Journal of the People, The Goan People, Progress, The Progress of Goa, The Periodical of the People, The Goan People, The Voice of the People and, perhaps most telling of all, The Sentinel of Liberty. As for Goa's identification with India, consider: "Bharat Mitra' (Brother India), The Indian Bulletin, Indian Civilization, Echo of India, Gazette of India, The Indian, Journal of India, Reporter of India, The Voice of the People of India, and, after Independence, 'India Portuguesa' becomes, simply, 'India'. But the salient impression that is left after delving into the world of journalism in Portuguese India is that here was a people eager to write, to report, to publish, d ultimately to read the printed word in newspaper, magazine and journals of every kind: political, scientific, literary, religious, satirical and scholarly. e is also left with the felling that the ugly censorship hung over the heads of journalists during the Portuguese period. Granted, for many years considerable leeway was allowed reporters and editorialists, but the threat of the printed word was something that caused Portuguese administrators and occasionally high-ranking clergy to have moments of anxiety. The egregious shutdown of Goa's first journal, 'Gazeta de Goa', after only five years of its existence and the confiscation of its printing press might have been a portent of things to come: the suspension of publication from 1895 to 1897, the censorship of Salazar and the imprisonment of Evagrio Jorge. One could rest in a state of euphoria if convinced that censorship left India with the British and the Portuguese. Goa is now a part of India, and the ugly tentacles of press repression still exist in India: * Witness the period of dictatorial rule imposed by Indira Gandhi in the 1970s. * Witness the banning of Salman Rushdie's 'Satanic Verses' by Rajiv Gandhi. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: The author is indebted to a number of people who have helped him along the way while preparing this paper. He acknowledges with thanks Marilena Mattos and Blair Bateman of the University of Minnesota Spanish and Portuguese Department for help with translations, Eddie Fernandes and Frederick Noronha of Goa-Research-Net, Gozago da Gama of the University of Minnesota and Dr George V Coelho of Bethesda, Maryland for consultation. [1] Fonseca, Joao de. An Historical and Archaeological Sketch of Goa (1878) pp.58-61. [2] Brito Aranha, Pedro Wenceslau de. Subsidios para a Historia do Journalismo na Provincias Ultramarinas Portuguesas (1885) p 2. [3] Esteves, Sarto. Goa and Its Future. (1966) p 17 [4] Saldanha, Claudio. A Short History of Goa (1957) p 148 [5] Cunha, Antonio Maria da. A Evolucao do Jornalismo na India Portuguesa in 'A India Portuguesa', v 2, p 507 [6] ibid, p 509 [7] ibid, p 510 [8] ibid, p 111 [9] Vimala Devi. 'Jornalismo' in 'A Literature Indo- Portuguesa'. (1971) v 2, p 250 [10] Rangel, Jaime. 'A Imprensa em Goa'. (1956) p 50 [11] da Cunha. Op.cit. p 512 [12] Xavier, P.D. "Role of the Press in the Freedom Struggle in Goa' in Goa Wins Freedom. Pp 94-95. [13] Frederick Noronha. E-mail correspondence, 31 January 1998. [14] Vimala Devi, ibid p 253 [15] ibid, p 255 [16] ibid. [17] ibid p 550 [18] Panandikar, V.A. & Chaudhuri, P.N. Demographic Transition in Goa and Its Policy Implications, p 28 [19] Noronha, Frederick. E-mail correspondence, 31 January 1998 BIBLIOGRAPHY Ali, B. Sheik Goa wins freedom. Bambolim, Goa: Goa University, 1986 (Has article 'Role of Press in the Freedom Struggle in Goa,' by P D Xavier) Brito Aranha, Pedro Wenceslau de, 1833-1914 Subsidios para a historia do jornalismo na provincias ultramarinas Portuguesas. Lisboa: Imprensa Nacional,1885 (Contains comprehensive listing of the early journals.) Cunha, Antonio Maria da, 1863-1947. A Evolucao do jornalismo na India Portuguesa. (In India Portuguesa. 1923. v2; pp 503-594) Fonseca, Jose Nicolau da An historical and archaeological sketch of Goa... Bombay: Thacker, 1878. (A small section is devoted to journalism.) Rangel, Jaime. A Imprensa em Goa. Bastora: Tip. Rangel, 1956 (Contains a list of more than 300 journals in the Panjim Public Library.) Scholberg, Henry. Bibliography of Goa and the Portuguese in India. New Delhi: Promilla, 1982. (Contains a list of more than 300 journals in the Panjim Public Library.) Vimala Devi. A literatura indo-portuguesa. Lisboa: Junta de Investigacoes do Ultramar, 1971. 2 v.; Part II: Antologie, pp 250-258 (Like da Cunha's essay, a standard work.) ---------------------------------------------------------------------- The writer is Former Director, Ames Library of South Asia, University of Minneasota and author of the 'Bibliography of Goa and the Portuguese in India'. New Delhi: Promilla, 1982. GOANET-READER WELCOMES contributions from its readers, by way of essays, reviews, features and think-pieces. We share quality Goa-related writing among the 7000-strong readership of the Goanet/Goanet-news network of mailing lists. If you appreciated the thoughts expressed above, please send in your feedback to the writer. Our writers write -- or share what they have written -- pro bono, and deserve hearing back from those who appreciate their work. 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