Dear Fred, I'm glad you've responded because now at last I will find some informed answers (from an intelligent person) to questions that plague me. First of all, let me say that I understand your viewpoint and I am open to it. Let me put forward my "issues" (for want of a neutral word) with the matter of unchecked migration into Goa.
1. GDP per capita is a function of GDP and the population. One of the reasons Goa enjoys a high per capita income is not because it has been wonderfully industrious in managing its goods and services but because it has managed the other part of the equation, which is its population. Into this mix is going to emerge a burgeoning population, which neither national nor regional parties seem keen on addressing. Does Goa have a plan or is it alright with the shifting demographics? 2. There is going to be a cultural shift. Into a population that is fairly educated and relatively prosperous, we are influxing a population that is uneducated and poor. Do we have a plan to integrate the two or are we building parallel societies? 3. People need space and they need accommodation. Do we have a plan to accommodate the influx or are we going the way of Mumbai and Delhi, where sprawling slums spread like cancer. If we are then we might as well bid farewell to our tourism industry. 4. Whether we like to admit it or not, migration of people which is predominantly poor brings with it a criminal element. Do we have resources to deal with this or are we depending on those dogs again? :) 5. Societies transform themselves when seemingly blue-collared jobs morph into high-end services. Farmers become agriculturists, hair dressers become stylists, cooks become dietitians and chefs. This happens with concerted training, education and a labour supply unadulterated by cheap imports of it. Do we have any intent to transform our indigenous labour market into a highly competitive one, or are we just going to dilute it with cheap labour from India's impoverished states. Unmitigated migration is a problem. It is here. We cannot deal with it by giving into emotional rhetoric from either side of the the aisle. We have to deal with it and plan for it, with clear-headed objectivity. Democracies are seldom seamless organisations that serve the greater good. More often than not they are powered by vested interests that serve pockets of society. Let the interests of Goans be first in Goa. As for your last comment about Goan immigrants and adopted homelands, I wouldn't know. I am not an immigrant. My feet and tax money are firmly planted in Goa. Elisabeth --------------------------------- --- "Frederick \"FN\" Noronha" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > I think we should make all migrants into Goa to wear > a compulsory > badge (like I saw in Dachau, outside Munich ... and > I hear they're > implementing for the religious minorities in Iran > too!) Better still, > we could just stamp their foreheads with some > derrogatory symbol. > > Only problem, we are all migrants into Goa at some > time or another. > Those shouting the loudest (the so-called "upper" > castes), are > probably those who came in last. In this fight for > resources, we use > whatever arguments are convenient by us. But what > fun if Goa's own > aboriginal communities -- the Gavada, Kunbi, Velip > and mis-named > 'Dhangars' -- adopt this same logic! Basically, the > law of reciprocity > should be acknowledged. Please stand up and let me > know how many expat > Goans would prefer the same conditions to be set up > against them in > their adopted homelands too! FN > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Goanet mailing list Goanet@lists.goanet.org http://lists.goanet.org/listinfo.cgi/goanet-goanet.org
