RACISM AMONG GOANS Goans are aware that racism exists in the form of caste, which they suffer in silence as if social inequality, exploitation, and injustice are immutable facts of life.
BY BEN ANTAO. I'VE BEEN meaning to write about racism among Goans for a long time now, but each time I felt the urge to deal with this obnoxious theme, I retreated into the cocoon of a sussegad Goan, asking, rhetorically, why upset my fellow Goans when nothing positive might come out of it? After all, Goans are aware that racism exists in the form of caste, which they suffer in silence as if social inequality, exploitation, and injustice are immutable facts of life. Under the Indian caste system, all categories and hierarchies suffer, trust me. I think the long period of colonial subjugation has emasculated the Goan to the point that even after 40 years of so-called ‘political' freedom, the people in Goa appear to be in a state of torpor as if under a spell of intractable indolence. And so we put up with the non-Goans' agenda of what is good for Goa, instead of creating our own vision and working for our own dreams. BAITING GOANS Today a new fishing line in the form of SEZ (special economic zone) is being cast from Delhi over the waters of the Zuari River to see if Goans will take the bait. And already the Industries Minister Luizinho Faleiro is jumping at this opportunity with unabashed glee to make more money than he needs or will ever need at least for two generations to come. Instead of working to address the urgent problems of parking, garbage disposal and traffic control in Margao, he is tilting at this windmill of SEZ. Goa doesn't need more industries - it needs a regular supply of clean water, sanitation in its bars and restaurants, unimpeded flow of electricity, un- crowded buses and transportation, underground parking, sidewalks on major roads and streets, street lighting that works, and politicians who care for the quality of life and are seen to be accountable. How is this related to the topic of racism? Simple - Goan politicians who are sleeping with the Congress and the BJP are surrendering their freedom to think to the dictators from New Delhi who can't possibly know what is good for Goans. In other words, it is a form of racism that Goans are made to kowtow to the dictates from the likes of Margaret Alva, the Congress honcho, who shamelessly sells her party tickets to the highest bidder, even after knowing the bidders' shocking conduct of defections and counter-defections. Is this a democratic road for a political party to take? It is a form of racism that non-Goans are in charge of the civil service, with no or poor knowledge of Konkani, the language of the people. Ask yourself: Is the civil service in the state of Maharashtra controlled by non-Maharashtrians? In Punjab? In Tamil Nadu? Not on your sussegad life. CASTE CONSCIOUSNESS But why is it happening in Goa? Are the politicians so caste conscious that they will sell their integrity for the highest price? Why are the politicians allowing big business interests, mostly non-Goan, to buy whatever they want without giving a hoot for the environment and the quality of life for the common citizen? The answer, my friend, is Money. It's been blowing in the wind for a long, long time. As long as Goans continue to work for others, they will experience overt and covert discrimination, no matter in which part of the world they choose to make a living and spread their bedding. In Goa itself the business classes will and do impose their will on the workers; the Goans will not protest but suffer in silence, collect their monthly salary, drink and be merry. The journalists in Goa will never be free to write what is good for the people as long as they work for others. This is another overt form of racism practiced by the owners of the media. What is a reporter or sub-editor to do? Suck up to the boss or starve. The business classes in Goa and India have become the Kshatriyas or big shots in the social structure, while the navel-gazing, self-absorbed Brahmins gloat in their inherited notion of superiority, pandering to the big shots who have the money. The itch for status and power has so infected the politicians that they will prostitute everything and anything to worship the god of Mammon. Money! Money! Money! And so they buy their votes at election time and make themselves look good. Or should I say their votes are in the bank? Do Goans deserve the racist mess they have made? When a political party like the BJP tells the Catholics that it will make Goa totally Hindu, what is the response of the Catholics? "I don't care, I'm only a Christian by name; all I want is to get elected and make money," says one politician. "I was originally a Hindu anyway before the Inquisition; I'd rather be a Hindu and reclaim my Saraswat Brahmin roots and make more money," says another politician. "My name maybe Christian but I am an atheist and a nationalist," says a freedom fighter on pension. "Although my last name is Christian, my first name is Hindu, which makes me proud of my Hindu ancestry," says another politician whose only goal is to become wealthy. The question, really, shouldn't be that Goans deserve to live and die amidst racism; the question is: When will Goans come together and work together for the common good of all humanity? If Goans want the traffic chaos in Margao to cease, they must elect municipal councillors who will do the job; if they want clean and hygienic restaurants, they must put inspectors in place to do the job, who won't take bribes and look the other way; if Goans want to ensure the streets in Panjim are not flooded during the monsoons, they must demand that the public works department install proper drainage system for water and sewage; they must hold the politicians accountable for this service and not accept buck-passing answers from civil servants. Why are the educated people in Panjim and Margao putting up with the ongoing litany of woes stemming from flooding, power failures, unsanitary environment, and mindless traffic accidents? I suspect the reason is racism or caste mentality. They don't want to get their hands dirty, and so allow the non- Goans to run the government. GREAT ESCAPE The Goan has a prodigious talent for living with double standards and suffering discrimination at home and abroad. They would rather run away from the scene than change it. Sigh! And so they troop out to the fabled Arabian lands in search of moolah. Just ignore the blatant insults to their dignity and pretend to like being treated as slaves so long as the Kuwaiti Dinar is good and worth 148 Indian rupees. After accumulating bags of money, some are ready to leave the stifling living conditions and escape to the more hospitable Western nations operating under conditions of so-called democracy. Well, it's not all milk and honey in the West either. Subtle racism in the U.K., U.S. and Canada is par for the course. But if anyone can live with social discrimination, the Goan can, for he has mastered the art of polite tolerance and acceptance of second-class status. The other option, of course, is to return to Goa, but you already know what the situation is in Goa and India vis-à -vis racism. Goans, who have settled in the West, complain about racism. What do they expect? As long as we work for others, we shall never be totally free. No person is. At least, in Canada where I live, laws are in place prohibiting discrimination on the basis of skin colour or age or gender. And some of these laws have teeth. Still, a certain amount of circumvention does take place, given the creativity and persistence of certain diehard individuals. Where human beings are concerned, perfection is impossible. Now why do I hear this comment? Write all you want about the evils of corruption, but nothing will change in Goa. Racism among Goans will remain, as it was in the beginning, is now and forever. Amen! (ENDS) ============================================================================== The above article appeared in the July 16-22, 2005 edition of the Goan Observer, Goa Ben Antao, is a prolific author with several books to his name. His latest, Penance, has been published this past month. For a profile on Ben Antao, visit: http://www.goanet.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=221 _______________________________________________ Goanet mailing list Goanet@lists.goanet.org http://lists.goanet.org/listinfo.cgi/goanet-goanet.org