Soter!! Your resistance to understand the struggle against mining in Goa is astonishing!
It would be really nice if you had taken the trouble to find out a little bit more about what we are trying to do regarding the mining issue , before you make the wrong assumptions and try to make me look like a fool in this platform. You are lucky that I believe in creating awareness about this crucial issue in Goa..... Therefore let me point out to you that just because we managed to get the moratorium for the new mining leases, which by itself was indeed crucial and an achievement, it does not mean we are not fighting the established and so called legal mines and illegal mines in Goa - on the contrary ! We are indeed trying extremely hard to close down the entire mining industry in Goa, but that cannot be done overnight. Any idiot would understand that! In any case, it is not a question of understanding politics, but a question of taking into consideration the few thousand people who are employed by this industry at the moment. You have to be realistic, find alternatives, think strategically and work on it in every way possible. We are after all fighting very powerful and rootless people who have the entire government under their control. For every practical purpose they are the government! That has not stopped me and others from fighting them and confronting them. At the end of the day I may not achieve much, but no one can say I have not tried. Furthermore, if you knew the real significance of fighting and winning against the insignificant Sheikh Mukthar (according to you) you would be now busy congratulating the Adivasis from Caurem instead of wasting your time picking on me. Let me make it very clear that first of all there is no such thing as "insignificant legal or illegal miner". The damage they cause is always significant and often irreversible. You might be well versed in local politics, but I and everyone else I am working with in Goa are not spring chickens and naive ignorant idiots . We are realistic and are working on this issue systematically in every way we possibly can and relentlessly. Politics are not above everything in this world, and especially not above Goa's environment. I will continue to fight for it despite all the local politics which is in practice just corruption, not real politics. Moreover, the breakdown of law and order in Goa has nothing to do with the fact that we got the moratorium, which is something we can use to try and stop new mines from starting by taking them to Supreme Court if necessary. I know that for the likes of Timblo even the Supreme Court means nothing...but we can try. Bottom line is we have to be vigilant all the time and fight the existing system and status quo and the moratorium is a good barrier albeit temporary as is the direct action taken by the affected people form Caurem. A tremendous example of people power against the government corruption and incompetence. Of course the ultimate and ideal solution is revolution, but meanwhile.... Jai Ram! Ram Yes! INDEED! essage: 2 Date: Thu, 3 Mar 2011 17:21:16 +0530 From: "SOTER" <so...@bsnl.in> To: <goa...@goanet.org> Subject: [Goanet] mining in Goa - the insolence and dare Message-ID: <000901cbd999$527368f0$1901a8c0@user77948b9580> Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed; charset="iso-8859-1"; reply-type=original Carmen wrote:Yes Soter , you got the wrong impression as usual....! A year ago (not a couple of months ago) we managed to get a moratorium on new mining leases in Goa and that is a cause to celebrate. There are already 110 so called legal mining operations, and if we did not get the moratorium there would be another 130 extra mines operating in Goa by now! So yes, it is Jai Jairam Ramesh Ho indeed! The problem of illegal mining which is another problem altogether, needs to be resolved by Goa government and not central government. When there is a situation of a total breakdown of law and order, and when the minister's themselves and the police are involved in illegal activities including mining, than the only solution is revolution. I hope my message now is quite clear!Soter replies:The message is not yet clear Carmen. For those well versed with political gimmicks do not bite anything and everything like the gullible Goemkar.A Moratorium on future mining leases is taken as great achievement when you yourself admit about a breakdown of law and order? So continue raping the hills as far and wide as you can get with the 110 existing leases as it is all politically stretchable to 130 in a lawless Goa.Attack some insignificant Sheikh Mukthar and proclaim success while the other sharks continue their trade. Jai Ram! Ram Yesh! ------------------------------