Thank you very much Dr. Pacheco de Figueiredo. Truly appreciated. Have a great 4th of July.
Sonia On Sun, 5 Jul, 2026, 10:01 am JOHN DE FIGUEIREDO, <[email protected]> wrote: > Today (July 4, 2026) the people of the United States commemorate the 250th > anniversary of the birth of their Nation. Today is also a day of reflection > to all Goans because it is the 96th anniversary of the Goan Declaration of > Self-Determination. By issuing this Declaration, the democratically elected > representatives of the people of Goa to the Government Council made sure > that we, Goans, would never again be told that we never asked for that > right and that for future reference we should always ask. The Declaration > was a protest against the Acto Colonial that had condemned the Goans to > perpetual servitude. The Declaration was approved by the Council by > unanimity. The Council was chaired by Governor Joao Carlos Craveiro Lopes > (father of Francisco Higinio Craveiro Lopes, future President of the > Portuguese Republic). Governor Craveiro Lopes continued to condemn the Acto > Colonial and defend the right of the Goans to self-determination after he > returned to Portugal, thereby risking his career. Two anniversaries of > legitimate protest leading to two drastically different fates. The United > States became the most powerful democracy on earth. The Goans never > exercised their right to self-determination and were destined to never > exercise that right. Below is an article I wrote to commemorate these > memorable anniversaries: > > > *This article is protected by Copyright. No part of it should be > reproduced without the author’s written permission. This article was > published in “Revista da Casa de Goa” and it is reproduced here with the > Editor’s permission. The opinions expressed by the author in this article > are exclusively his own.* > > > > A DAY OF JOY FOR GOANS > John M. de Figueiredo, MD, ScD > > On July 4, 1776, a courageous group of English citizens established in > North America declared their desire to separate from England to form a new > nation, the United States of America. More than a century and a half later, > on July 4, 1930, in a remote corner of the western coast of India, while > the Americans were celebrating their Independence Day, four Goans presented > in Goa a declaration to the Government Council of Portuguese India. The > declaration responded to the request of Dr. Oliveira Salazar, then Minister > of the Colonies, for an opinion from Portuguese India through its > Government Council on his project of the Colonial Act. That Act stated in > Article 2: “It is of the organic essence of the Portuguese Nation to > perform the historical function of owning and colonizing overseas domains > and to civilize the indigenous populations that are comprised in them, also > exercising the moral influence assigned to it by the ‘Padroado do Oriente’ > " And in Article 3: “The overseas domains of Portugal are called colonies > and constitute the Portuguese Colonial Empire.” The four Goans made up the > elected part of the Government Council: Luiz de Menezes Bragança, author of > the Declaration, António Xavier Gomes Pereira, Naraina Bandorcar, and > Cipriano da Cunha Gomes, co-signatories. The declaration was adopted by the > Government Council by unanimous vote. This statement, transcribed from the > Minutes of the Government Council, ran as follow*s:* > > *“1st Portuguese India does not renounce the right of peoples to reach the > fullness of their individuality, until they become units capable of > directing their destinies, since it is an original right, of its organic > essence;* > > *2nd Recommends that, maintaining the organization of the Portuguese State > established in the Political Constitution of the Republic:* > > *a) There is no discrimination between the Metropolis and the Overseas > Provinces of individual rights and guarantees expressed in Art. 3 and its > Constitution numbers and the representation of India in the Congress of the > Republic is maintained* > > *b) The regime of administrative decentralization and financial autonomy > of the Overseas Provinces is reestablished in the terms defined in Articles > 67 B and 67 F of the Constitution as a starting point for representative > institutions of broader action.* > > *c) The principle of majority elected in the highest deliberative body in > the country is reestablished in India, the intervention of that majority > being recognized, through its representatives, in the special function of > the “examination and visa”, of ordering the expenses and accounts of > management"* > > Unlike the founders of the United States, Menezes Bragança, Gomes > Pereira, Naraina Bandorcar, and Cipriano da Cunha Gomes did not ask for > political independence for Goa. Nor was their desire to transfer > sovereignty to the Indian Union, which, at the time, did not yet exist as a > nation. Known as the “Greatest of All”, Menezes Bragança thought that the > people of Goa had an individuality and psychology fundamentally different > from the peoples of the rest of India, the result of Portugal's > assimilationist policy, and it was always of the opinion that Portuguese > India was part and portion of the spiritual unity of the Portuguese Nation. > Despite his vehement opposition to the Colonial Act, he simply asked for > the people of his homeland democratic representation and maximum > administrative and financial autonomy under Portuguese sovereignty. > > To say that Menezes Bragança was the “Tilak of Goa” shows ignorance > of what he wanted for his homeland. Lokmanya Tilak wanted, for his India, > complete and immediate independence (‘*Swaraj*”) from the British > colonial rule. Menezes Bragança was always loyal to Portugal and during the > First Republic he was praised by Dr. Jaime de Morais, Governor of > Portuguese India, for his loyalty to Portugal and his honesty. > Unfortunately, the little he asked for, he did not obtain, and the Colonial > Act was promulgated and incorporated into the 1933 Constitution. Menezes > Bragança's reaction was to state that “the 1933 Constitution betrayed the > spirit of the 1911 Constitution”. His newspaper “*Luz *- *Pracasha*” was > closed by order of the Government, forever silencing his voice. > > In this manner was born the historical fatality of the people of > Portuguese India. As the Viceroy of Portuguese India Count of S. Vicente > said so well, “Portuguese India is only seen from far away and only heard > too late”. The voice of Portuguese India echoed in the desert and died. > Goa's fate was decided by others, not by the Goans themselves. The human > right of self-determination, an “original right, of its organic essence” was > never exercised by the Goans through a plebiscite, and will never be > exercised, but the protest of the Goans against the Colonial Act and the > expression of their natural desire to “reach the fullness of their > individuality” were recorded forever in the annals of history. > The Declaration of Self-Determination is the most important document > in the modern history of Portuguese India. July 4th is not a day of joy and > pride for the Americans only; it is also for the Goans. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "Goa-Research-Net" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion, visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/979926520.966876.1783225706084%40mail.yahoo.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/979926520.966876.1783225706084%40mail.yahoo.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Goa-Research-Net" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/goa-research-net/CAG_LhYMqfUiiEWCdTuyZWmhXnrjfM8W5Q%2BW%2BMPw_yw3maJo5Vw%40mail.gmail.com.
