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Operation Red-light Some call it a "Heaven on Earth". Some use the term "God's own abode". Some others say it is a "tourist's paradise". But none will deny that Goa has its ugly spots too. Spots that have threatened to disrupt the peace and harmony prevailing for decades in Goa. Certainly, one such ugly spot that has been in the news recently is the Baina red-light area. This area was a den of prostitution and a hub where all sorts of criminal and nefarious activities took place. Lack of political will in effectively tackling the state of affairs here made this place extremely volatile and dangerous. The average citizen just could not visit this place without the risk to his life. In fact, the entire city of Vasco became extremely unsafe simply because of the unchecked activities that were taking place here. Ask any citizen of Vasco and he would tell you how risky it was to travel in the city in the nights without fears of being mugged. How the women would just refuse to step out of their homes after sunset. How thefts, assaults, riots and murders became a part and parcel of life in Vasco. And almost every single act of misdemeanor, misdeed and crime had its links -- directly or indirectly -- to the Red-light area. When the Government took firm steps to correct just exactly this, opposition parties and some NGO's turned this into a huge issue. When the need of the hour was to provide the Government with unflinching support, it was perhaps a cruel irony that there were many who did exactly the opposite. "The Government was abusing human rights, it was abusing the rights of helpless women", they screamed and shouted. That the debate on "Rights" in Goa has remained mired in a handful of political slogans and postures cannot be doubted. Human rights organizations, NGO's and activists have become intensely confrontational in their attitudes, even when positive actions are taken to clean up our beautiful State from the mess and the rot. The million dollar question that needs to be posed to our "elite intellectuals" in whom the milk of human kindness overflows is: Do only people who indulge in illegal activities have rights? Shouldn't the law abiding citizens too have rights of their own, including the right to move freely and without fear on the beaches and on the streets? Isn't it the constitutional right of a citizen to be able to live peacefully, without threat to his life? Weren't these rights threatened by the very people for whose cause these activists are now fighting for? Yes, a rehabilitation package was necessary but "Operation Red-light" was even more necessary to rid Goa of the social stigmas. Parrikar must be lauded for showing the courage and political will in his efforts to remove these scourges from the map of Goa. . Sandeep Heble Panaji-Goa
