--------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2008 International Goan Convention Toronto, Canada
Early Bird Discount Registration closes March 31, 2008 http://2008goanconvention.com/registration.html --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Dear Editor, The reactions to the unfortunate death of the British teenage tourist Scarlet Keeling by the Ministers of the Goa Government are very disheartening and unfortunate. These Ministers are behaving like street fighters trying to defend their own actions (or inactions) by pointing the finger at Fiona Mackeown, the mother of the deceased child. There is no denying the fact that Fiona Mackeown acted irresponsibly by leaving her daughter in the care of dubious local Goans, who turned out to be unreliable; but this in no way absolves the Government and its law enforcing machinery of the shabby response to the death. Alexio Sequeira seeks to shift the blame entirely to Fiona Mackeown. This is not only irrational, but it is also a betrayal of the expectations of the citizens that the Police should have been more alert both before and after the event. Our Minister for Home, Ravi Naik, likewise claims that Scarlette would not have died in the way she did had her mother been more responsible. Again, even if this were true, it does not absolve the Government of its own irresponsibility. Ravi Naik publicly acknowledges that Goa is a transit point and even a "safe haven" for drug trafficking. It is not enough to pass the buck to the Central Government for inadequate monitoring of the drug trade into and out of Goa. Does the local Government not have any role to play to ensure the safety of its own citizens as well as the tourists who are lured to our shores? It is high time that our Ministers grow up and stop behaving like immature children who indulge in mutual recriminations when a crime is committed. It is time for an impartial (judicial?) enquiry into the nexus between the drug traffickers, the local police and even our politicians in this horrible cancer which has enveloped the beautiful state of Goa. Yours truly, Averthanus L. D'Souza, D-13, La Marvel Colony, Dona Paula, Goa 403 004. Tel: 2453628.