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2008 International Goan Convention
Toronto, Canada
Early Bird Discount Registration closes March 31, 2008
http://2008goanconvention.com/registration.html
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Strange comments from people on GoaNet who saw snippets of the show or just
heard about it.
I was there, having been invited to attend, though not one of the "wired
with a
microphone" VIPs. Better sense prevailed for I chose not to speak but just
listen to the tamasha.
I did not take a census of who was a Catholic and who was a Hindu, but was
introduced before the event, to quite a few Goan Hindus, who like me, chose
not to speak. My impression was that the crowd was a cross-section of Goans
with a significant number of tourists. Barkha Dutt said that she had invited
several dignitaries from the Government including Digambar Kamat and Ravi Naik,
but they declined.
What appeared on TV was obviously a heavily edited version of what I heard
and saw.
I was favorably impressed with Barkha Dutt and the way she conducted the show
and tried to keep the discussion on topic. My overall impression was that
there was strong criticism from most of the crowd, both Goans and Tourists, of
the Goa Police and the alleged nexus between the Police and drug dealers. A
British woman who says she is a policewoman in Britain, alleged that every day
on the beach as she lay on her tanning bed, she was apalled to see Police
hassling the hawkers on the beach and soliciting bribes. If this is true
and as blatant as it was made out to be, I hope the powers that be, take note.
There was strong criticism of Scarlett's mother for leaving her 15 year old
with people who she had just met a couple of months earlier. Her defense was
that she was naive.
The only Minister in attendance held his own and defended the Goa
Government's handling of the case, though there were glitches in the
investigation. He said we had to allow time for the investigation to be
completed. Fair enough, we dont need a lynch mob, nor do we need
a long drawn out investigation that goes on ad nauseum till memories fade.
I am not condoning what our Goa Police did or did not do. My stomach was in
knots to think about all the publicity in this case, because the victim was
white, while murders of young Goan girls take place all the time and the story
is soon relegated to the archives. Is there a different level of justice in
Goa with the old colonial mentality based on a person's skin colour ?
Overall, it was a good discussion with some torrid arguments and name
callings which at ttimes I felt came very close to people exchanging blows,
when they were physically restrained.
Been there, seen and heard it. This is an eyewitness report.
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