Capt Gerald Fernandes, Ex, the Indian Army wrote: Dear Paulo and interested Goanetters,
1. may I venture in deepest humility to point out ... the right of a Sovereign Nation to acquire territory. 2. Just as in law Portugal, Spanish, Dutch and the Brits (other colonial powers) were entitled to acquire property , they are /were equally entitled in law to lose property to a superior power. 3. The faster,quicker and earlier we accept that the Portuguese were beaten to the punch by the Indians ,the easier will be the transition to acceptance of reality. 7. Can we contemporarily move on now ,instead of being held hostage mentally to ideas propounded by "deadbeats" /and or "living fossils' who are prisoners to an age of Portuguese dominance of Goa, which in all human probability shall never return, 7(b) inasmuch as Indian Kashmir will never devolve to the Pakistanis. == a response from jc == Dear Capt Gerald Fernandes, Paulo and others, Whenever Paulo writes, I stop to read. He is, after all, a well educated, cultured and a very reasonable man - one I have had the pleasure of meeting in person. Accordingly, when his post arrived at the time of an opportune 'break' for me, I was happy to read it. I'll submit this - there is nothing in Paulo's post that isn't factual. There is also much in the post of Capt Gerald Fernandes (GF) that I agree with. However, there are some points, I have some difficulty with. I have listed them above. I preface my response thus: PREFACE: a: I absolutely agree that Dec 19, 1961 is fait accompli!. b: NOT everybody who questions the word "liberation" was pro-Salazar. c: Some who jump up and down about "liberation" were indeed pro-Salazar. I would like to ask Capt Gerald Fernandes a few questions? Is he implying the following: re# 1: * that every Sovereign Nation has the right to acquire territory...even property that never belonged to it ....as a Sovereign Nation?. * that it was right for Sadaam Hussein to try acquire the territory aka Kuwait? * that it was right for Indonesia to try acquire the territory known as East Timor? * that Honduras has a right to acquire Belize (the former British Honduras)? * that Pakistan has a right to acquire and be in Pak-occupied Kashmir? * that China has a right to acquire Aksai Chin? * that Indonesia (or China) has a right to acquire the Andaman Islands? re # 2 * that IF China becomes a superior power (in comparison to India), it will have a right to acquire (say) Goa and name it Goem-Chin ...and that India will be 'entitled in law to lose property to a superior power'.? BTW: Which Law is this? * that GF knows a LAW that entitles anybody to lose property to the goons/Dadas in the neighbourhood? * that the faster,quicker and earlier some Goans who have had their land titles or even ownership of their civilian airport taken away - accept that they were beaten to the punch, ,the easier will be the transition to acceptance of reality. re # 7 * that in the 21st century we have become so ossified that we as human beings are unable to understand that the most basic premise of humanity is autonomy and self determination. * that we have regressed to the fossil age where we can argue from a point of Might is Right and not from what Might actually be Right! We sit and justify the "liberation" on our own terms. What about the people who are affected by our aggression and display of might is right-ness? Anybody cares to ask the people before we just decide to 'bomb' them? Or ... would the inconvenient truth create a problem with our agenda? I am just asking. good evening from here jc Often times when I hear this totally "fossilesque" Might is Right argument, and then learn about the child abuse that was going on in that Texas 'church', I wonder if it is not this "power trip" which causes these people to abuse others and their basic rights while telling them that they are being "blessed" or 'liberated" or ........ is it just our plain ignorance of the fundamental rights of others!
