An edited version appeared in the souvenir of the 2008 Goan Convention held in Toronto.
--- Locating identity between home and diaspora By Eugene Correia The prevailing debate over Goan identity both in cyberspace and in the Goan media is the direct result of the surge of immigrants from not only outside Goa but from foreign countries. Goan demographics have changed since the liberation of the colony from Portuguese rule in 1961. It was a much-envied place by Indians outside Goa before liberation and it is a much-sought after place after liberation by the same group. In the last decade or so, Goa has suddenly become a magnet for Indians outside Goa because of its image created by the tourism department and enhanced by media surveys proclaiming the state as the best place in India to live. Goa's natural beauty notwithstanding, the land was considered hospitable to outsiders who wanted to make it their home. There was also the prospect of new jobs in a less-congested, healthy environment. As with all migration, people move into such comfortable areas. Alongside, tourism became the new economic mantra. There was a rush to cash in on Goa’s landscape – the sun, cultural ethos and uninhibited living. The hippie invasion of the 1960s put Goa firmly on the world’s tourist map. There was no turning back. The stereotyping of Goans as laid-back and full of fun and the land full of easy virtues took root that Goans are unable to shake off till today. As tourists starting coming in large numbers and as dollars and pounds, along with Indian rupees, started filling up government coffers, tourism became big business. As the tourist trade grew by leaps and bounds it brought along its ill-effects that have marked major tourist hotspots in many countries. A lax adherence to law and rampant corruption brought into play by the political class further eased the path of migrant labour, the nouveau riche, the foreign sunseekers and the criminally-bent exploiters. Today, Goa presents a different picture than what one saw just after liberation. The presence of “visible minorities” (to borrow a Canadian term) not only in cities and villages but in the corridors of power has suddenly woken the sussegado Goan to the harsh reality of the times. Goa’s character has undergone change and changing further. Interaction with people from other states, the forces of tourism and the steady pace of industrialization are factors that have contributed immensely to Goa’s changed image from the rest of India. The starting of Konkani Railway drove straight into Goa’s socio-cultural heart. The culture of the rest of India rides daily into Goa on the railway. Would Goans want to stop it or find a way in preventing it from destroying our repository of culture and heritage? Formed in 1999, Goa Hit-Rakhan Manch (GHM) said in a paper, “Nothing much has changed since Goa was granted statehood, except that our economic, political, social and cultural environment has been ruined. On the political front, we find nepotism and selfish politics. Economic development has failed to improve the quality of life of the local population, which is evident from the growing unemployment and unhealthy pressure on scarce and limited land resources. On the cultural side, we face invasion on our identity and, on the social front, we experience divisive tendencies.” New non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have been formed to safeguard the land and culture. They work as bulwark against what they feel are forces of evil. They are making progress but it is an uphill task to prevent the on-coming tide after tide of new migrant labour to the shores of Goa. One must admire their work, either as a combined unit or independently of each other, in their intent and approach to fortify Goan resilience to outside influences and, at the same time, trying to regain lost ground and to rejuvenate the sagging spirit of what can be loosely termed as “Goanness.” With Goa forming “vote banks” of migrant labour and in the charged political climate as well as in the interest of national integration how the NGOs will manage to achieve their goals is beyond easy understanding. Though there is legitimate fear of Goa getting swamped by hordes of migrants from outside Goa (Goa Goans call them "baille" in their native Konkani language) , there seems no justification of crying hoarse that Goan identity will be lost forever. Allied to the waves of migrants, the foreign invasion, particularly Russians, has raised Goan eyebrows. A new law banning sale of land to foreigners is a welcome relief. Foreigners coming and buying property makes good economic sense as long as these newcomers do not engage in nefarious activities and they are not a burden on the host society. To give one example, the Algrave in Portugal looks more like an English colony. In Goa and elsewhere in India, political parties engage in "identity politics" or "regional nationalism" to garner voter support. Goa can be prevented from falling into such a trap if the Goans are vigilant to ignore political parties or "issue-based" groups that arouse hatred against outsiders. Are not diaspora Goans “outsiders” in the rest of India’s? It would require rational thinking on where to draw the line, which should, in fact, be as fine as possible so that it does not run into legal complications. To suggest that Goa be declared a “special case” like Kashmir or be termed an “environmentally-sensitive” area to block outsiders seems a difficult proposition. The demand to amend the constitution to make the necessary provisions for Goa to remain only for Goans is like asking for the moon. The other alternative is political agitation. Which political party will bell the cat? Goans will have to rise over petty politics to ensure that Goan culture is healthy – and sustained – without resorting to methods that would foster ill-will against outsiders. In all this, Goans must take into account that the march of modernity cannot be halted by any means unless the society is cocooned from influences of the outside world. It is a tall order and presumably unpractical. Mahatma Gandhi said words to the effect that he would let his windows be open to cultural winds from everywhere and yet he would hold firmly to his own culture. Passionate pleas come from Goans based in Goa and elsewhere to save Goa from migrant labour. If the migrant labour is cut off, who will work in the docks and do our menial work? True, the migrant labourers have created slums and render Goa ugly. The Baina red-light district was an eyesore. The experiment in clearing the “sex workers” and rehabilitating them far away was a humanitarian disaster that brought on the wrath of NGOs against the government. Migrant labour and the poorest of the society must be accommodated in housing projects that could be models for other states to follow. A proper plan must be initiated and implemented. Putting a cap on the inflow of migrants, issuing of identity cards to legitimate Goans, and providing residency permits to those found suitable to work in the state are some of the suggestions. It is easily said than done, taking note of the political fallout from any of these moves. Solutions have to be found before it is too late, if it’s not very late already. Since the convention is themed on Goan Identity and Networking Today (it sounds nice as an acronym, GIANT), the need of the hour is to network among different communities and groups to foster unity and solidarity to preserve, sustain and promote Goan identity. Goans abroad and in Goa must be aware that most social issues in India are won through public agitation and violence. The public movement for the official recognition of Konkani is one such example, though the fight, with Christian Goans making a louder voice, for official recognition of Roman-language Konkani, begun a couple of years ago, has attained great momentum and won some concessions. One can easily blame the socio-economic changes in Goa after its liberation for the prevailing chaos. Such changes were inevitable. They have taken Goa on a sound and secure economic path. The gains are all too visible to see for those who care to look for them. There have been cases of abuse and they will continue to happen, especially in the prized real estate market. Goa is ripe for the picking and, as such, real estate developers will leave no stone unturned in securing land to reap a rich harvest. It is in this context that the political players need to keep a tab on what is happening on the ground. The ground reality is that the political furrows created by both local and national parties and the politician-criminal nexus and politician-real estate builder nexus has wounded Goa deeply than the presence of outsiders. Outsiders will remain unless drastic measures are taken by the people or the government to drive them away. The reaction against such attempts could only erupt into violence and political backlash. The way forward is to take calculated measures within the constitutional authority and conformation to the rule of the land. In the current whirlpool of doubts and concerns, one must be aware of confrontations between cultures. To prevent the clash of cultures, it would be advisable to negotiate a neutral territory. Since long ages the Catholic, Hindu and Muslim cultures have worked harmoniously well in Goa but, of late, political mischievousness has thrown a spanner in the works. Today, the collective identity of Goans seems to have been weighed with religious overtones. The occurrence of one or two communal clashes in the state can be seen as forewarnings, though politicians assure us that the clashes were "incidental." One cannot ignore that caste forms the thickest of layers besides economic stratification. Caste politics is a different ball game that must be seen through the India lens. It ‘s debatable whether the type of development one witnesses in Goa can help the state in the future economically or it will destroy everything that one has come to love, adore and sign its praises There is always a give-and-take equation to development. Some sacrifices must be made to make Goa a self-sustaining state and later an economic powerhouse. As for diasporic Goans, the older generation of Goans who migrated directly from India, especially those who came straight from Goa, to foreign countries will remain tied to the motherland in some way. No matter which place these diasporic Goans call home or call their current host country “adopted home”, Goa will be part of their lives. Many retired Goans in foreign lands return to Goa to spend the rest of their lives and some straddle both worlds, one of the host country and their homeland. The worry is about the second- and third-generation. They could consider Goa an “imaginary homeland”, to use the noted writer Salman Rushdie’s words. The diasporic youngsters face a dilemma. It happens in all diasporic communities. Some Indian communities in Canada, especially the Sikh community, and also the Indo-Canadian community as a whole, have addressed the dilemmas facing the youth. The community concern is mostly at the loss of “Indian values.” In the context of values, we have often heard the term “Goan values” as a supplementary part to the Goan identity question. It is worth pondering over the question raised by Stella-Mascarenhas Keyes when she says, “What does it [identity] mean, in a community that is dispersed in space, but still has a memory of its ancestry?" The answer is hard to find, except that it resides in the deep recesses of the heart. In a globalized world, it is hard to rely on one single identity. Often a person’s affiliations to his ancestry change with time and territory. Writing in his book, Identity and Violence – The Illusion of Destiny, Amartya Sen, the Nobel Laureate, says that “history and background are not the only way of seeing ourselves and the groups to which we simultaneously belong.” He adds, “Identifying with others, in various different ways, can be extremely important for living in a society. It has not, however, always been easy to persuade social analysts to accommodate identity in a satisfactory way. In particular, two different types of reductionism seem to abound in the formal literature of social and economic analysis. One may be called “identity disregard,” and it takes the form of ignoring, or neglecting altogether, the influence of any sense of identity with others, on what we value and how we behave.” He points out that there is a contrasting kind of differentiation which he terms “singular affiliation,” which takes the form of assuming that any person preeminently belongs, for all practical purposes, to one collectivity only – no more and no less.” Considering that some people have gathered in a far away country such as Canada to talk and chalk out plans for salvaging Goan identity, it would appear paradoxical to some well-known Goa-based Goans who have derided diaspora Goans for trying to tell them how and what to do to improve Goa. But distance is no barrier to discuss any issue. What is of import is what comes out of such a meeting. The identity of Goans is not bound by boundaries. The crux of the problem is how to redefine it and package it for further generations. Identity is a genie that refuses to be bottled up. To go off the track a little, Canadians themselves are confused over their identity. The search for Canadian identity has been elusive, with socio-cultural theorists and sociologists failing to come to a consensus on what really constitute Canadian identity. Thrown in this confusion is Canada’s gift to the world -- multiculturalism. That multiculturalism has triumphed despite its critics says lot to Canada’s gamble on how to reach out to the diversity of its population. Is not India a multicultural country? Is not Goa, like the bebinca, a Portuguese sweet dish now a Goan favourite, a multilayered community? I had the privilege of attending the Gomant Vishwa Sammelan (World Goan NRI meet ) in Goa some years ago and it more that convinced me that it was a purely a showcase. If done with care and purpose, the event could serve as one of the rightful platforms (others could be the university and socio-cultural forums) where the issue of Goan identity could be first “deconstructed” and then “reconstructed” to fit into the 21st century. Canadian Goans, especially the first generation, have done extremely well in keeping the culture alive through organizing festivals, events and through participation in mainstream functions. The effort of the Goan Overseas Association (GOA) to have Konkani classes proved a failure in its first attempt. The government funds had to be returned for not meeting the required number of attendants at the classes. Though I am not sure if the second attempt was through GOA but, I believe, a handful of Goans, mostly adults, attended the few classes held. An enthusiastic initiative by a Goan teacher of first running some mandatory Konkani classes for Goan children with the ultimate aim to include the language into the Toronto Catholic school system met with no success. The lessons learnt from these experiments were that the youth, “young adults” and children are content with what they are in Canada. They have successfully assimilated into the mainstream society. For them, doing the folk dances at events such as Viva Goa seems more than enough. At one stage, the youth and the young adults were in the forefront to have a clubhouse for the GOA. But for various reasons, the clubhouse could not be a reality. Maybe these groups lost their steam – and possibly faith – in ever having the clubhouse and faded away from the scene. That perhaps is one part of the equation. The other is that those who were youths are now young adults and those who were young adults have now married and become fathers or mothers themselves and find little time or have less enthusiasm for the idea of a clubhouse. The clubhouse project is now dead for sure. In the 1970s, the Goan community in Toronto wasn’t sparred of the spectre of “identity politics.” The influx of East African Goans, particularly following the Asian expulsion in Uganda by Idi Amin, resulted in the founding of GOA. The non-African Goan members, many of them from Pakistan, felt they were treated like “second-class” members by the dominant African-Goan group. This group felt that the African-Goan group looked upon itself “superior” if not in practical ways but in communal appearance. The big divide drove the disgruntled group to join the Can-Orient Association, whose seed was sown in Montreal with the formation of the Indo-Pakistan Christian Association in Montreal in October 1965. Later efforts to bring the Can-Orient Association into the GOA failed on many counts, the key one being that non-Goan members of the Can-Orient Association would be given “associate member” status with no voting right in conformation with GOA’s constitution. The huge number of new immigrant Goans from the Middle East has created another invisible faction in the Toronto community. Knowingly or unknowingly, they carry with themselves the tag “Gulf Goans.” This group has their own functions. I am informed that preference is giving to Gulf Goans for their annual social. In reality, many identities are flourishing in the Toronto community. Here’s one post taken from Goanet, the global mailing list. The writer says, "The challenge of Goan Diaspora is how to make our traditions relevant to the second and third generation; and realizing that we need to maintain our customs if we are to continue to maintain our community in a foreign land. Of course these lands are now native to the immigrants and their progeny. Many American groups -- German, Italian, Polish, Welsh, Scot, Jewish, etc, maintain their culture and grow it, without being fluent in their ethnic languages. The importance lies in celebrating the religious and national festivals, maintaining the rituals especially at home, knowing and being proud of the heritage and of our community. These practices along with songs, dance and cuisine form a continuing chain with original culture and they link one generation with the next. Taking a page from the German-American group, Goan organizations should sponsor essay writings on Goa in their own community by high-school children and other projects that kids do when they learn of a new place." In fact, the challenge is how to get them to the events in the first place. Viva Goa is a good example but, as I have seen it, it is the soccer matches that draw the young crowd and the dance that follows the cultural offerings. Many youngsters at the cultural activities are there because they accompany their parents or they are participants in the groups or come to cheer their friends, cousins or siblings. Salivating at sorpotel, hand-picking pickles and sausages besides meeting friends are other key factors that have made Viva Goa a success over the years. The event which, unless financially unfeasible or for other unforeseen circumstances, must be carried on. The event keeps the flame of Goan culture burning, however dim it might be. Let me contrast this with what I have seen in Dubai, one of the big pockets of Goans in the Middle East. Shockingly, very less. There have been a couple Goan cultural events, besides the usual stuff such as tiatrs and soccer tournaments. There have been "rain dances" to celebrate the famous Feast of San Joao. The main church, St. Mary’s, is one venue that serves as a meeting point for Goans are some of the events, such as Family Day, organized by the church groups. One reason for the lack of Goan events is perhaps is because the Goan association, which did organize many events in the past, has not been functioning for many years. So, the Dubai-born youngsters are not exposed to Goan customs and traditions in a way and manner one wished they were. However, since many of these youngsters go on annual or bi-annual trips to Goa, they do not remain totally untouched with Goan culture. As for the core issue of Goan identity, it will remain without proper definition. It will remain syncretic, pluralistic and particularistic. By particularistic I mean it will retain the characteristics of culture, language and ethnic traits. These characteristics are not chosen. The ethnic identity should co-exist with national identity. Goans must negotiate and compromise instead of hanging on to particularistic identity. Saying that Goans are "unique" is not the sole answer to an open-ended question of what constitutes Goan identity. In her essay, The Impact of Portuguese Culture on Goa – A Myth or Reality, in the book Goa and Portugal : Their Cultural Links, the historian Fatima da Silva Gracias writes, “The unique Goan identity or non-identity has been in focus in recent years and has been subject of much discussions. The opinions or views have differed regarding the impact of the Portuguese rule on Goa. These views could be divided in three categories: that which believes that the Portuguese rule left no impact or rather a superficial impact, second view is of those who fee that the Portuguese culture left a powerful impress son Goa and yet a third view that points out that the Portuguese culture only touched a particular community and that too only people of higher social status and not the majority of Goans. “ Goans, living in exile and away from cultural surroundings, are perhaps living in the "third space" as the noted postcolonial theorist Homi K. Bhabha talks about in his well-quoted book, The Location of Culture. Hybridization of culture in disaporic communities is a known factor. This diasporic predicament must be taken into consideration when we talk of inculcating Goan culture and heritage into young Goans. Foreign-born Goans, particularly in the western and European countries, may find it abstract to relate them coherently to the land of their forefathers. Their self-identity is formed in various ways. Trying to transform them into a “niz” (a word I abhor but use here as emphasis) Goan and could find the subject of "identity" dull and boring. Lessons in cultural pride can be dished out to them in small proportions and at calculated time. Having a good discourse and getting them to read a bit of Goan history could awake the hidden passions in them. Konkani music may not rock them, fed as they are on western music trends. In this cyberage, the word "diaspora" itself seems to have lost its meaning and significance. Goanet is prime example, though other mailing lists also provide the same service on a lower scale, how Goan communities can share experiences and knowledge. Globalization, or the “world is flat” theory, has turned Goans, like many others, into a global citizen. The renowned anthropologist Arjun Appadurai, an Indian academic in US or rather an US academic of Indian origin, points out how communication networks have eroded national boundaries. Assuredly, networking can be a vital factor in the struggle to restore, sustain and promote Goan identity
