The Accidental Activist - And Justice for All By Venita Coelho
Why did they all come? Why did they leave children who were studying for exams, make excuses at work, catch buses and make time and come? Why did they come from Nachinola and Columb and Keri and across Goa? Why did they make the time and effort to be at the GBA rally? Because they believed in something. A simple thing called justice. When I was young I learnt that the Supreme Court of the Land was the final court of appeal. I wrote it in my exams. I watched on TV as Prime Ministers and Presidents and legislators took oaths to protect the Supreme Law of the land in letter and in Spirit. And I believed that there was a thing called justice. Everyone was supposed to have access to it. There weren't separate laws for the rich and poor. And always - the final court of appeal was the Supreme Court. Now we have a case decided after eighteen years with a clear Supreme Court order saying 'Demolish'. And we have an Ordinance that subverts a judgement by the last court of appeal in the land. What a mockery this ordinance makes of the sanctity of the law! It makes orders of the Supreme Court and High Courts redundant. It moves to save the rich. It gives far reaching powers to the Government to change any agreement and the usage of any land that it acquires. It opens the door for all kinds of land grab and manipulation. And what is the last thing this ordinance does? It says that if any of this happens - no one can take the matter to a court of law. With one stroke the government is removing itself from the purview of any court of law. They can do as they please and you and I who believe in justice cannot go anywhere to get it. Not to any court of law in this land. Suddenly instead of the rule of the law we have Ordinance Raj. Is it possible for us to have a government that stands outside the purview of justice? Especially when it has demonstrated to us time and again what its own idea of justice is. When it has repeatedly manipulated the law to serve the advantaged few. Look at all the issues that we have been forced to come out onto the streets to fight - the first Regional Plan, the proposed SEZ, amendment 16 and 16/A to the TCP Act. the list is endless. And in each case government functioned as a tool in the hands of those with money to grab land and land use from us. In each case the government has worked not for the aam admi, but rather to snatch what the common man is trying so hard to protect and hand it over to those who have power on their sides. For all of these reasons concerned citizens gave a call to people to come to a rally. To speak up and be heard. Because this was a matter that affected each and every one of us. And how did the big money react? With a series of articles seeking to slander and trivialize what the activists were doing. Sujay Gupta went to press on the morning of the rally to call activism 'blackmail' and accuse activists of 'misplaced hysteria' displaying 'lack of commonsense and pragmatism'. He then went on to list the 'tactics' that we 'blackmailing activists' use. The first was 'reputation attacks' - this from someone who has been nailed for trying to call a bonafide activist a naxalite and has himself filed a case against Seby Rodrigues for 500 crores. 'Intimdation and indirect threats to executives' - all this while mining activists were being picked up in Columb by police to intimidate people into not going for the rally. Lastly 'internet based attacks leading to misinformed cliché reactions' - this on a day when with mysterious co-ordination pro Ordinance articles appeared in every leading paper. Uday Bhembre assured us that all was well with the Ordinance and the government had done a wonderful thing and that in no way did it over rule the ruling. Would the illegal structure still stand? Yes of course, but that was because the Government understood better than the courts what the best interest of the public was. And passing an ordinance - that emergency measure to be used sparingly and with judicious thought? Ah that was nothing. All in a days work. We were merely making a fuss because we didn't understand the matter thoroughly. His article was helpfully titled 'Empty Vessels make the Most Noise'. Well there were a whole lot of mischief makers and blackmailers in the hall that day. It was clear who the people believed. It was clear that they understood what was at stake. I stood in the hall and heard the crowd roar. They were loud and they were angry. I heard their roar carry across the Mandovi. The people in that Hall believed in justice. And so they came from across Goa. It's time for you to join them. If you want to still have the Supreme Court stand inviolate. If you want The Rule of Law and not Ordinance Raj. If you still believe in simple things like justice - you cannot allow this ordinance to stand. (ENDS) =========================================================================== The above article appeared in the March 24, 2009 edition of the Herald, Goa
