Dr. Jose Colaco writes, Unless there is significant new input from Advocate Aires Rodrigues, This is my last post on the Ribandar issue. This is a layman's point of view - and a personal one at that.
1. It is unclear whether the alleged incident occured or not. We have Aires' set of categoric statements reporting what the 13 year old's mother reported what the 13 year old may or may not have reported, and the situation where the child and mother were eventually "unavailable" for cross examination in court. My comment: It is only the alleged victim and the alleged accused priest Fr Newton Rodrigues that would actually know what exactly transpired. Once the charge sheet is filed the police evidence will be public and will say it all. It is after reviewing the whole evidence on record that the Director of Prosecution had okayed the charge-sheeting of the alleged accused priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues. But it is Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar who in November last year unduly interfered with the investigation of the case and instructed the police not to charge-sheet the priest till the exposition was over. And that is one of the reasons why former DGP Amod Kanth was shunted out of Goa. Amod Kanth had insisted that the priest should not be above the law and disagreed with the Chief's Minister's view that the priest should not be charge sheeted. 2. We have Advocate Aires Rodrigues stating that he "CONFIRMed the incident with the mother of the victim" - unclear from the correspondence thus far, IF the mother witnessed the alleged incident or not. Wonder how one CONFIRMs an issue with the same person who tells you the story, and is a non-witness. My comment: After the alleged incident that fateful night the girl rushed home and narrated the incident to the mother. The mother in her night clothes rushed to the Church and confronted the priest that same night just before midnight mass. The 13 year old alleged victim who was supposed to act as Mother Mary at the midnight mass refused to do so and instead proceeded home with her mother. 3. Crucially, It is also unclear from the correspondence thus far WHAT conversation allegedly led to the priest "advising" the 13 year old to "make a confession". My comment: Details of this conversation has been recorded in detailed statements of the victim taken by lady police officers as well as by Auda Viegas of a women's NGO Bailancho Exvott. 4. It is clear that Advocate Aires Rodrigues who was "representing the alleged victim's uncle who has been fighting to protect the interests of the 13 year old girl" does not know if the child was seen asap by a medical doctor and what the test results (if any) reveal. My comment: I have checked with the police. No medical examination is done in cases of molestation. The PWD engineer was asked to prepare a sketch of the alleged scene of offence which is the parochial house. 5. Would it have been due diligence for the lawyer to have verified IF this alleged incident fell under sexual assault or grave sexual assault (as defined by Section 2 of the Goa Children's Act 2003). My comment: The F.I.R against the accused priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues were registered under the appropriate sections of law. 6. Even though the Advocate Aires Rodrigues 12 August 2004 letter to the Archbishop of Goa, contained categoric statements based on total hearsay, (acc to Advocate Aires Rodrigues) it was personally hand delivered to the Secretary of the Archbishop. The Archbishop of Goa can be rightly accused of "sweeping dust under the carpet" for not responding to a letter with such serious charges. If on the other hand it turns out that the Secretary of the Archbishop did not hand over the letter to the Archbishop, Your Grace ... fire your Secretary. If he did, and you chose to sit silent, please fire yourself. My comment: My letter to the Archbishop of 12th August was preceded by my meeting with Rev. Felipe Neri Ferrao on 11th August and the scores of other representations made to the Bishop's palace by the former co-ordinator of the Parish Council and so also the Confraria committee about the financial and immoral irregularities going on at the Church. The Bishop's palace I am informed has not cared to reply to a single letter. The Archbishop's silence and inaction may be a cause for the state of affairs at the Church. 7. It is clear that Advocate Aires Rodrigues did NOT even attempt to meet and discuss the alleged incident with the accused. Instead, he chose to have convened a meeting of the Parish Council to discuss this alleged matter. My comment: I requested the women's NGO's to conduct an independent investigation. Auda Viegas did meet the accused priest. His defence was that while he we was playing with the alleged victim's pendant his hand slipped into her breasts. This has been stated in Auda Viegas's complaint to the police against Fr. Newton Rodrigues. : 8. In my humble opinion, especially in view of the collateral issues in the letter to the Archbishop, Advocate Aires Rodrigues was more interested in embarrassing the priest than in ascertaining the truth. My comment: Not at all. In a last five years although the widow of the Velim seaman has been comfortably living in the Church premises with the priest I refrained from raising the issue. But when a 13 year old is sought to be sexually assaulted no sensible person could stand in silence. 9. This possibly explains why Advocate Aires Rodrigues chose to use names in his repeated postings about the matter. He also posted without using words like "alleged". My comment: I find nothing wrong in the postings. 10. It is also my opinion that Advocate Aires Rodrigues & the uncle violated the young 13 year old's privacy by posting the name of the Uncle. My comment: Not at all. 11. With regard to Flaws in Children's Act, it appears that Advocate Aires Rodrigues isn't too uncomfortable with an Act which expects an accused to prove a negative. He is not approaching his own MLA to seek an amendment, he is not filing any PIL, not writing any Letters to the Editor, Not posting to Goanet about it, he is not challenging the "Flaws" as unconstitutional. My comment: Amendments to cure the flaws in the Act are being carried out and are under the active consideration of the Law department. 12. Advocate Aires Rodrigues instead prefers to" leave it to the legislators to carry out the necessary amendments" Positively Brilliant!... the legislators I mean. My comment: Its their job. They cannot abdicate their responsibilities. 13. Interesting that In Goa, the way the Law is ->an accused remains so UNTIL his trial COMMENCES". Once the trial COMMENCES, .....he is no longer "accused"? My comment: In a criminal case the accused remains an accused till the trial ends. If convicted he becomes a convict if he is proved not guilty he is a free bird. 14. Please note that I consider Advocate Aires Rodrigues to be a good personal friend of mine and a very good man. I admire his zeal and his desire to serve his fellow Goans. I also believe that he sincerely believes that a wrong was committed. My comment: Thanks for the nice words. I know they are not sugar coated! Yes I strongly believe that the priest has committed a wrong. This can however only be proved if the trial takes place. That's what is being demanded. And faster it happens the better. So one does not understand as to why the Church is trying to hush the matter. 15. One might never know now, if it was or wasn't. My comment: The truth shall prevail. The Church has over-stretched its limits of silence. 16. In his zeal to right an alleged wrong, Advocate Aires Rodrigues blew a gasket by not being impartial. If he was truly impartial, and his approach measured .... the outcome of this case might have been different. My comment: Truly impartial I was. It is the police that have shown a rare sense of preferential treatment to the accused priest. This case should have been treated as any other molestation case. The rising number of molestation and rape cases in Goa is a matter of great concern. If women and children in particular are not safe in sacred shrines like our schools, churches and even the toilet of a five star hotel how safe could they be on the streets. In the Ribandar molestation case, law should takes its course. When will it. The game of buying time hoping that the case will die a natural death is wishful thinking Dr Colaco, its too early to even think of Saying Good Bye to the Ribandar issue. The trial is yet to commence. Will it or won't, only time will tell. Aires Rodrigues Ribandar
