06-30-2004, 06:28 AM
<b>Should Portuguese names of Roads be changed?</b>
A few days back in the State of Goa, activists and freedom fighters belonging to the "Panaji Nagrik Kruti Samiti", armed with pick-axes and other equipment, forcibly removed a few name plates and name boards bearing Portuguese names and replaced them with Indian named ones. The activists virtually went on a rampage and didn't even spare residences on which tiled name-plates were fixed.
Interestingly, the fundamental duties of the citizens of India, as enshrined in the Constitution of the land(Article 51A) state: It shall be the duty of every citizens of India to (a) abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem; and (i) safeguard public property and to abjure violence.
In utter disregard to these duties, activists including the eminent freedom fighter Naguesh Karmali, in their "patriotic frenzy" and zeal, resorted to violent actions, showed scant respect to the democratic Institutions and damaged and destroyed Public property. It was chauvinist Nationalism and chauvinist patriotism at its best, nothing short of pure vandalism with democracy being converted into "Mobocracy" and Constitution of the land being thrown into the dustbins.
What was sad and appalling was that the entire district administration preferred to remain like mute spectators. The BJP Government, like the mighty Kumbhakaran, went into a deep slumber, where neither the fiery speeches nor the violent actions unleashed by the "super-patriots" woke them up. Forget about action not being taken, there was not even the token criticism against the samiti members. The Government decided to adapt a hands-off attitude, the "see-no-evil-hear-no-evil" kind of an attitude.
In a democracy, one does have a right to protest. But the protests should have been done in a democratic and non-violent manner. The actions of the activists of the Samiti should therefore be condemned in the harshest of manners. The Government must take action against them; otherwise it will send the wrong signals to the law-abiders and set a bad precedent for posterity.
Now the question is: Were the issues raised by the samiti members right?
To a certain extent, yes because the Portuguese rule was one of the bloodiest rules in the history of Goa. Historical facts would clearly demonstrate that the Portuguese regime was oppressive, fascist, extremely intolerant and brutal. Hundreds and thousands of Goans suffered genocide at the hands of the vicious Portuguese conquerors. Rights and properties of the Goans were snatched away from them. They tried to uproot and destroy the language of the people. They tried to wipe out the culture of the people. To cut the long story short, the Portuguese unleashed a reign of tyranny and terror on the indigenous local population, subjecting them to intense humiliation, cruelty and repression.
These signs of Goan humiliation and oppression at the hands of the Portuguese is present in many places; in the nomenclature of innumerable roads and cities, named after the very tyrants who sought to annihilate and uproot all traces of Goa's vast and ancient heritage and culture. Therefore it does make a lot of sense to change the names of roads named after brutal invaders like Afonso De Albuquerque and others. Issues raised by the activists of the Samiti are therefore partly right.
However, the activists should have drawn the distinguishing line between roads
named after the brutal Portuguese conquerors and roads simply bearing Portuguese names. For while it does make a lot of sense to change roads named after people who had unleashed a reign of terror, it makes very little sense to change the names like "Boca De Vaca" or "Fontainhas", simply because these are of Portuguese origin. After all, the name 'India' too is of foreign origin. So too is Goa. So too is the 'Taj Mahal', a name given by the Mughal Invaders. So too are numerous other names, across Goa and India. For that matter, even the word 'Hindu' is a foreign-given one. Should all these names also be changed, simply because they are not indigenous ones? And will such actions really help the
Indian cause?
That the Goan culture, its heritage, its art, its cuisine, its literature and its way of life is today a blend of influences of various kinds-- including the Portuguese ones-- cannot be denied. It is a historical reality that we will all need to accept and learn to live with. In fact, the Portuguese culture has added to the beauty of the rich and plural culture of Goa and India. In suggesting that all Portuguese names ought to be changed as it reminds us of the Portuguese rule, freedom fighters/activists of the "Panaji Nagrik Kruti Samiti" have clearly stretched the degrees of patriotism a bit too far. And in doing so, they have challenged the rich composite heritage of Goa, its pluralistic nationalism and religious and cultural diversity.
Let me finally conclude by posting the views of a Catholic from Goa Orlando
deMelo, who seems to have hit the nail right on its head:
"I always took pride in my Indian heritage, the culture and the serenity of the
religion. India has always been a place that people all over world look upon for
tolerance and inner peace. I do not know which section of our culture these
PNKS's come from but they are definitely foreign to us and do not have a place
in our society. Their actions only suggest that they are a bunch of thugs doing
what they do best. If they are real Indians and freedom fighters they should
take a moment to ponder on the consequences of their actions."
Sandeep Heble
Panaji-Goa
A few days back in the State of Goa, activists and freedom fighters belonging to the "Panaji Nagrik Kruti Samiti", armed with pick-axes and other equipment, forcibly removed a few name plates and name boards bearing Portuguese names and replaced them with Indian named ones. The activists virtually went on a rampage and didn't even spare residences on which tiled name-plates were fixed.
Interestingly, the fundamental duties of the citizens of India, as enshrined in the Constitution of the land(Article 51A) state: It shall be the duty of every citizens of India to (a) abide by the Constitution and respect its ideals and institutions, the National Flag and the National Anthem; and (i) safeguard public property and to abjure violence.
In utter disregard to these duties, activists including the eminent freedom fighter Naguesh Karmali, in their "patriotic frenzy" and zeal, resorted to violent actions, showed scant respect to the democratic Institutions and damaged and destroyed Public property. It was chauvinist Nationalism and chauvinist patriotism at its best, nothing short of pure vandalism with democracy being converted into "Mobocracy" and Constitution of the land being thrown into the dustbins.
What was sad and appalling was that the entire district administration preferred to remain like mute spectators. The BJP Government, like the mighty Kumbhakaran, went into a deep slumber, where neither the fiery speeches nor the violent actions unleashed by the "super-patriots" woke them up. Forget about action not being taken, there was not even the token criticism against the samiti members. The Government decided to adapt a hands-off attitude, the "see-no-evil-hear-no-evil" kind of an attitude.
In a democracy, one does have a right to protest. But the protests should have been done in a democratic and non-violent manner. The actions of the activists of the Samiti should therefore be condemned in the harshest of manners. The Government must take action against them; otherwise it will send the wrong signals to the law-abiders and set a bad precedent for posterity.
Now the question is: Were the issues raised by the samiti members right?
To a certain extent, yes because the Portuguese rule was one of the bloodiest rules in the history of Goa. Historical facts would clearly demonstrate that the Portuguese regime was oppressive, fascist, extremely intolerant and brutal. Hundreds and thousands of Goans suffered genocide at the hands of the vicious Portuguese conquerors. Rights and properties of the Goans were snatched away from them. They tried to uproot and destroy the language of the people. They tried to wipe out the culture of the people. To cut the long story short, the Portuguese unleashed a reign of tyranny and terror on the indigenous local population, subjecting them to intense humiliation, cruelty and repression.
These signs of Goan humiliation and oppression at the hands of the Portuguese is present in many places; in the nomenclature of innumerable roads and cities, named after the very tyrants who sought to annihilate and uproot all traces of Goa's vast and ancient heritage and culture. Therefore it does make a lot of sense to change the names of roads named after brutal invaders like Afonso De Albuquerque and others. Issues raised by the activists of the Samiti are therefore partly right.
However, the activists should have drawn the distinguishing line between roads
named after the brutal Portuguese conquerors and roads simply bearing Portuguese names. For while it does make a lot of sense to change roads named after people who had unleashed a reign of terror, it makes very little sense to change the names like "Boca De Vaca" or "Fontainhas", simply because these are of Portuguese origin. After all, the name 'India' too is of foreign origin. So too is Goa. So too is the 'Taj Mahal', a name given by the Mughal Invaders. So too are numerous other names, across Goa and India. For that matter, even the word 'Hindu' is a foreign-given one. Should all these names also be changed, simply because they are not indigenous ones? And will such actions really help the
Indian cause?
That the Goan culture, its heritage, its art, its cuisine, its literature and its way of life is today a blend of influences of various kinds-- including the Portuguese ones-- cannot be denied. It is a historical reality that we will all need to accept and learn to live with. In fact, the Portuguese culture has added to the beauty of the rich and plural culture of Goa and India. In suggesting that all Portuguese names ought to be changed as it reminds us of the Portuguese rule, freedom fighters/activists of the "Panaji Nagrik Kruti Samiti" have clearly stretched the degrees of patriotism a bit too far. And in doing so, they have challenged the rich composite heritage of Goa, its pluralistic nationalism and religious and cultural diversity.
Let me finally conclude by posting the views of a Catholic from Goa Orlando
deMelo, who seems to have hit the nail right on its head:
"I always took pride in my Indian heritage, the culture and the serenity of the
religion. India has always been a place that people all over world look upon for
tolerance and inner peace. I do not know which section of our culture these
PNKS's come from but they are definitely foreign to us and do not have a place
in our society. Their actions only suggest that they are a bunch of thugs doing
what they do best. If they are real Indians and freedom fighters they should
take a moment to ponder on the consequences of their actions."
Sandeep Heble
Panaji-Goa