2008 International Goan Convention-Aftermath
 

Where have the Toronto Goans gone? http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Default/Scripting/ArticleWin.asp?From=Archive&Source Goans from the US, Australia and Goa attended the Goan International Convention in Toronto. Despite the small group, there was a buzz of activities and bonds of friendships renewed Victor Rangel Ribeiro Times News Network Consider this paradox: A Goan International Convention is held in Toronto, Canada, a city that with its suburbs claims a Goan population of 20,000, and is home to the Goan Overseas Association. You would expect attendance in the hundreds, if not the thousands, right? TO GOA WITH LOVE: Goan writers Ben Antao, Marinella Proenca, Victor Rangel Ribeiro, Cheryl A Xavier and Alexyz Now look at who showed up for the convention held in Mississauga, a Toronto suburb, between July 23 to 26: Nascimento Caldeira came from Melbourne, Australia; Virginia Bras e Gomes from Lisbon; Cornel da Costa, his daughter Joana, Renee Barretto and two others flew from London; George Pinto and Filomena Giese and eight others from California; three flew in from Wisconsin as well. NRI Commissioner Eduardo Faleiro, fashion guru Wendell Rodricks, architect Dean D’Cruz, State Bank manager Trevor Fernandes, cartoonist Alexyz, and a 14-person mando troupe came from faraway Goa. My wife and I drove 1,600 kilometres to get there, 800 each way. At the end of that hard 11-hour drive we found, not hundreds, but just 80 or so registrants who attended the workshops and presentations.Thirty-nine of these were from outside Canada, another six were from such distant Canadian cities like Vancouver and Quebec. Of the remaining 35, most were from Mississauga; only a handful were from Toronto itself, even though that city is only 40 kms away. The low numbers did not dampen the enthusiasm, as guiding spirits Kevin and Lisette Saldanha, along with Ben Antao, Francis and Clare Rodrigues, Bosco De Mello, Mervyn Lobo, and Walter Tavares kept things flowing. Participants in Wendell’s fashion workshops came away enthused; the thirteen at my writing sessions kept demanding more. Audiences were stirred by the screening of The Rape of Goa, and Dean’s presentations of environmental and architectural issues and of Clinton Vaz’s pictorial essay on Goa’s garbage crisis. Konkani received a push. Alexyz’s fabled cartoons lined the walls of an entire room. Novelist Ben Antao presided over book launches that included Marinella Proenca’s Heart Beat, Alexyz’s Goa, Goan, Goaing, Gone?, Cheryl Antao-Xavier’s Dance of the Peacock, Ben’s own novel, Living in the Market, and his travelogue, The Islands of Sicily. A new book titled Goa: Aparanta — Land Beyond the End, was also unveiled. Christine Pinto and Lea Rangel-Ribeiro spoke on identity and the diaspora; Coralie D’Souza unfortunately was taken ill as she began to speak. Francis Rodrigues conducted a music workshop and a session on Goan music. He also introduced the Lady Mayor of Mississauga and NRI Commissioner Faleiro. The Mayor praised Goans’ contribution to the city; Faleiro promised to give NRGs a seat on various boards. MAKING GOA PROUD : A mando troupe and (inset) the Wendell Rodrick’s fashion workshop Evening events included a beauty contest and Goan Idol. Both drew a crowd. A mando performance was well received, as was a Konkani tiatr that ended at 1 am. Close to 400 attended the Saturday night ball, proving once again that we Goans, while blessed with two extremities, prefer to cultivate the one that lies closest to the ground. Attendees agreed the convention had been a success. New friendships were formed, old bonds renewed. Best of all, Renee Barretto announced plans for yet another conference next year, this time in London.

2008 International Goan Convention: We Came, We GNAT-ed, We Conquered! by Filomena Saraswati Giese Posted on gs-management@yahoogroups.com Part I Having just participated in the very successful bi-ennial GOA 2008 Convention in San Jose organized by the Hindu Goans of North America, Goa Sudharop Board members, Filomena Giese (President), George Pinto, and Acaria Almeida came to Toronto with an open and even skeptical mind: would there be new and positive outcomes from yet another Goan Convention? Here's a run down of our impressions and what we learned: First of all, kudos to the very small Committee of GNAT-ters who undertook the planning of a Convention within less than a year! While we cannot name all the volunteers and helpers, special thanks are due to Kevin and Lisette Saldanha, Francis and Clara Rodrigues, Ben Antao, Mervyn Lobo, Bosco and Pamela D'Mello. This small core of organizers (the new GNAT) attended to the complicated details of having a Goan Convention. They were on hand, unfailingly, to answer our questions and solve problems. They chose an outstanding theme, the issues facing Goans today in Goa and the diaspora, and combined it with a series of cultural events to showcase Goan artistic and musical talent. They brought together representatives of various Goan organizations and recognized some of their contributions to the Goan community. They gave a chance to Goan youth to attend workshops and give their views. Any one of these themes could have filled an entire Convention. But that they managed to give us a series of excellent and varied presentations was nothing short of remarkable!  Attendance: Goans came from London and the U.K., the Mid-East, Portugal, Australia, the U.S., and Goa. However, the Goan community around Toronto did not seem to avail themselves of a great opportunity to hear speakers from Goa who were knowledgeable about issues of development and preservation of heritage. Or, the opinions of diaspora Goans on the new challenges facing our community. But hopefully, the word will be spread by representatives of our Goan organizations who attended and through the DVDs made of the workshops and presentations. The cultural events were really well attended and brought in the Goan, Mangalorean, and Anglo-Indian communities of Toronto. It was a great experience to exchange views with Goans from so many far-flung parts of the globe. The Chief Guest, the NRI Commissioner Eduardo Faleiro, spoke on a number of occasions about what the Goa government could do for NRI Goans. But some who attended the special question and answer session with him reported that he was somewhat evasive when questioned about specific questions such as property issues and gross violations of land sales and building codes. His answer seemed to be that we NRGs could email him and he would investigate. We came away with the impression that the present government of Goa does not have a serious plan to help Goans preserve their identity and heritage in Goa. According to Mr. Faleiro, it is, however, looking for investments from NRGs in their villages and will match up to 10 lakhs of any community project they sponsor. Perhaps overseas Goans could take note of this offer if they want to leave their mark on their native village. Alexyz Cartoon Show and Book Launch: The incredibly good cartoonist, Alexyz, exhibited his collection of cartoons of Great Goans (Shenoy Goembab, Abbe Faria, Manoharrai Sardessai, Bl. Joseph Vaz and others) and political caricatures about the Goa political scene. Lea and Victor Rangel-Ribeiro released his book, Goa…Goan… Goaing… Gone…?. When they unveiled the book, they found a cartoon of themselves in their New York apartment to everyone's delight and surprise! Alexyz participated in the presentations and shared his first-hand views of the deterioration in Goa which Goans are valiantly trying to deal with. Like all the speakers from Goa, Alexyz appealed to the Goan diaspora to support them in the struggle for Goan preservation and for help in coping with AIDS, alcoholism, the sex trade, and the negative impact on Goan youth and families of tourism. Workshops and Presentations: Wendell Rodricks: Acaria attended all 3 exciting workshops in fashion design given by Wendell Rodricks. These brought in several young Goans and their friends. Wendell demonstrated how design, color, and fabric are used to make a fashion product. He had the participants develop their own designs and create a garment for the market. Wendell capped this by giving us a slide show presentation on how the landscape and architecture of Goa has inspired his fashions. He passionately asked overseas Goans to take an active part in saving Goan heritage and identity Architect Dean D'Cruz gave an outstanding workshop on environmental issues in Goa. He showed us slides of his architectural designs as examples of how beautiful designs and colors of Goa can be utilized for new and interesting architectural design. But he also showed slides of the devastation caused by strip mining of mountain sides and lush fields. I recommend that we Goans get the book, Sweet Land of Mine, recently published by Goa Foundation to educate people about this devastation. Dean also had on hand a large report on similar mining destruction all over India. The harsh reality is that Goa, along with vast tracts of mountains and valleys all over India, is being dug up and exported to China, Japan, western Europe at a huge human cost to displaced tribals and villagers! Dean's final presentation was on the "Rape of Goa" DVD that Rajan Parrikar had recently released. He then gave us the facts on the garbage and waste management crisis in Goa, using slides by waste management expert Clinton Vaz who was unable to attend the Convention. Dean asked overseas Goan to meet these challenges and try to save the agricultural land and architectural heritage that is being bought up by industrialists and mine owners for conversion into ugly cement blocs of housing. This would require raising capital to buy such tracts of land, a sentiment echoed by Goa Sudharop and others who would like to save Goan heritage for future generations. He also asked overseas Goans to write to government officials and departments in India to ask for policy changes. He said that he himself had written to Sonia Gandhi who responded and did contact Mr. Rane. This resulted in saving some Goan architectural heritage. Dean's presentation was factual and gave the delegates a challenge to get involved in Goa's future. Part II – Poetry, Writing, Goan Identity, Konkani, Drama, Music, the Ball Writer's Workshop and Book Releases: Noted Goan author, Victor Rangel-Ribeiro, gave workshops on the art of writing. He ably led us into the drawing of a character and developing a story line. We learned to create a situation and dialogue. A fascinating and stimulating workshop! Ben Antao chaired a session where some interesting books by Goan authors were released and excerpts from Goan novels were read. Marinella Proenca who lives and writes in Goa, released her volume of poetry, titled "Heart Beat: Poems Awakening Goan Memories" which has illustrations of Goa and Goan life by Mario Miranda. A stanza from her poem 'Beach-Bumming': Summer Bungalow - Sitting on the sands of Time Palm fronds waving to and fro Beach-shrubs hedging the shore Watch waves come and go' Cheryl Antao-Xavier, a Goan from Karachi who now lives in Canada, released her collection of poems titled "Dance of the Peacock." From her poem, 'Dance the Peacock Dance': Dance! Peacock. Dance! Do what you do best Strut your stuff to all the world And dance your peacock dance! Ben Antao released his travel book on Sicily where his wife, Marinella, hails from. The book is a result of their trip to Sicily last year to research her ethnic roots. It has bilingual sections in English and Italian and is a really good read. Ben read from his novel, "A Tailor's Daughter," and Victor read a passage from his novel "Tivolim." Goan Identity Workshop and Presentations: The workshop on Goan identity that I attended was facilitated by Christine Pinto. Christine has her own facilitation seminar group, Facilitation at Work. It was forward looking of the GNAT-ers to have such a professional and well thought out workshop for the Goan youth who might be wondering where they fit into the global identity melting pot. She gave 5 topics to the group to choose from: What does "Goan" mean to you? Does racism in Canada affect Goans? Are caste distinctions relevant to Goans? Do intergenerational questions affect your career choices and other goals? As part of the diaspora, would you consider getting involved in the economic and cultural development in Goa over the next 1-3 years? As most of the youth chose topic 1, we explored their views of Goan identity. Christine summarized their views at her presentation as part of the panel discussion on Goan identity. Christine started out by giving a revealing picture of her own transition and encounters with racism in school as a young immigrant in Canada. She recounted her own journey toward a multiple Goan and Canadian identity. She said that Goan youth were interested in learning about their history as well as the history of Pakistan and India. They asked for more parent involvement and inter-generational debate on identity, on Konkani, on present day Goan issues. The youth generally do not know where to start. Perhaps travel to Goa and their adopted lands of birth and family heritage would be invaluable to help them understand their roots and identity. Important feedback from the youth besides educational tourism for the diaspora to Goa, the youth would also like to see education forums, future conversations on Goa's economic and cultural future and on Goan identity and the problem of its loss. On tourism, the young participants said that they didn't want to see a re-make of Caribbean style tourism without roots. So Goan identity and Goan roots are important for our Goan youth. And networking is the key to preservation of identity, something that we Goans have to continue doing and researching. Lea Rangel-Ribeiro, Victor's wife, talked about what makes the Goan diaspora tick. She recounted her early days as teacher and principal of the U.N. International School in New York where cultural diversity was fostered. Her perspective on the immigrant experience, while interesting and well-received, was perhaps not typical of that of most Goans. She gave us valuable ideas how she helped her own children appreciate their Indian and Goan roots. Konkani: While I could not attend the Konkani workshop, I bought the book "Konkani for Everyone" printed for the convention by the Fifty-Five Goan Seniors Association West GTA to help me brush up on my somewhat rusty Konkani. It comes complete with Konkani proverbs, Mandos, hymns, and sayings. Well done, Seniors and GNAT convention organizers! I look forward to sounding authentically Goan! Music Workshop: I didn't attend Francis Rodrigues' Goan music workshop which everyone has been raving about. But I did hear his final presentation on Goan music of the last 50 years. The man is a mine of information and is a masterful speaker. He took us through the contributions of Alfred Rose, Frank Fernandes, Chris Perry, and Kamat Vasolnar, the roots of Mando in the Portuguese Fado, the social commentary, metaphors, and gossip of the Dulpods, and the temple dances of the Dekhnis. Francis took us through examples of how the diaspora Goans took melodies from the west and other cultures and used them in Tiatr and film. This includes the use of a Tanzanian lullaby, "Malaika", meaning angel, for a Konkani song of longing. We all look forward to his forthcoming publication of the music of Goan songs. Cultural Events: The highlight of the cultural events was the Mando Mogi Margao who came from Goa to perform. The Goan Mando music ensemble, complete with beautiful costumes, violins, guitar, and gumott, was the final icing on the outstanding Goan cultural cake that the Convention organizers presented. The Convention gave us wonderful singing, great instrumental accompaniment, and some folk dancing (dekhni and kunbi) provided by one of Goa's best Mando groups. They performed during the Goan Idol talent show and the Convention Ball to enthusiastic applause. Many young Goans performed in the Goan Idol show, some in Konkani and some in English. Joe Vaz, star of the Tiatr production "Adeus" gave us a Konkani number. But two 13 and 14 year old sisters from Montreal, Shannon and Fiona, gave us a glimpse of the future of Goan singers and entertainers. The winner of "Goan Idol" was Shannon who sang a very modern pop song, "Tatoo". Even though she had no accompaniment, her musicianship and stage presence was tops. The audience voted her the winner, with Joe coming a close second. The Tiatr was held at the elegant Living Arts Center and was a night of drama and fun music in Konkani. The stage show was the already successful production of "Adeus", written by the famous Jr. Menezes. His successful Tiatrs include Adlear Tempar, Rinnfar, and Deu Nith Kortolo. The cast included Goan and Manglorean stars. Sitting next to me were Goans from Africa who had never seen a Tiatr before. They thoroughly enjoyed this immersion in popular Konkani culture as their parents had enjoyed it. A brilliant addition were the English subtitles (Kevin Saldanha's idea) which enabled many more in the audience to follow the story line. The comedy acts done between the shows were hilarious. We can't forget the village socegad scoundrel who hides his "black" money in his underwear, the kunbi woman who now refuses to work because she has a son in Dubai, the "ganti" who now does the work in Goa while Goans look on and also becomes a police informer, and the Dame Edna "take off" in drag! And like Francis Rodrigues said in his music workshop, the Goan band was totally professional as always and played with passion and fire as the drama unfolded. The GNAT organizers of this Convention did not forget that we Goans love a good Party! The Convention Ball at the elegant Platinum Convention Center was a glittering and fun event. First of all, we had the glamorous Miss India Canada to open the Ball and interview the contestants for the Miss Goan Convention title. Then we had the very witty Chrystal Gomes do stand up comedy. Mando Mogi Margao did their beautiful Mando and folk dance floor show. Plus their guitarist and gumott player gave us a virtuoso duo demonstration of pop/rock music and demonstrated how the gumott actually plays different notes and creates a tune of its own. I must say I had a ball, literally! I got my photo taken, in my bright red Bollywood outfit, with Wendell Rodricks, Mr. India 2001 (Savio Bruto da Costa), and even managed to get a dance with Kevin. By the way, our large party was not surprised that Emerald Saldanha won the Convention Queen title. We picked her out as the winner right away and the audience gave her an enthusiastic round of applause. She is very pretty and has a great figure and stage presence. She'll be a great representative of the Goan community. Hopefully, organizers will take note of audience feedback that we have a "Mr. Goa" at future conventions.

Toronto Goan Convention- A short perspective Sent: Sat 09/08/08 6:24 PM Toronto Goan Convention From: George Pinto georgejpinto@yahoo.com To: Gulf Goans gulf-goans@yahoogroups.com, Goa-Goans goa-goans@yahoogroups.com,  Tanzanite Goans goans_tanzanite@yahoogroups.com A short perspective by Mrs. Acaria Almeida, Treasurer, Goa Sudharop A reflective question as a delegate who attended the convention: What were our take aways from this convention? My hope is that all delegates ought to have left the convention with more food for thought which will translate into fruitful action. What can each of us, either individually or as a group, from every nook and corner of the Globe, do for Goa? First we must begin with ourselves, then our families, then the immediate communities we live in, and then of course Goa. This ought to be the expat focus. My family and I left with more friends and ideas from this Convention. Upon our return to California, Goa Sudharop has committed to the following in addition to its other volunteer work: Sponsor Fashion Design workshops for the young and booming talent in Goa in co-ordination with well-known fashion designer Wendell Rodricks who we met at the convention. Sponsor environmentally-friendly Natural Dye projects (also with Wendell) to help poor and village women in Goa. Sponsor the USA distribution of the book "GOA, of Sun and Sand", a thoughtful and serious look at Goa's tourism, by Goa-based Valerie Rodrigues. Organize an awareness day in California to promote some of the challenges facing Goa and how expat Goans can connect to the motherland. Initiate a program so young Goans who have never been to Goa, can visit and discover their Goan idenity on their own. Spread information on current land-abuses in Goa as indicated by architect Dean D'Cruz during his excellent presentation at the convention. Support Goan wild-life activists and environmentalists like the young Clinton Vaz whose presentation was shown at the convention (he could not attend). I am pleased to write we have already begun action on each of the seven ideas above. To all those in Toronto and elsewhere who wish to support Goa financially, you are welcome to channel your financial support through Goa Sudharop (click on the DONATE button - PAYPAL) on the Goa Sudharop website, www.goasudharop.org. Please accept my deepest thanks and appreciation to the Toronto Convention organizing team for doing an amazing job in bringing great quality and content to this convention. The cultural flavor took us back to our roots through the Tiatr and Mando Mogi's performances. We are very grateful for this rich and entertaining experience the convention made available to us. Also, thanks to the ALL the doers. Those who made time, at personal cost and hardship, to organize the workshops and events which Filomena has written about in detail from a doer/activist perspective. May you sail on Goan winds and soar and touch the sky. Thank you Toronto.

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STATEMENT BY EDUARDO FALEIRO, COMMISSIONER FOR NRI AFFAIRS AT HIS PRESS BRIEFING (August 12, 2008) Posted on : goanet@goanet.org August 15, 2008 I was in Toronto (Canada) from July 25-31. The purpose of my visit was to inaugurate the annual Global Goans Convention. You may recall that we had decided that this yearly event should be held by rotation in different countries where there is a significant population of Goan expatriates so that it may permit participation of all those who for different reasons are not able to come to Goa and also provide for greater involvement of our expatriates on this occasion. Last year the Convention was held in Portugal. On the sidelines of the Convention, I discussed with the Goan organizations modalities for redressal of grievances of non-resident Goans. It was decided that Goan organizations should nominate one representative based in Goa for each country with substantial Goan population and he/she should submit the grievances of Goan expatriates to our office. Our office will then forward the complaints to the concerned Departments and expect redressal within a month. When this is not possible we will issue a status report every month to the concerned individual indicating the progress in the settlement of his grievance until the matter is finally resolved. We propose to unite all Goan organizations outside Goa, whether elsewhere in India or abroad, under one global network based in Goa. The representatives of all such Goan organizations will be involved in this project and we intend to set up the Global Goans Office in Panaji by next December. In Toronto, I had a meeting with Hon. Harinder Takkar, Minister for Small Business and Consumer Affairs in that Government. Mr. Takkar did his education in India and then migrated to Canada where he became a successful businessman and is now in Government. We noted the tremendous economic progress of India and discussed modalities for involving NRIs in this process. Mr. Takkar felt that NRIs who have distinguished themselves particularly in the technological and economic fields should be co opted as members of Boards and Corporations in India so that their expertise would benefit the country and the different States of India. There would be no particular burden on the Government in-as-much-as only those who come regularly to India and who can afford to be here at their own cost would be nominated and they would then interact with the concerned Board or Corporation whenever they are in India or, in our case, in Goa. This is a suggestion which deserves sympathetic consideration from our Government. We had signed a contract with the Centre for Development Studies (CDS) of Kerala for conducting a Goa Migration Monitoring Study. The Centre is the foremost agency in India on Migration Studies. The purpose of the Study is to collect data on migration from Goa and analyse its impact on the social and economic situation of our State. The Study will contain reports on the following twelve subjects: (i) Demograply of Goa; (ii) Migration from Goa; a historical overview; (iii) Internal Migration: census analysis; (iv) Population characteristics of sample households; (v) International migration estimates; trends and patterns; (vi) Causes, costs and financing of migration; (vii) Estimates of remittances and their utilization;(viii) Impact of migration on Education and Health; (ix) Consumption and investment behaviour in Goa; (x) Migration and women; (xi) Migration and the elderly; (xii) Rehabilitation of return Emigrants. The Goa Migration Monitoring Study will also include a section on Goan migration from the historical perspective. This section will recreate the past Goan context, social, historical, geographical and political to situate and explain Goan migration. It will focus mainly on the following regions where Goans migrated: Mumbai and Karachi, East Africa, Portugal, U.K. Myanmar, Macau, Middle East, U.S.A and Canada. This section is being prepared by the Xavier Centre of Historical Studies. The work is proceeding as per schedule. The CDS has selected 6000 households across the State on random sampling for survey and interviewing. 4000 households have already been surveyed, the inmates interviewed and collection of similar data regarding the remaining 2000 households will be completed in the course of this month. Editing and analysis of the data has already begun. The Preliminary Report will be submitted by CDS end October and the Final Report in November next.