20th February 2007. (307 Dwapara Yuga) To, The Chief Secretary Government of Goa New Secretariat Complex Gaunkary of Serula Penha de France Bardez, Goa. Sub: Rejection of Proposal to give Municipal Status to Porvorim. Respected Sir, With regard to the representation made by the Porvorim Residents Welfare Association (PRWA) before you, the report of which appeared in the section of the Press (Ref: Gomantak Times, Page A3, dated 12th February 2007), the members of GaunkarsFirst, some of whom also constitute the Gaunkars of the Comunidades of Serula, wish to state as follows: 1. That the land in question over which the PRWA has raised the issue of granting status to the area as �Municipality� belongs to the Gaunkary (Comunidade) of Serula as �absolute Private Property� of the said Comunidade. 2. That there is no element of �Estate� in land and/or State Landlordism in the locality to establish any Municipality or Panchayat bodies recognized by the Constitution of India, in the first place. 3. The entire land covering the locality in question is absolute private property of the Gaunkars in common under the entity known as �Comunidade of Serula� by Portuguese appellation, belonging to the ancient village community of Serula and there is no land �grant� of the State at any point in time to any person or entity including the PRWA. The PRWA is challenged to produce any proof to the contrary to justify their proposal. 4. That the development taken place and continuously taking place over the said Comunidade land is in violation of the Private Laws of the Gaunkars, the indigenous people of Serula, to whom the land belongs. These violations are done by fraudulently framed and maintained so called plans, maps and Record of Rights by making use of Provisions and Rules under the G.D.D.L.R.C., 1968, even though there is no �Estate in Land� in the locality. 5. The Administration of the Comunidade appointed by the Government, being under contractual obligation with the Gaunkars in terms of Article 5 of the Code of Comunidades, is found to be always in connivance with the politicians and elements having vested interest (including some of the Gaunkars of the Comunidade having vested interests) and have not carried out their lawful statutory duty but have been continuously committing atrocities, ethnocide and displacement of the Gaunkars of the Comunidade of Serula and their families from the land by pleasing those who are hostile to the age-old institutions � the Gaunkaries -f Goa, since the so called Liberation of Goa in 1961. 6. The Government has failed to lawfully constitute the Revenue Villages in Goa after liberation of Goa for the simple reason that there is absence of State Landlordism in this State of Goa and hence have failed to identify which Villages belong to the State and which villages are Private Villages belonging to the Comunidades in Goa. The Government however prefers to carry out its business and activities over non-revenue villages under the colour of false legislations. The question is: �How can the State Government cause the constitution of Village Panchayats in the locality under the active jurisdiction of the Comunidade of Serula and displace the Gaunkars of their rightful place in the governance of the village as enshrined under the Constitution of India?� 7. Various State Governments have been legislating over and making amendments to the Private Laws of the Gaunkars of Goa founded on customs and usages which stands codified in the �Codigo das Comunidades� and gives an impression that such customs and usages were enacted by State legislation. The Government of Goa even went to the extent of circulating an English version of the �Codigo das Comunidades� through the Government Printing Press by naming it �Code of Comunidades�. The members of the public, the judiciary as well as the bureaucracy are misguided by the Government/politicians due to this fraudulently framed and fabricated law of the Gaunkars of Goa and more so by creating the false assumption of State landlordism in causing amendments to a customary private law officially written in the Portuguese language. Now therefore please take note: 1. That the Gaunkars of the Comunidade of Serula in particular, have been kept out of the governance of their Comunidade by the Government under a false and fake State Guardianship in connivance with politicians and other vested interests. 2. Presently, the Government is so involved in the election process of the new Managing Committee of the Comunidade of Serula as to give benefits to non-Gaunkars to administer the affairs of the Comunidade of Serula. The issuing of illegal notifications and conducting illegal process of appointment of the Managing Committees and holding of meetings, thereby not permitting the Gaunkars the freedom and security to deliberate and decide matters in the interests of their own Comunidade, is today�s trend of the Government. Hence, the Government has committed criminal breach of trust in this case also. 3. That the Gaunkars of the Comunidade of Serula are as though in a state of exile and are being deliberately displaced from their Comunidade by such willful acts of the Government and the Administration due to which non-Gaunkars having no legislative or participatory rights in the meetings of the Comunidade have been deciding the fate of the Comunidade in total disregard for the rights of the owners of the Comunidade - the Gaunkars of Serula. 4. That the Gaunkars of the Comunidade of Serula, by this representation as well as other means have been expressing their opinion in various matters pertaining to the interests of their rights and the interests of the Comunidade but have been unable to hold their meetings in the Comunidade meeting hall to express their opinion in various matters as the Government has failed to provide security to the Gaunkars and have been denied protection from entry of non-Gaunkars who, by forceful and unlawful entry, participate unlawfully in the meetings of the Comunidade of Serula and vote against the interests of the Gaunkars and their Comunidade. 5. That the Gaunkars of Serula, in the absence of protection from the Administrators of Comunidades as well as absence of suitable redress for their grievances, are facing threat to their safety and life as well as of their families, and hence are forced to abstain from attending the meetings taking place in the Comunidade of Serula, whenever notified. 6. That the Gaunkars of the Comunidade of Serula reject all resolutions adopted by such unlawful gatherings of non-Gaunkars at the private meetings of the Gaunkars by reducing the Gaunkars to a minority or obstructing the Gaunkars from carrying out their rightful duties in the Comunidade of Serula, retrospectively. 7. That the Gaunkars cannot express their opinion in matters pertaining to their Comunidade village due to the aforesaid reasons as well as due to the unlawful imposition of Village Panchayats in the Private Comunidade Villages which have encouraged and supported strangers to usurp the rights of the Gaunkars of the Comunidade. 8. Therefore the Gaunkars of Serula can, until such time the Government and Administration of Comunidades give suitable protection to the Gaunkars, only express their opinion through such means and ways as this representation, to make the concerned persons and authorities aware of their say on behalf of their Comunidade. We therefore appeal to your good self to take serious note of the aforesaid atrocities by every Government in power by false exercise of their domain over the terrain that never in the first place belonged to the State. The State is expected, under the prevailing age-old bilateral Contract/Agreement to protect every interest of the Gaunkars including their private and personal law from being violated by any entity or person and more particularly against social and cultural genocide, ethnocide and violation of Human Rights and Rights of the indigenous people of Goa as enshrined in the Constitution of India. We therefore take this opportunity to tell the Government to refrain from carrying out any illegal business by false assumption of State landlordism in the locality of Serula and reject all such irresponsible proposals from the PRWA or any one else. We are prepared to place before you our case, in person, if given the opportunity to do so. We await your response to this representation. Yours truly, For GaunkarsFirst, Savio H. D'Souza CONVENOR |