HUMBLE SALAZAR Dr. Antonio Oliveira Salazar was not my uncle. He was the ruler of Portugal and since Goa was under Portuguese regime till December 1961, I had to accept him as my ruler too. Though he was a dictator and since I don’t like dictators yet I had to accept his dictatorship as the ruler of Portugal. Dictators are always bad. Soon after the invasion of Kuwait by Saddam Hussein, Margaret Thatcher the then Premier of UK was in USA visiting President Bush Sr. When she got the news of the invasion of Kuwait, she made a scathing attack on Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein saying “dictators are dictators. There should be no appeasement for dictators anytime and anywhere”. No doubt Salazar was a dictator but he was not a brute dictator like Saddam Hussein. Salazar did not wage his wars against others as Saddam Hussein did.
Saddam Hussein was bad in all angles while Salazar inspite of being a dictator and harsh in certain angles, had lot of good qualities and lot of humility though to some naked eyes it may look he was a good dramatist. May be Salazar was during his lifetime in politics was a political “Tiatrist” but for that matter we all human beings are also Tiatrists, to quote William Shakesphere in his last Drama “As You Like It”. I think Salazar played all the 7 roles of one’s lifetime as indicated by Shakesphere including the last role of “Sans Teeth, Sans Eyes, Sans Ears, Sans Limbs”. Was it a blessing for him to accomplish his mission on this planet as a Tiatrist to complete all the 7 roles? Great indeed!!
Prof. Eduardo D’Souza from Pilerne Bardez was my Professor at Escola Primaria de Abade Faria, Candolim. He was staying in Candolim in a big house near the Tinto. He was an aristocrat but very strict. He used to give corporal punishment to us, his students in such a way that one of the boys suffered permanent deformity in one of his ears. And yet due to his influence he could get way with all these atrocities against students. Though he was strict yet he was a very good teacher. Somehow or the other he was found in creating some malpractices to acquire the Candolim house and in the ensuring court case he was found guilty and sentenced for imprisonment and sent to Aguada Prison.
It was unimaginable that time in 1960 to know such a Pro-Portuguese Bamon Bhattkar with his vast influence in Goa could face such a fate. But it happened. He challenged the court decision while serving his term in Prison at Aguada and finally he directly wrote from Aguada Prison to Salazar in Lisbon detailing all his grievances and stating that he was falsely implicated in this case.
To his surprise and to the surprise of everyone, Prof. Eduardo received immediate and direct reply from Salazar saying “I will check your case with the concerned authorities”. When this process was going on, Goa meantime was annexed by Bharat. Now, my point of writing these few lines on Salazar’s reply to Prof. Eduardo D’Souza is to highlight the simplicity and humility and strong sense of administrative discipline of Salazar. I don’t think in this act of Salazar there was a touch of “Tiatristpon” unless one has to impose it on Salazar.
Would our “Panpotti” Premiers in Delhi reply to our letters in Goa? I doubt and I don’t think either. During Portuguese time we Goans were treated in many respects much better by the Portuguese colonialists than what we are treated now by Delhi colonialists even though I don’t ask for colonial rule. Mahatma Gandhi called Dellivalas as Indian colonialists. During the Salazarist time our voice was audible but now we are made unimportant in our own land by our so called brothers from Delhi. During Salazarist time in Goa there was law and order and discipline was existing nicely but now it is free for all because Goa is ruled by “Chors” from Goa and Delhi itself.
During Salazar’s time the representative of Salazar was listening to us and doing what is good for Goans but now one small creature from Mangalore Margareth Alva who was rejected in Mangalore by her own Mangalorean people but accepted by Delhivalas is destroying the whole political outlook of Goa by not listening to the voice of Goans. During Salazar’s time in Goa we were just bowing down our heads with respect in front of white skinners from Lisboa but now we have to kiss the feet with reverence of the "chors" and "bamttes" from Delhi wearing white Dhoti and white Gandhi “Topi” and yet we call ourselves independents.
Before the forcible acquisition of Goa by Bharat under Nehru’s Congress, Salazar no doubt told Governador Vassalo e Silva to destroy Goa which was not right yet Salazar gave all freedom for all Goans to leave Goa and come to Portugal instead of falling into the hands of invaders and conquerors who will treat Goans as second class citizens, especially Christians. How prophetic Salazar was!!. What he prophesized then is coming into reality in Goa.
A month before the acquisition of Goa by Bharat, Salazar sent special Ship to Goa to take back not only Portuguese people mainly the females and children back to Portugal but he even kept in readiness more ships for any number of Goans willing to come to Portugal. That we did not go was another matter. But some of the Goans who made Portuguese Passports and migrated to Portugal and still talk ill of Portugal and Salazar are ungrateful Goans.
Salazar had his flaws, so also we all of us. It is not Portugal that needs Goyemkars but it is Goyemkars that need Portugal for this reason now almost every second or third Goykar is craving for Portuguese Passport. Those Goans who are living in Portugal and still talking ill of Portugal are “beiman”. They are not true to the land of their domicile neither to their lamd of birth. They are to be treated as Judases. It is the system Salazar promoted in Portugal that helped these traitors to enjoy the benefits of Portugal.
I dislike Salazar for being Dictator yet I admire him for inculcating a sense of discipline and morality in us, the citizens of Portugal in Goa. These attributes are great in us and precisely because of this Goan is unique not only in India but in the entire subcontinent. The greatest attribute of a Goan is his sense of gratitude which we acquired due to the long years of Portuguese rule in Goa.
If a Goan calls himself a Goan and feels proud about his Goan nature than he should have the sense of gratitude – only a Ghantti from Bharat will have sense of ingratitude. Those people who are enjoying all the benefits of Portuguese Government in Portugal and still talk ill of Portugal than they are traitors. Those Goykars who enjoy the benefit of Portuguese Passport and still talk ill of Portugal then these Goykars are not real Goykars. The credit for making Goans unique in India should also go to Portugal under Salazar.
A. Veronica Fernandes,
Kuwait.
