Comunidade, the over-2,000-year-old institution so unique to Goa. The term Comunidade (community) was the Portuguese appellation for our ‘Gaunkari’ system that has been prevalent here at the relevant time. They are in the form  of  self -government  or village republics established  by the natives or indigenous  people;  and who  stood the tests of time through various invasions by different  rulers, succeeded by a bi-lateral treaty with the Portuguese to safeguard it.

However, this age-old heritage has been recently under severe threat from its own Gaunkars with vested interests, who have connived with the corrupt and assist the land-grabbing politicians. There have also been allegations by a few Gaunkars that suo moto changes and amendments are being made to the rules and regulations of the Comunidades and to the law under the Code of Comunidades to suit the vested interests of the ruling political parties and without the consent of the constituents of the Comunidades.

A group of Gaunkars from different Comunidades in the state decided that enough is enough. They set up an association  known as ‘Association of Componentes of Comunidades’ in the year 1995 in order to fight back against  the corruption in the Administration of Comunidades and against the plunder of land resources and economy of the Comunidades. 

Adv. A. A. Pereira: "the so-called Liberation of Goa  is just another Colonial Rule"

Amongst them is Advocate Andre A. Pereira, Association secretary and  a gaunkar of  Comunidade of Mormugao.  “I realised  that when we, the natives stand solemnly declared to be the  absolute owners of the land in this State of Goa,  the so-called Liberation of Goa  is just another Colonial Rule of the Central Government in disguise under the Colour of law replacing the ex-Portuguese Rulers and  consequently the natives of Goa are  treated as slaves by making them subject to the laws enacted under the British Concept”.

Mr Pereira said that State laws which are influenced by the British Concept of Administration in India have no scope to be made applicable in this State of Goa where “there is total  absence of  State landlordism”.

 “I met Hector Fernandes, the then President of Aldona Comunidade and we gave a call to all like-minded people to unite and form the association in order to protest atrocities against the Comunidades. Many came, but few with vested interests left,” said Mr Pereira.

“There have been incidences, while I was attorney of  Mormugao Comunidade, when the complaints made to the Administrator of Comunidades on encroachments of our land were not attended. When I approached the police for assistance, I was asked to get the magistrate’s order in order to take action on the encroaching party and only then they would take action,” he said adding, “We had no authenticated English version of the Codigo Das Comunidades (Code of Comunidades) to understand the legal implications at the relevant point of time”.

Negative role of MGP and Congress

“The land resources and Revenue of the Comunidades have been swindled. That the then Government of MGP who had the intention to merge Goa with Maharashtra, introduced wrong policies. They have enacted the GDD Agricultural Tenancy Act, 1964, made applicable to the land owned by the Comunidades without first establishing State land tenure relationship with them,” he said.

“Similarly, they enacted GDD Land Revenue Code, 1968 by adopting the provisions of Bombay Land Revenue Code, 1879 and suo moto caused its Revenue authorities to apply its provisions to every land holding in this State of Goa, when such provisions cannot be made applicable in the absence of State land tenure relationship with the citizens in any given locality,” informed Mr Pereira.  

“It was the Congress Government, who came later to power, who started the actual destruction by making use of the wrong policies introduced by the MGP. That the BJP who had promised to do away with the illegalities introduced during the MGP and Congress rule, have in fact taken out most benefit  of the same to almost eliminate the Comunidades from the face of this earth in order to please the vested interested politicians forming the BJP Government during their last tenure,” alleged Mr Pereira. 

“Even the church and temples have lost lands through these wrong policies and mostly for reasons, when the persons managing the properties of these religious bodies have colluded with the opponents,” he said. 

“Much of the land holdings with the churches and temples have come into existence by virtue of grants made by the respective Comunidade at the relevant point of time since the entire village belonged to the given Comunidade and by donations from private individuals for pious purposes. These lands are meant to generate revenue for the support of the management of the said churches and temples,” Mr Pereira informed.

Colonial background: role of the Portuguese

“The Portuguese never treated us as like the English Colonist, when it comes to our land rights etc.  In 1510, Afonso de Albuquerque made an agreement, as it stands recorded,  wherein the gaunkars and the natives were guaranteed and assured the protection of the land and land resources and of their rights and the then prevailing laws, which were based on usage and customs since time immemorial; and were considered as partners in the administration of state affairs,”. Mr Pereira told Herald.

“They recognised Gaunkaris to be ancient bodies established by the original settlers and or villagers and not created by any king or ruler. They realised, of late, that the Comunidade was an indigenous institution of a peculiar character, where the State could not be its creator nor the owner of the land, since the institution is said to be prior in time and hence absence of State landlordism,” said Mr Pereira.

Mr Pereira further pointed out that Article 294 and 295 of the Constitution of India,  permits the Central Government and or the State Government to acquire by succession  the properties and assets that belonged to the State and possessed by the Ex-Portuguese Rulers as well as liabilites and obligations of the said vanquished ruler.

“That no Government, in terms of the Constitution of India, can be said to have acquired any proprietorship interest or any right over the absolute private villages and or over any land and immovable property of the Comunidades in Goa, to assume itself the status of a landlord for the purpose of any legislation thereof,” he said.   

Mr Pereira informed that on April 15, 1961, the Portuguese Governor General Manuel Vassalo e Silva signed an historic declaration stating that respective Comunidades in Goa, were absolute owners of their lands without the element of State Grant or State land Tenure as revealed to the Government and therefore their villages are absolutely private and are not owned by the State as on December 19, 1961, to be succeeded by any Government.

 “We were liberated by this act of April 15, 1961 from the clutches of the fake State landlordism under the Colonist Rule. But this freedom was eclipsed on December 19, 1961, and the events that followed it. It appears that the Central Government has made the State of Goa as their Colony through the vested interested politicians in this State of Goa after ouster of the Western Colonist,” said Mr Pereira.

Who owns the land?

Making his argument clear he said, “If the State is not the owner in origin of the land in terms of Article 294 and 295 of the Constitution of India, the question of any Legislation by the State Government over the land of the Comunidades, when there is total absence of an Estate in Land as foreseen under Article 31A of the Constitution of India does not arise at all, when the land is not of the kind as foreseen under the Constitution of India”.

 “Our Association wants to bring to the attention of the Central government, it should restrict its functions by considering the perimeters of Article 294 and 295 of the Constitution of India and honour and respect the age old bilateral Treaty to provide the contracted Administrative Tutelage to the Comunidades through any Government in this State of Goa and should not act as another Colonist under the colour of Liberation of Goa from Portuguese Rule,” Mr Pereira informed.

 Realising the significance of April 15, 1961, the date is termed as ‘Gaunkars Liberation Day’ by a booklet entitled ‘Gaunkari’ issued by some Gaunkars. Mr Pereira further elaborated, “Article 652 of the Code of Comunidades states  that ‘Every five years, it is the responsibility of the Government to provide scope for the  convention of Comunidades in the city of Panjim of the delegates of various Comunidades in Goa  to decide over any interests of the Comunidade, including amendments, if any to be carried out to the existing provisions of the said Code and this obligation is taken by the Government being under the contractual obligation in the larger interest of the society,” he  said.

“We say that the Government and the Governor has failed in the compliance to Article 652 of the Code of Comunidades when under the Solemn of obligation as stands declared under the Diploma Legislative No.2070 dated 15.4.1961 in the Government Official Gazette” Mr Pereira stated.

Language problems: lack of translation

Another issue brought out by Mr Pereira was, “Our Code of Comunidades is still in the Portuguese language. No authoritative text of the code is made available in English till date as required in terms of Article 348(3) of the Indian Constitution. The Government through some unknown source have made available wrongly and illegally framed the so- called translated Code of Comunidades in English under the cover of the Government Printing Press and in the absence of such authoritative text, the government has suo moto carried out so-called ‘amendments’ in English to the fraudulently framed so-called  English translation of the Code of Comunidades”.

“The current English translation which made available through the Government Printing Press by the Revenue Department is a fraudulently framed document in order to give benefit to the vested-interested elements for plunder of land and economic resources of the Comunidade. The provision of the Article 348(3) of the Constitution of India requires to publish such a translation, if any, in the Government Official Gazette to give legal colour to such translation,” said Mr Pereira.

Turning his ire on the Comunidade administration, he informed, “That in terms of the existing contract with the State, the administrator of Comunidades needs to be appointed by the Governor, but since such authority is abdicated by the Governor, the State government has commenced to appoint the Administrator of Comunidades who in turn  safe-guards the interest of the politicians as against the interest of the Comunidades ”.

Offical ignorance

“Presently the Office of the Administrators is handled by most incompetent persons, who have no knowledge of Comunidade laws, guided by the vested-interested politicians and most of time under the control of the Revenue Minister since the powers vesting with the Governor of Goa stands abidicated. These persons are supposed to pass a special test based on the original Code of Comunidades. This test should be taken for all purposes, whether for the appointment of Administrator or of the concerned staff and as well as for staff promotion. But no such test has been given nor taken,” Mr Pereira alleged.

“The Goa Government does not give Comunidades a single paisa for its administration nor its maintenance, as they are not bound to do so. When they don’t finance us, what right do they have to suo moto legislate and/or dictate terms to us  by appointing politically interested administrators?” asked Mr Pereira.

“The administration does not take action against encroachers on Comunidade land. The complainants are victims, who are sometimes assaulted by the encroachers for making such complaints. The complainants are not given protection,” he alleged. 

“The plunder of land of Comunidades had started from 1967 onwards for political gain to create vote banks. These acts of politicians are protected by suit legislations,”said Mr Pereira.

“The judiciary in Goa is not provided with the authenticated translation of the law nor of the past judgments of the then High Court/ Supreme Court of Portugal on matters of Comunidades for the purpose of reference,” he said.

Also present was Hector Fernandes, ex-President of Comunidade Fraternal de Aldona. “The bi-lateral agreement of 1510 was put into writing in 1526 by Afonso Mexia. This was compiled after an exhaustive investigation of local laws in the form of a Roll, in a way the Portuguese would understand and interpret,” said Mr Fernandes.

“This was delivered to Goans as a Charter of Roll of Customs and Usages. This compilation left ambiguities as regards to land laws due to which much injustice was done to the locals until it dawned on the Portuguese the wrongdoings imposed on the locals. They tried to make amends, but much harm was already done during the course of the centuries,” stated Mr Fernandes.

“All said and done, all these wrongs cannot be compared to the frauds and injustice perpetuated now on local people in so short a time since the last 30 years,” Mr Fernandes said.

“We seek protection under the U.N.Charter for protection of Indigenous Peoples and particularly in terms of Article 26 of the Draft Declaration on the Rights of the Indigenous Peoples,” informed Mr Fernandes.

Article 26 of the UN Draft Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states,  ‘Indigenous peoples have the right to own, develop, control and use the lands and territories including the total environment of the lands, air, waters, coastal seas, sea-ice, flora and fauna and other resources which they have traditionally owned or otherwise occupied or used. This includes the right to the full recognition of their laws, traditions and customs, land-tenure systems and institutions for the development and management of resources and the right to effective measures by states to prevent any interference with, alienation of or encroachment upon their rights’.

This interview is part of THE FUTURE OF GOA initiative I have launched on Supergoa.com. Find out more about the articles to follow and how you can contribute.