Claiming the Right to Say No-30 Nov 09-EQUATIONS - Equitable ...

Theologizing Tourism: Towards a Pastoral Care of Tourism
has three dimensions - cry for survival, cry for dignity and affirmation and
cry for meaning. From the point of the Goan context, cry for survival
arises from ecological imbalance. Cry for dignity and affirmation arises
from the rising abuses of the rights of the women and children and cry for
meaning arises from negligence to family, religion, moral, social and cultural
values.
1.1 Natural Resources: Cry for Survival
The serene and tranquil coastline of Goa stood exposed to the greed of
the real estate agents. The silvery sand of our beaches is slowly turning
black due to the pollution caused by human activities, including oil pollution.
Our politicians together with the bureaucrats have embarked on an
ambitious plan to destroy the wealth of our coast. “Tourism development
has taken a huge toll on Goa’s coastal environment with violations mounting
by the day. In 2007 the state government identified over 300 constructions
that defied the ban on construction within 200 meters of the high tide line.
Hundreds of illegalities have escaped being demolished in the past with
the support of the politicians”
Tourism has led to the commodification of the coastal resources that were
previously the source of income to the people of that area. A large number
of people in Calangute are involved in tourism compared to the coastal
villages in South Goa. As such the area has changed to cater to the needs
of the middle budget tourist. The advent of tourism in these places has
served to reduce dependence on farming and fishing due to the alternatives
that arose from tourist related activities such as providing taxis, phone
booths, recreational facilities, travel and tour booking, etc.
Sawkar et al (1997) argued that this rise in tourism has been trigger for
land conversion from agriculture to non-agriculture and that traditional
fishing operation has been constricted by lack of shore space. In some
areas, fishing ports and place of fisherman have been displaced by resort
development.
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