Edited by Eddie Fernandes editor@goanvoice.org.uk

No Brazil, Portugal football teams for Lusofonia Games
30 Jun: Business Standard. As if the missed deadlines and shoddy state of preparedness weren't enough, the organisers of the Lusofonia Games in Goa have been dealt another body blow with Brazil deciding not to send its football and volleyball teams. Portugal has only agreed to send its 'C' level soccer side… The organisers are also having problems with the lack of interest on part of the participating nations towards the Games…  click here

Luxury island villas in Goa - from £2.2m+

click to enlarge

Death: Martha Mascarenhas
29 Jun: Villa Formosa, Chandor, Goa. MARTHA MASCARENHAS. Born 1932; Ex-Mumbai. Wife of late Ignatius Augustinho (Mac - Mazagon Dock Ltd. Mumbai); Mom/ mom-in-law of Clement (Mac)/ Ol1ie, Maria/ Robert D'Souza, Margaret/ late Russel Silveira, late Clifford, Merlyn/ Norbert Fernandes, Fr. Andrew (Parish Priest) St. Anthony's Church, Panchwadi; Grandmom of Ryan, Merwin, Faye, Neil; Sister/ sister-in-law of late Anthony/ Laura Martins, Gracy/ Roque Nazareth, Gertie/ late Diago D'Souza (All in Mumbai); Sister-in-law of late Archanjo/ Mary (Belgaum), late Sr. Serafine (Belgaum), late Fr. Sebestain S.J. St. Mary Mumbai & Papal Seminary (Pune), late Joanna & late Joe Dessa (Parra), Sr. Rose F.M.C.K. (Pakistan), Louisa/ late Wilfred Rodrigues (Canada). Funeral cortege will leave her residence at 3.45 p.m., on Sunday, 30th June 2013 to Our Lady of Bethlehem Church, Chandor for mass & burial.  click here

BJP eyes Pope's visit to woo Christian vote bank

UK: Grace Startin sees God’s love at work in Goa
30 Jun: New Town Avbbet Today (UK). Grace Startin was among a group of volunteers who travelled to Goa recently with the Labour In Faith and Trust (LIFT) overseas mission organisation. The 12-strong team jetted out to India last month to work in partnership with another charity, El Shaddai… “El Shaddai has also been able to provide or pay for medical care for many children over the past 15 years. What we consider simple procedures would be unavailable to many, but with funding from many Christians, El Shaddai can provide the means to change the lives of many adults and children 
throughout Goa.” … Photo.  click here
For the El Shaddai website,  click here

Mali: Marissa Coutinho Samake: First Lady in Waiting...

Video: 3 villages celebrate Sangodd
30 Jun: Herald. The traditional Sangodd to mark the feast of St Peter and St Paul was celebrated with pomp and gaiety in the villages of Assolna, Ambelim and Velim on Saturday. The young and the old participated in the celebration in the celebration after the sangodd ventured in the River Sal after blessings by the Priests. A local resident, Steven Cardozo said that Sangodd has been an annual celebration, uniting the people in the celebration of the festival…  click here
Video: Prudent Media. 29 Jun. Sangod. Part 1.  click here
Part 2. click here.

Michelle Sequeira: Bharatanatyam in Belgium

Rick Stein searches for the perfect curry in India
13 Jun: Rick Stein talks to TV Times magazine about giving his taste buds a roller-coaster ride in his quest for the perfect curry in Rick Stein's India (BBC2, Monday)… fish curry is the most memorable dish India has to offer. I remember tasting my first on a family holiday in Goa in the early Eighties. It was a revelation – the incredible strength of flavour in the fragrance and heat." …  click here

The Sea of Innocence by Kishwar Desai – review

Forthcoming Auction: Carved ivory figures
2 July: Woolley & Wallis, Salisbury, Wilts, UK. Lot 1: A Goanese ivory figure of the Virgin and child, with traces of polychrome decoration, 17th / 18th century, 6½in. Estimate: £200 - £300. Photo.  click here
Lot 400: A pair of carved ivory lions, possibly Indo-Portuguese / Goa, 19th century, 2½in (5.8cm) high, 2¼in (5.5cm) long. (2). Estimate: £150 - £200. Photo.  click here

Roland Francis: Random Observations and Stray Thoughts of a Toronto Goan

People in Goa have by and large transformed from simple and trusting to cynical and conniving. Don't know whether 52 years of Indian rule is responsible or whether it's just a sign of the times. Hospitality however has remained a redeeming feature but violence is a new one.

Britain's course of action in requiring visitors from 'high risk' countries to post a 3,000 pound deposit is an unfair and ineffective method of preventing overstaying. Those who mean to illegally immigrate will be unfazed and those who mean to return (the majority) will be unfairly penalized. Somewhat similar to the United States giving the governments of South American countries a hard time, accusing them of being implicit in exporting drugs. Uncle Sam would do better to restrict their own population from consuming them.

Global warming and its changing weather patterns causing extensive havoc is here to stay. We can expect it more frequently. The recent heavy rains and landslides in North India and flooding of Calgary, Canmore and the surrounding towns in the Banff resort area of Alberta showed how nature in an instant can make mice out of men. Nothing demonstrates it better than the melting of huge bergs and frozen tundra, increasing water levels in the seas and oceans, continents away.

Two multi-storied buildings came crashing down in Bombay's suburbs. While that is nothing new for Bombay, it used to be restricted to 150 year old buildings with poor maintenance. Now it is happening to buildings recently but illegally built with shoddy materials and no supervision. How such construction can come up within the jurisdiction of one of the largest municipalities in Asia with a budget greater than many developing countries will indicate the kind of corruption that puts no value on human life. The authorities are not the only ones to blame. When notices of evacuation due to impending danger are given, residents routinely ignore them. It won't be long before Goa follows this sorry state of affairs.

Toronto's mayor is in a way like New York's Teflon Don, the famous John Gotti of Mafia fame. The more the accusations flung at him by the media, the less they seem to stick on him. In fact people feel he is being unfairly and excessively targeted and sympathize with him. His popularly in opinion polls is increasing rather than decreasing with every new expose. Talking of oily skins, Narendra Modi the recently elected-in- Goa president of one of the two largest parties in India also seems to have a duck's back. Several major criminal charges originating from a mass killing incident which he is alleged to have condoned or even caused, seem to have amounted to nothing.

A tramp steamer loaded with heavy armament, small arms and ammunition sent by the US to rebels in Syria fighting the almost unbeatable (with Russian help) Assad regime, has broken up off the coast of Goa. Ex KGB Russians, vacationing Israeli soldiers, Al Qaida agents, handsome Kashmiri refugees marrying lonely older British women - I thought we had them all. It took this ship to remind that CIA financed arms smugglers were missing.

It is amazing to read the achievements of Goans throughout the world as recorded in Eddie Fernandes' Goan Voice. With a magical sweep of the world's press, he brings to our table news of industry moguls, famous chefs, airline czars, software geniuses, crusty generals and everything in-between - as long as they are Goan or Goan connected. We even read of our very own Mata Hari, a special agent once operating in Italy who outsmarted her own employer, the CIA. Eddie is tight lipped about how he does it, but takes pride in the fact that he doesn't originate anything. To people who like to keep in touch with Diaspora news, people and milestones, GVUK is required reading.

Comments to roland.francis@gmail.com