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Dubai: Diana Quelhas is a Briton of Goan descent. The 23-year-old medical student had made up her mind to return to the state this year after spending her holidays there last December. So much was she taken up with the sun, sea and surf. Safety concerns have since forced a change of heart after the state came into the spotlight for all the wrong reasons.
Quelhas's fears are not unfounded coming in the wake of the alleged rape and murder of a 15-year-old Briton. The two suspects who exploited the vulnerability of the young Scarlett Keeling are behind bars after a prolonged campaign by her mother Kate to expose the truth.
Keeling may not be the only victim of lust and drugs for that matter. There may be other cases too of people who - as per police records - have "drowned", "died in accidents" or had a "natural death".
Rave party destination
According to the British consulate in New Delhi, 40 UK nationals died in Goa last year. This year, up to March, the figure is 10.
Every year, Britons make up nearly 60 per cent of all the foreign tourists who visit Goa. Most of these visitors head for the pristine beaches, and some to scout for business and property. But it is not all sun and business - there is sleaze and drugs.
Goa is a rave party destination. It has a genre of music named after it - Goa Trance. Drugs, alcohol and hashish-laced pie, tarts and trollops are part and parcel of night-long parties.
There is big money involved and everyone wants a piece of the pie. The locals, Britons, Russians, Germans and Israelis have demarcated their turf. It is the Russians and Central Asians, of late, who are making their presence felt. And there is talk of the Russian mafia investing in land and running call girl services for rich clients, including the noveau riche.
"Go to Morjim [a beach in North Goa] and take a look. The Russians have taken it over. There are bars and restaurants owned by them and even the signboards are in their language," says Francisco (Mickey) Pacheco, the state's Tourism Minister.
If the Russians have taken over Morjim, then the Israelis have pitched their tents at the Palolem beach in the south. Not to be outdone, the Britons, Nigerians and other foreigners, have carved out pockets of their own influence along the Arabian Sea coast.
"It is not that the police are not aware of these groups, but they are hand in glove with them," Pacheco said from the US, where he runs a business.
Those who have been to Goa, and Goans themselves, will agree with Pacheco on the vulnerability of the police. "What will the police do when they pay lakhs [one lakh is 100,000] to the local politician to be selected as sub-inspector? They have to recoup that and the only way they can do it is by fleecing tourists - Indians and foreigners," reasons Caje Fernandes, a Goan working in a hotel in Dubai.
"As tourism minister, it is my duty to ensure visitors coming to the state are safe, but I am not the home minister to enforce the law," says Pacheco.
The police were left red-faced for bungling the Scarlett Keeling case but are now trying to make amends. At Pacheco's suggestion, the home ministry has initiated safety measures along the coast and intensified patrolling by putting more officers on the beat. Some consulates are now complaining that their citizens are being harassed.
Complaining consulates
Recently, four girls from Uzbekistan were arrested for prostitution during a sting operation in the state. They are believed to be part of an international prostitution ring, allegedly run by a Russian woman. Each girl charged around Rs35,000 (Dh3,5175) per night.
Cases have been registered against Russian land sharks too, some of whom have bought property by circumventing Reserve Bank of India regulations.
Protesting against a series of "repressive actions" against its citizens, the Russian Embassy sent its Mumbai Consulate General, Alexander V. Mantytsky, to Goa to voice its concern.
In a letter to the state's Chief Minister Digamber Kamat, Mantytsky said: "Russian tourists have had to face unfair attitudes of Goan policemen, hotels and guesthouse owners. The Consulate has registered an increase in complaints of Russian nationals regarding numerous unlawful actions by Goan inhabitants lately."
Pacheco, however, expressed his unhappiness over the allegations of Russians being treated unfairly. "Tell me, what are we supposed to do? If the police arrest some Russians or for that matter other foreigners who indulge in anti-social activities such as drug trafficking and prostitution, their respective consulates intervene to protect them and accuse Goan authorities of harassment. As for buying of property in Goa, we ensure that foreign buyers adhere to the law of the land. I am not against it as even I run a business establishment in the US."
It is a Catch 22 situation for authorities.
"Yes, we will have campaigns to attract tourists to Goa," says Pacheco. But how many will go to the "land of paradise" where the fun never ends?
As for Diana, she is going to Australia.
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