Passport to a brave new world

Ravjibhai, who spends several days at a time in Panaji with dreams of getting to Portugal, happily forgoes his earnings during this period. “This is my fourth visit to Goa. I spend about Rs 2,000 every time I come here,” says the fisherman.

He is among the 15-20 hopefuls– armed with an array of documents including birth certificates, marriage certificates and proofs of residence — who knock on the Consulate’s doors every day.

The Portuguese Consulate in Goa, which began operating in Panaji in 1994, only attests these documents and forwards them to the Conservatoria dos Registos Contrais in Disbon for registration. “Not all birth certificates are registered and most are sent back for supporting evidence,” says a spokesman of the Consulate.

However, should one successfully register his birth certificate with the Portuguese authorities, he would automatically become eligible for a Portuguese passport and an identity card which allows unrestricted access to the nations of the European Economic Community.

Portuguese Consulate officials point out that it is common for applicants born outside the areas of Goa, Daman and Diu to submit forged documents or to impersonate residents of these areas. “We are flooded with fake documents and applications from impersonators,”says the spokesman.

However, thanks to the strict surveillance, less than ten per cent of the 3,000 or so aspirants who try every year get their birth certificates registered.

“Agents and touts who come armed with the power of attorneys of their clients now work behind the scenes,” says the officials.

Applicants awaiting their turn outside the Portuguese Consulate also admit that they take the help of professional agents. “A lawyer helped us put together these documents,” says Kamini Kantilal, an applicant from Diu. According to her, the lawyer is a trustworthy person whose services were good enough to send her husband and two brothers to Portugal. “How can we do these things by ourselves? We have to take help,” insists Richard D’Souza from Goa. However, no one is willing to disclose the identities of those who help them get their passports.

Incidentally, complaints from the Portuguese Consulate forced the authorities to crack down on racketeers dealing in forged identity documents. Recently,the Assistance Public Prosecutor of Daman charged 18 persons in this regard. The Daman administration has also issued a circular demanding details of government employees who have applied for Portuguese citizenship.

Despite all this, residents of the former Portuguese dominions manage to exploit various loopholes in the procedure by retaining their Indian passports even after they obtain Portuguese identity cards. While the Indian passport gives them the benefits of Indian citizenship, the Portuguese identity card allows free access to the whole of Europe.

Though dual nationality is banned for Indian citizens, procedural delays ensure that the Indian passport is not turned in. For instance, only 600 Portuguese nationals are registered with police stations in Goa, Daman and Diu, though the actual figure is expected to be several times more.