Can Aires Rodrigues + Frederick Noronha + Goanet
Admin. answer Ivar Fjeld & Vince ?


Dear fellow netters
and specially Frederick Noronha.

Regarding your letter of 17th of December.

You are the moderator of Goanet, a fellow journalist
and a catholic brother of us living in Saligao. That
is approximately 15 kilometers from my house in
Ribandar. You are always welcome to my home. You are
also welcome to join me, my wife and my three minor
children which every Sunday join hundreds off
parishioners of Ribandar in the services of Fr. Newton
Rodrigues. Now we are all preparing for Christmas.
Please come to us Mr. Noronha. and share some time
with us.

You are also hereby invited to come to Ribandar, to
meet the victims of the mob of Ribandar. Since August
this year the mob has traumatized the village of
Ribandar. One of their tools is Goanet, where a
so-called "activist-style-lawyer” has been
intimidating people who cannot defend them self. This
victims includes the Nuns of of Our Lady of Help
Convent, a Parish Priest, a mother and and child. All
catholic brothers and sisters of us.

Why have the serious media in Goa stopped entertaining
this mob? Is it because they all want to cover up a
crime, or is it because they have seen enough proof of
who are the culprits here? Let me recall that in
September the mother of the child personally
distributed a letter to the editors of the three
English newspapers in Goa. The mother stated that the
so-called “activist-style-lawyer” and the so-called
"uncle" do not represent her. Not only do they not
represent her, she claims they did pressurize her to
file false allegations on our priest. Mr Frederick
Noronha, Kindly take the short journey to Ribandar,
meet the lady and get your self a copy of that letter.
And kindly stop making Goanet a part of the mob the
people of Ribandar are facing.

Kindly also pick up the letter which the mother has
given the parishioners, a letter to the CM of Goa,
with a copy to the DGP of Goa and the investigating
police officer, that the Parish Priest of Ribandar has
falsely been framed. Knowing that this letter exists:
Would is be anything but a shameful attack on all
Catholics in Goa, it the legal system in misused to
prosecute one of our priests?

This respective authority has responded by not charge
sheeting the Priest. Lets hope and pray that justice
will prevail also in the future. Kindly also
accnowledge, that any person in India has the right to
approach any Court of Law with any kind of
allegations. True or false, right or wrong. Even you
Mr. Noronha, can be falsely framed, false witnesses
can be put up against you, and the accuser can start
distributing pamphlets in the village spoiling your
name, and use Internet forums like Goanet to
distribute the same false allegations. The difference
between you Mr. Norohna, and the victims of Ribandar,
is that you are capable of putting up a strong
defense. A priest cannot, neither can the nuns,
neither can a pore lady who lives alone, having her
husband working abroad. You sit safely in your house,
Mr. Norona, giving us analysis, even telling us that
the attackers of our Church are doing a god job.
Kindly come to Ribandar, and take the stories of the
victims, before you pas any more comments.

Fr. Newton Rodrigues is a human being. He has been
with us in Ribandar for five years now. Priests will
come and go. Our Father will one day leave Ribandar,
and continue his Ministry. But our Church and the
village will remain. The pamphlets in the village,
and the letters on Goanet, is not hurting the Priest.
He is a strong man, and he will stand firm in the
stormy winds. Even come to court if he is called. Mr.
Norhona, kindly understand that the pamphlets and
hurting us, every catholic of Ribandar. Even during
Christmas, the name of our Church, and the name of our
village are being dragged down in the gutter.

Peace be with all of you.
And have a God blessed Christmas.

Mr. Ivar Fjeld
Ribandar
www.goanet.org
________________

Good Day everyone !Once again we see Mr Aires
Rodrigues using this forum to put
forth his news reports (thats what it looks like).
Check out the begining and
abrupt ending of his post. Why did this postget passed
by the moderators. We
know the whole story so there is no need for the same
to be repeated time and
again. Besides that we also read newspapers and Joel's
News - so where is the
need for Mr Aires Rodrigues to post such repeats here
? The more he writes - the
more convinced i am that his intention is not to
inform the readers about the
case - but just to malign someone's name. Dont stoop
so low Mr Rodrigues - you
are making a fool of your ownself by using this forum
for your vested
interests.We have had enough of this
!Vince____________________________

The criminal complaint filed by Mr. Anthony Froisuncle
of the minor girl
allegedly molested by RibandarParish Priest Fr. Newton
Rodrigues came up for
hearingtoday at the first sitting of the recently
constitutedChildren’s Court
headed by South Goa District JudgeA.D.Salkar.It was
argued on behalf of Mr.
Frois that in view ofthe police dragging its feet in
filing the chargesheet
against the priest, the uncle of the victim had in the
interest of justice now
filed this complaintbefore the Children’s Court.It was
further argued that only
the Children’s Courthad sole jurisdiction to take up
matters under theChildren’s
Act and that the accused priest has to bedealt with,
tried and punished in
accordance withChildren’s Act for the sexual offence
committedagainst the girl
child, punishable under section 8 (2)of the Act.The
Court headed by Judge Salkar
and comprising ofMrs. Pramod Salgaoncar, Mrs. Ines
Cota Carvalho andMrs. Amita
Keni as jury members adjourned the matterto Dec 17th
for
further arguments on maintainabilityof the
complaint.It may be recalled that
the Old Goa Police station hadon 18th August 2004
registered an F.I.R against
Fr.Newton Rodrigues based on a complaint from
a13-year-old Ribandar girl that on
the pretext oftaking confession the Parish Priest Fr.
NewtonRodrigues took her
to a room in the church andmolested her.The
investigation officer of the case
Crime BranchPolice Inspector Ezilda D' Souza who
ironically alsohails from
Ribandar had in a statement before thePanaji Bench of
the Bombay High Court on
16thSeptember submitted that the investigation of
thealleged Ribandar Church
molestation case was in itslast stage and that the
charge sheet against
Fr.Newton Rodrigues was being filed shortly.A contempt
of Court petition filed
against InspectorMrs. Ezilda D' Souza for not
complying with herstatement is
already pending before the Panaji Benchof the Bombay
High Court.

Aires Rodrigues___________________________

Inspite of the rising crimes in Goa against women and
children due to
theintervention of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar and
the exposition of
therelicts of St Francis Xavier underway the infamous
Ribandar Churchmolestation
case involving a minor girl seems to have been
stalled.With the Children's Court
having started its sittings an application isexpected
to be moved before the
Court this week by the victim's unclepraying that the
Investigation Officer be
directed to explain the status ofthe case.It may be
recalled that though former
DGP Amod Kanth and also the Directorof Prosecution had
okayed the chargesheeting
of Ribandar Parish priest Fr.Newton Rodrigues, the
authorities seem to have kept
the whole case inabeyance in a tactical move to oblige
the request from
Archbishop of GoaRev. Filipe Neri Ferrao, to keep the
investigations in abeyance
at leasttill the forthcoming Exposition is over.The
Chief Minister's
intervention has not come as a surprise and is seen
asa politically
strategic move by Mr. Manohar Parrikar to woo catholic
votersfrom Ribandar who
will now be part of his Panaji Assembly
Constituency.The investigation officer
of the case Crime Branch Police Inspector EzildaD'
Souza who ironically also
hails from Ribandar had in a statement beforethe
Panaji Bench of the Bombay High
Court on 16th September submitted thatthe
investigation of the alleged Ribandar
Church molestation case was in itslast stage and that
the charge sheet against
Fr. Newton Rodrigues was beingfiled shortly.A contempt
of Court petition filed
against Inspector Mrs. Ezilda D' Souzafor not
complying with her statement is
pending before the Panaji Bench ofthe Bombay High
Court.The molestation case had
been one of bones of contention in the recent
rowbetween Goa's former DGP Amod
Kanth and the Chief Minister with Amod Kanthtaking a
firm stand that law should
take its own course and refusing to showany
preferential treatment to the
accused priest.It may be recalled that the Old Goa
Police station had on 18th August 2004registered an
F.I.R against Fr. Newton
Rodrigues based on a complaint from a13 year old
Ribandar girl that on the
pretext of taking confession theParish Priest Fr.
Newton Rodrigues took her to a
room in the church andmolested her.The molestation
case is just the tip of the
iceberg. Grave concern has beenexpressed about the
glaring moral and financial
irregularities at theRibandar Church with even a widow
of a Velimseaman living
in the Church premises with the priest. The seaman
hadallegedly committed
suicide infront of the Usgaon Church in November
1999when Fr. Newton was posted
there because of the illicit relation his wifewas
having with Fr. Newton
Rodrigues.Aires Rodrigues

___________________



The recently constituted Children's Court headed by
South Goa District Judge
A.D.Salkar hich will hold its first sitting at Panaji
tomorrow is expected
to hear the complaint filed by Mr. Anthony Frois uncle
of the minor girl
allegedly molested by Ribandar Parish Priest Fr.
Newton Rodrigues.

Mr. Frois has in his complaint filed in the Court
today stated that though
the law presupposes that
everyone is equal, some people are more equal than
others and that the
Police are apparently giving a special treatment to
the accused priest by
dragging their feet in the investigation and by
failing to
arrest the accused or lodging a charge sheet against
him till date.

Mr. Frois has further stated that all offences against
children are to be
tried by the Children's
Court in view of section 30 of the Act.

Mr. Frois has submitted that the action of the police
in dragging their feet
and thereby failing to
effectively investigate into the sexual offence
complaint or to arrest or
charge sheet the accused has
caused a grave injustice to the minor child and to
such crimes in general
and will embolden the
perpetrators to commit such crimes against children
and frustrate the very
purpose of the Act.

The complainant has prayed that the accused priest be
dealt with, tried and
punished in accordance with Children's Act for the
sexual offence committed
against the girl child, punishable under section 8 (2)
of the Act.

It may be recalled that the Old Goa Police station had
on 18th August 2004
registered an F.I.R against Fr. Newton Rodrigues based
on a complaint from a
13 year old Ribandar girl that on the pretext of
taking confession the
Parish Priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues took her to a room
in the church and
molested her.

The investigation officer of the case Crime Branch
Police Inspector Ezilda
D' Souza who ironically also hails from Ribandar had
in a statement before
the Panaji Bench of the Bombay High Court on 16th
September submitted that
the investigation of the alleged Ribandar Church
molestation case was in its
last stage and that the charge sheet against Fr.
Newton Rodrigues was being
filed shortly.

A contempt of Court petition filed against Inspector
Mrs. Ezilda D' Souza
for not complying with her statement is already
pending before the Panaji
Bench of the Bombay High Court.

Aires Rodrigues




__________________________________________________

The 4 member Children's Court headed by South Goa
District Judge A.D.Salkar
will on Friday 17th December hear the criminal
complaint filed by Mr.
Anthony Frois uncle of the minor girl allegedly
molested by Ribandar Parish
Priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues.

The complaint which is the first of its kind before
the recently constituted
Children's court has been filed by Mr. Frois against
the Parish Priest in
view of the police dragging its feet in filing the
charge sheet against the
accused priest.

It may be recalled that the Old Goa Police station had
on 18th August 2004
registered an F.I.R against Fr. Newton Rodrigues based
on a complaint from a
13-year-old Ribandar girl that on the pretext of
taking confession the
Parish Priest Fr. Newton Rodrigues took her to a room
in the church and
molested her.

The investigation officer of the case Crime Branch
Police Inspector Ezilda
D' Souza who ironically also hails from Ribandar had
in a statement before
the Panaji Bench of the Bombay High Court on 16th
September submitted that
the investigation of the alleged Ribandar Church
molestation case was in its
last stage and that the charge sheet against Fr.
Newton Rodrigues was being
filed shortly.

There have reportedly been attempts to hush up the
matter by getting the
victim to withdraw the complaint inorder to save Fr.
Newton Rodrigues from
being the first Roman Catholic Priest in Goa to be
prosecuted for an offence
of molestation.

A contempt of Court petition filed against Inspector
Mrs. Ezilda D' Souza
for not complying with her statement is already
pending before the Panaji
Bench of the Bombay High Court.

The Ribandar Church molestation case was also one of
the bone of contentions
in the recent row between Chief Minister Manohar
Parrikar and former DGP Mr.
Amod Kanth with the DGP refusing to relent to
political pressures not to
chargesheet the Parish priest. The DGP had reportedly
taken a very firm
stand that nobody is above the law.

Aires Rodrigues


___________________________________________________________

Hi Aires:

Firstly, thanks for keeping us informed about this
case. Secondly,
no-thanks for peppering the inputs with a lot of
motivated suggestions,
innuendo and hidden allegations the truth of which we
will only know after
the judgement is out.

It's unfair, they say, to play the role of judge, jury
and hangman all
rolled into one. One could suggest that it's also
not-quite-fair to play
the role of activist-lawyer-journalist on a case which
one has taken a
personal interest in.

I am willing to concede, however, that the Press has
largely let us down
on this case, with some sections almost blacking out
the issue completely,
and other sections of the media sensationalising it.
Added to it, we in
the media in Goa have a poor reputation for following
up issues -- unlike
papers like the Indian Express, which have shown how
thoroughness on such
a track can make a difference. Nevertheless, the media
failings is no
justification for one-sided reporting.

Incidentally, it's tough to see why you pillory Ms
Ezilda D'Souza. From
what you have reported earlier, it appears that she
has stated that,
because of religious reasons, she has a conflict of
interests and wants to
be taken off that case. That seems to be the right
thing to do.

When you say the 'court was told' below, by whom? The
fact that you are
making yourself invisible (if my assumption is right)
would also suggest a
conflict of interest in this
lawyer-activist-journalist role.

Please don't take these comments as directed at you
out of malice or for
motivated reasons. Overall, I think you're doing a
good job in
highlighting the issue of sexual impropriety by people
in authority
(including in religion), which can be expected to
become increasingly
important an issue in the times ahead. It's only that
I have my
reservations about the way in which you're doing it
;-) FN

____________________________________________________________

Dear fellow netters
and specially Frederick Noronha.

Regarding your letter of 17th of December.

You are the moderator of Goanet, a fellow journalist
and a catholic brother of us living in Saligao. That
is approximately 15 kilometers from my house in
Ribandar. You are always welcome to my home. You are
also welcome to join me, my wife and my three minor
children which every Sunday join hundreds off
parishioners of Ribandar in the services of Fr. Newton
Rodrigues. Now we are all preparing for Christmas.
Please come to us Mr. Noronha. and share some time
with us.

You are also hereby invited to come to Ribandar, to
meet the victims of the mob of Ribandar. Since August
this year the mob has traumatized the village of
Ribandar. One of their tools is Goanet, where a
so-called "activist-style-lawyer” has been
intimidating people who cannot defend them self. This
victims includes the Nuns of of Our Lady of Help
Convent, a Parish Priest, a mother and and child. All
catholic brothers and sisters of us.

Why have the serious media in Goa stopped entertaining
this mob? Is it because they all want to cover up a
crime, or is it because they have seen enough proof of
who are the culprits here? Let me recall that in
September the mother of the child personally
distributed a letter to the editors of the three
English newspapers in Goa. The mother stated that the
so-called “activist-style-lawyer” and the so-called
"uncle" do not represent her. Not only do they not
represent her, she claims they did pressurize her to
file false allegations on our priest. Mr Frederick
Noronha, Kindly take the short journey to Ribandar,
meet the lady and get your self a copy of that letter.
And kindly stop making Goanet a part of the mob the
people of Ribandar are facing.

Kindly also pick up the letter which the mother has
given the parishioners, a letter to the CM of Goa,
with a copy to the DGP of Goa and the investigating
police officer, that the Parish Priest of Ribandar has
falsely been framed. Knowing that this letter exists:
Would is be anything but a shameful attack on all
Catholics in Goa, it the legal system in misused to
prosecute one of our priests?

This respective authority has responded by not charge
sheeting the Priest. Lets hope and pray that justice
will prevail also in the future. Kindly also
accnowledge, that any person in India has the right to
approach any Court of Law with any kind of
allegations. True or false, right or wrong. Even you
Mr. Noronha, can be falsely framed, false witnesses
can be put up against you, and the accuser can start
distributing pamphlets in the village spoiling your
name, and use Internet forums like Goanet to
distribute the same false allegations. The difference
between you Mr. Norohna, and the victims of Ribandar,
is that you are capable of putting up a strong
defense. A priest cannot, neither can the nuns,
neither can a pore lady who lives alone, having her
husband working abroad. You sit safely in your house,
Mr. Norona, giving us analysis, even telling us that
the attackers of our Church are doing a god job.
Kindly come to Ribandar, and take the stories of the
victims, before you pas any more comments.

Fr. Newton Rodrigues is a human being. He has been
with us in Ribandar for five years now. Priests will
come and go. Our Father will one day leave Ribandar,
and continue his Ministry. But our Church and the
village will remain. The pamphlets in the village,
and the letters on Goanet, is not hurting the Priest.
He is a strong man, and he will stand firm in the
stormy winds. Even come to court if he is called. Mr.
Norhona, kindly understand that the pamphlets and
hurting us, every catholic of Ribandar. Even during
Christmas, the name of our Church, and the name of our
village are being dragged down in the gutter.

Peace be with all of you.
And have a God blessed Christmas.

Mr. Ivar Fjeld
Ribandar





=====

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