Go golang, syntax error: unexpected ++, expecting :

According to Language Specification, http://golang.org/ref/spec#IncDec_statements, i++ is a IncDec statements, which is a statement, but not a expression.As for args[index], index must be a expression. You want more details , just read it Go Language Specification, it's just what the language demand.

Go Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Why are ++ and -- statements and not expressions? And why postfix, not prefix?

Without pointer arithmetic, the convenience value of pre- and postfix increment operators drops. By removing them from the expression hierarchy altogether, expression syntax is simplified and the messy issues around order of evaluation of ++ and -- (consider f(i++) and p[i] = q[++i]) are eliminated as well. The simplification is significant. As for postfix vs. prefix, either would work fine but the postfix version is more traditional; insistence on prefix arose with the STL, a library for a language whose name contains, ironically, a postfix increment.

The Go Programming Language Specification

IncDec statements

The "++" and "--" statements increment or decrement their operands by the untyped constant 1. As with an assignment, the operand must be addressable or a map index expression.

IncDecStmt = Expression ( "++" | "--" ) .

The following assignment statements are semantically equivalent:

IncDec statement    Assignment
x++                 x += 1
x--                 x -= 1

Write,

func test(args ...string) {
    var msg map[string]interface{}
    i := 0
    msg["product"] = args[i]
    i++
    msg["key"] = args[i]
    i++
    msg["signature"] = args[i]
    i++
    msg["string_to_sign"] = args[i]
}

Which, in your particular case, simplifies to,

func test(args ...string) {
    var msg map[string]interface{}
    msg["product"] = args[0]
    msg["key"] = args[1]
    msg["signature"] = args[2]
    msg["string_to_sign"] = args[3]
}