Panama Canal: Behind the Treaty
Dominguez, Elmo
The Panama Canal Treaty has become one of the most important political issues this year. In the U.S. its bipartisan supporters, representing the most advanced sectors of U.S....
...For these reasons, the struggle for full sovereignty continues...
...They also oppose the plans for "joint defense," designed to put Panama's National Guard at the service of the U.S...
...In part, this opposition is merely a ruse to expand their political influence but it also represents an obstinate determination to maintain the old colonial forms of domination...
...The Treaty has stirred an equally furious debate in Panama...
...imperialism, its ratification is not assured: the internal contradictions among U.S...
...rights of intervention be amplified, while a majority of others insist that the old Treaty be retained...
...Benefits there will be for the national bourgeoisie, the only group unreservedly pleased with the Treaty...
...Among the masses, reactions to the Treaty range from critical support to vehement opposition...
...Adequate time for publicizing and discussing the issues involved was not provided as Panamanian critics had demanded...
...military...
...The Treaty does not satisfy Panama's historic claims for immediate and complete control over all of its territory, and even the limited sovereignty that has been granted is postponed until the year 2000...
...It is also based on the need to resolve conflicts that have developed between U.S...
...However, upon closer examination, the ratio indicates that opposition to the Treaty is much stronger than expected...
...military bases and troops from Panama "* Denial of any "special rights of intervention" to the U.S...
...colonialism has obscured the underlying class conflict in Panama...
...In fact, the bourgeoisie relies on U.S...
...Committee for Panamanian Sovereignty, P.O...
...Critics object to the privileged status the U.S...
...ruling groups may yet prevail...
...THE ISSUES Proponents of the Treaty, which include Kissinger and Brzezinski, represent the interests of the international banks and transnational corporations entrenched in Panama and throughout Latin America...
...will retain, and to the first legalization and continued presence of U.S...
...military support for its survival...
...11213...
...Since the Treaty's approval was also necessary in order to influence the vote in the U.S...
...SOLIDARITY TASKS Whether the Treaty is ratified or rejected, the Panamanian people's anti-imperialist struggle will acquire new forms and intensity...
...control over the canal means that the separation of Panamanian workers in the Zone from those in the rest of the country will remain, hindering the advancement of their class interests...
...In reaction to these concessions, popular sectors are instead calling for public ownership of the Canal Zone so that it will benefit the Panamanian workers and peasants rather than private interests...
...Predictably, as more people are coming to understand the Treaty's implications, dissatisfaction is growing...
...monopoly capital, urge its ratification because it will further U.S...
...For the Panamanian people, continued U.S...
...Box 252, St...
...However, the Plebiscite has not ended the controversy...
...The battle over the Treaty has decisively revealed the fact that the internal benefits to be derived from the Treaty will be distributed unequally...
...finance capital and Panama's bourgeoisie, which aspires to a greater role in the region's exploitation...
...Their support of the Treaty is based on a shrewd appraisal of the growing importance of new investment activities conducted out of Panama for all of Central America and the Caribbean, and of the declining economic and strategic value of the canal itself...
...In general, the appearance of "national unity" against U.S...
...relations with small, underdeveloped countries and to generally improve U.S...
...In alliance with foreign finance capital, it wants to convert the Zone into a capital export center...
...For similar reasons, the Treaty will be used as a model for U.S...
...At the same time, conservatives have capitalized on opposition to the Treaty in order to increase their political leverage...
...Eximbank, AID, etc...
...The bourgeoisie, which clearly stands to benefit from the Treaty, has shown that it is incapable of leading a struggle for true sovereignty...
...John's Station, Brooklyn, N.Y...
...Although it is indisputably in the interest of U.S...
...into various NACLA Report 46update * update . update . update industrial and commercial projects from which they will profit...
...The continuation of the colonial enclave in the face of mounting nationalism in Panama would obstruct the implementation of these new designs for the region...
...rent and compensation payments, the expected millions of dollars in credits from U.S...
...Until this point, the struggle for Panamanian sovereignty over the canal and Canal Zone has been propelled bji popular pressure under the direction of the bourgeoisie...
...Those who support this struggle in solidarity should raise the demands for: "* Immediate transfer to Panama of all jurisdiction and control over the Panama Canal and Canal Zone "* Prompt removal of all U.S...
...interests in Panama and Latin America...
...Surpassing its original importance, the Treaty has become the focus of a fierce contest for the redivision of political power between the dominant groups...
...military bases...
...It also plans to channel the economic benefits accruing from the Treaty (i.e...
...Senate, the government could wait no longer...
...policymakers hope that a peaceful, gradual transformation of the Canal Zone to a neocolonial status will diffuse the potential for political upsurges in 45 PANAMA (ANAL BEHIND THE TREATYupdate * update update e update Theodore Roosevelt in Panama City Panama itself...
...The October 23 Plebiscite approved the Treaty by a margin of 2 to 1, a ratio which suggests resounding approval...
...Torrijos' government, which has steadily shifted to the Right in recent years, decided to rush the Plebiscite through in order to avoid serious debate...
...and all interference in Panamanian internal affairs * Respect for Panama's sovereignty and right to selfdetermination For further information write to Union Nacional de Panametios or U.S...
Vol. 11 • November 1977 • No. 8
