Defending the Rights of the Poor in Panama

An Interview with Father Conrado Sanjur

Father Conrado Sanjur, a Panamanian priest and Chair of the Coordinator for Human Rights in Panama (COPODEHUPA), a non-governmental organization defending the claims of those affected by the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama in a case before the Inter-American Human Rights Commission of the Organization of American States (O.A.S.).

COPODEHUPA also works with other groups in a project which deals with the psychological trauma that people have suffered as a result of the invasion. Father Sanjur is currently Executive Secretary of the Central American coordination of Christian Base Communities.

This year marks the seventh anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Panama. Did the invasion accomplish anything?

The December 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama may have accomplished U.S. objectives, but it was a tragedy in economic and political terms for the Panamanian people, especially the poor. Many things are still unresolved. For example, a full accounting of lives lost has yet to be made; and those who lost homes and businesses have never been compensated, either by the Panamanian or by the U.S. governments.

According to the Torrijos_Carter Treaties, the U.S. military bases should be withdrawn from Panama by the year 2000. We trust that those treaties will be honored. Nevertheless, we are concerned that both governments want to renew negotiations about the U.S. military presence in Panama. For example, last September, President Pérez Balladares and President Clinton announced they would begin exploratory talks for a renegotiation of the Panama Canal Treaties.

The talks were scheduled for last November 30 and then postponed so that there could be a national debate on the question. The government hasn't said very much about the talks lately, but we believe that it is actually beginning a process to extend the treaties and U.S. military presence in Panama.

Our position is that there should be no further negotiations about the bases. We have undertaken a broad popular education campaign in Panama regarding the need for the United States to completely withdraw its military bases. We're also starting a broad public debate about the topic because the Panamanian government is conducting its business in a secretive manner.

In addition, we are attempting to address the problem of toxic wastes caused by the military bases in Panama, something neither the Panamanian nor the U.S. governments want to deal with seriously. We believe that an exhaustive, truthful, objective study needs to be made of the actual extent of the toxic waste deposits. We fell that with the full military withdrawal there should be a decontamination of those sites, since they are the direct cause of the problem.

There are many reasons to justify a definitive withdrawal of the bases. It would open up a whole new horizon for Panama's future. The lands surrounding the canal and occupied by the bases are the most potentially productive lands in our country. These areas should be converted to civilian use and open the way for the Panamanian government to implement policies of social and economic development for the country.

We need to point out that both past and present Panamanian governments have supposedly committed themselves to modernize the economy. At the same time, we see a deterioration of basic human rights. One sector that has been affected throughout Panama's history is the indigenous population. There is a great deal of tension right now because the Panamanian government has granted mining concessions on lands belonging to indigenous communities. The government has utilized repressive measures, not only against indigenous people but also against workers who demand their rights.

We would like to ask you to give attention to these concerns. Specifically, we are calling for support around these demands: first, complete withdrawal of U.S. military bases and clean up of toxic wastes; second, the legal claims made before the Inter_American Commission on Human Rights by the victims of the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama; and third, solidarity with the struggle of indigenous communities to affirm their self_determination and right to their lands.

How does the United States benefit from maintaining its military presence in Panama?

Supposedly, the United States wants to remain in Panama because its presence here enables it to carry out its war against drugs and drug traffickers. But the military bases actually contribute to drug trafficking because they are a major source of drug consumption. We believe the supposed war against drugs is really a new way for the United States to maintain geo_political domination of the region.

And what benefit if any would this continued presence offer to Panama?

Panama gains nothing from the U.S. military bases on its soil, neither economically nor in terms of military defense. On the contrary, we need their removal so that the Panamanian government can take responsibility for guaranteeing projects on the lands that economically benefit the Panamanian people. The current struggle in Panama over these lands is whether they will simply benefit the transnational corporations or whether they will benefit the Panamanian people by becoming a pole of social development for the people and generate housing, employment, health care and nutrition.

How did you first come to work with the victims of the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama?

This has been a very interesting process. A few months after the invasion, a group of families from the neighborhood of El Chorrillo came to our offices in COPODEHUPA. El Chorrillo was the neighborhood that was most severely damaged by the invasion because it was where the general barracks of the Panamanian Defense Forces were located.

El Chorrillo is an extremely impoverished, marginalized neighborhood, with a population that is largely black. When the invasion occurred, thousands of houses were set afire leaving some 20,000 people homeless, and killing or wounding thousands. Many people were profoundly traumatized by the invasion and continue to be so today. These consequences have never been redressed by either the Panamanian or the U.S. governments.

Prior to coming to our office, the families from El Chorrillo went to the Panamanian government to denounce what had happened to them in the invasion. They were told by the government of President Endara that Panama could do nothing, that the United States had carried out the invasion. The U.S. Embassy also refused to address their grievances.

Finally these families came to COPODEHUPA and we put them in contact with the Center for Constitutional Rights in New York, which is the office that is officially representing them before the Inter_American Commission of Human Rights of the O.A.S. The case calls on the United States to recognize its responsibility for the invasion and to pay indemnities to the families who suffered as a result of the violence.

The case was formally submitted to the Inter_American Commission on May 10, 1990 by the families from El Chorrillo to be compensated for damages resulting from the U.S. invasion. This is the first case that the Commission has ever agreed to decide that has been presented by a group of civilians. Normally cases are presented by governments of countries. In 1993 the Commission formally adopted the case for judgment; the last session was in 1995; we expect a final decision to be made this September.

So none of the victims has received any compensation for losses incurred during the invasion?

Absolutely nothing.

You also mentioned your work with indigenous communities. What are some of the challenges that they face today in Panama?

One of the problems in Panama's history has been the complete violation of human rights with regard to indigenous communities. According to the Church in Panama, the indigenous are the poorest of the poor, especially one group, the Ngobe_Bugle. The other indigenous communities live in similar conditions, but the Ngobe_Bugle are the most mistreated and most marginalized.

The indigenous people account for about eight percent of the Panamanian population. The largest group, the Ngobe_Bugle, are actually two tribes that number about 123,000 members and live in the provinces of Bocas del Toro, Chiriquí and Veraguas in the western part of Panama. Two other communities, the Embera_Wounaan, number about 18,000, and live in the province of Darien in eastern Panama. A fifth community, the Kuna, number about 47,000, and mostly on the San Blas islands off the northeastern coast of Panama. All of these indigenous communities live in similar conditions.

There's no getting around the fact of racial discrimination in Panama. There is discrimination against blacks, there is discrimination against indigenous peoples and against peasants. It's a fact. It may noticeable, but in practice there is no racial equality in Panama. These sectors are socially and economically marginalized.

The discrimination against blacks is primarily racial, and fosters attitudes of contempt and racial inequality. Blacks in Panama live mostly in the city of Colón, in the North, and in Panama City in the South. Many of them came from the Antilles Islands in the Caribbean to work on the construction of the Panama canal. Many live in the poorest neighborhoods, like El Chorrillo in Panama City.

In the case of indigenous people, in addition to racial discrimination, they suffer a denial of their right to self_determination and to the lands on which they live. The land is closely linked to the culture and social organization of indigenous communities, as is the environment. It's not only a question about the right to work the land, but about the right to live in harmony and unity with the natural environment.