By Stephen Marks
MANAGUA — Noticieros Univision is a slick pro- imperialist "news" show broadcast in Spanish from Miami and beamed each evening into Nicaragua and the rest of Latin America. On November 16 a lead item announced that "Panamanians have chosen to remain in poverty so they can have an army"!
The news item actually referred to a vote rejecting a proposal to formally eliminate the armed forces of Panama, a task already accomplished by invading US marines in 1989. Included in a package of constitutional amendments, the referendum became a plebiscite on the performance of a government installed by US marines three years ago.
Despite promises made at the time of the invasion the poverty index has soared to 85%, corruption especially among the police has become rife, and money laundering is widespread. Popular discontent has mounted with a government that clears all its decisions with the US embassy.
The campaign against the changes mobilised Panama's mass and popular movement. The proposal to legalise the replacement of the army by an expanded police force under the personal control of the president was particularly unpopular. Nationalists questioned the wisdom of banning Panama's right to have an army.
Under the 1977 Carter/Torijos Treaty, the US is due to return control of the Canal Zone and withdraw its troops by the year 2000. The US has maintained a military presence in Panama for 89 years with 10,000 troops currently occupying 10 bases. While supposedly there to protect the Canal the 1989 invasion of Panama was launched from US bases in Panama!
The right to an form an army is at least one element of regaining national sovereignty.
An alliance of nationalist and popular organisations, unions, public personalities, and political parties including the second largest of the opposition, the Revolutionary Democratic Party came together to form Freno, the No Front. Freno stressed the need for a constituent assembly and national sovereignty.
The government campaigned on aggressive anti-communism and warned that if foreign investment was frightened off poverty would increase, hence the analysis of Univision. With a victory margin of two to one, Freno has now dissolved to form a Broad Front calling for a constituent assembly to draw up genuine democratic reforms.
Univision News also had to rewrite the script for Panama in May. TV cameras showed the conquering hero President Bush fleeing Panama City with tears in his eyes. Tear gas unleashed by the police against anti-Bush demonstrators had wafted back onto the welcoming platform of the presidential party.
Even before the referendum, Panama's President Endara had single digit 2% and is living proof of Robespierre's dictum that people don't like liberators installed at bayonet point.