Central America
Panamanian union calls for protests against mining contract
October 23 |
The Single Union of Construction Workers (Suntracs) of Panama called this Saturday to popular sectors to new mobilizations in rejection of the Mining Contract, approved the day before by the National Assembly and then by the Executive.
Through a communiqué, the leader of the union, Saúl Méndez, said that the organization will continue fighting against the agreement and urged union, student and civil society groups to continue with the protests.
Méndez emphasized that the Mining Contract – which he categorized as a contract that sells the homeland – allows the plundering of natural resources and damages human health and the environment.
He stated that it is time to take to the streets so that the people can put order before those who are inclined to sell out Panama. He added that in the next few hours they will announce the actions that will be part of the new days of struggle, which will be decided in a national union council to be organized for this Sunday at the Suntracs headquarters.
He held responsible for what he called an affront to the homeland the Council of Ministers, the 44 deputies who voted for it this Friday, the magistrates of the Supreme Court of Justice who endorsed it and President Laurentino Cortizo, who signed it after its approval by the Legislative.
He compared their endorsement of the referred agreement with the attitude of the Panamanian authorities in 1903, when they handed over to the United States the transoceanic Canal, which rightfully belonged to the Panamanian people.
The approval of the contract with the Canadian transnational First Quantum Minerals was also rejected this Saturday by the National Workers Central of Panama, the Ecological Ecclesial Network Mesoamerica-Panama and the Polo Ciudadano movement.
In their statements, they emphasized that the opinions of important sectors of society were not taken into account to sign the agreement, which they point out for the environmental damage, the harm to the communities and the extraordinary concessions made to the foreign company. Some of these concessions are catalogued as violating the law and the Constitution and limiting national sovereignty.
Central America
U.S. and Regional Allies Back Panama Amid Dispute With China
The United States, Bolivia, Costa Rica, Guyana, Paraguay and Trinidad and Tobago issued a joint statement in support of Panama’s sovereignty, arguing that China’s recent actions represent an attempt to politicize maritime trade and undermine the sovereignty of nations in the hemisphere.
“We are closely monitoring China’s selective economic pressure and recent actions affecting vessels flying the Panamanian flag,” the statement released Tuesday said. “Panama is a pillar of our maritime trading system and, as such, must remain free from undue external pressure.”
The statement comes amid growing tensions surrounding the Panama Canal and the operation of key ports linked to global trade.
At the end of January, Panama’s Supreme Court invalidated the legal framework supporting the 1997 concession that granted Panama Ports Company, a subsidiary of CK Hutchison, the right to operate the Balboa and Cristóbal terminals located on the Pacific and Atlantic entrances of the Panama Canal.
The ruling followed mounting pressure from the United States to curb Chinese influence around the strategic waterway, through which roughly 5% of global maritime trade passes.
CK Hutchison, which managed the ports for nearly three decades, rejected the court’s decision and accused Panamanian authorities of illegally confiscating its assets. The company has launched international arbitration proceedings against Panama, seeking more than $2 billion in damages.
Following the court ruling, reports emerged of increased detentions and inspections of Panamanian-flagged vessels in China, actions widely viewed as retaliatory measures.
On Wednesday, China’s Foreign Ministry dismissed the joint statement as “completely unfounded and misleading,” accusing the United States of politicizing port operations and warning that Beijing would take steps to protect its interests in Panama.
Central America
International Project Tackles Gender Violence in Indigenous Communities in Panama
Efforts to combat machismo and gender-based violence in Panama’s indigenous communities are advancing through international cooperation projects, including an initiative presented this week that is evolving from women’s empowerment toward a new phase focused on educating husbands and sons.
The project, led by the organization HIAS with support from the Spanish Cooperation Agency, is being implemented in the Emberá-Wounaan indigenous territory in the Darién jungle region near the Colombian border.
Originally created to bring state services closer to remote communities, the initiative focused on access to healthcare — particularly sexual and reproductive health services — but later expanded to promote broader access to fundamental rights.
“The project emerged from the understanding that strengthening the rights of the population as a whole was essential to achieving fairer, more cohesive and inclusive societies capable of fighting poverty,” Itziar González, general coordinator of Spanish Cooperation in Panama, told EFE.
HIAS Country Director in Panama Oliver Bush explained that the initiative includes “a very strong component of empowerment for women and adolescent girls in the Emberá-Wounaan communities, aimed at recovering the historical worldview in which women have always played a fundamental role in decision-making within their communities.”
The program also includes prevention, mitigation and response mechanisms against gender-based violence, an area that will be reinforced during the project’s second phase.
“It will include a component focused on positive masculinities, where we will work with men, because men are an important factor in the prevention and mitigation of gender violence,” Bush said.
According to Bush, the initiative seeks not only to eliminate stigmas and forms of everyday sexism that are often socially and culturally ingrained in men, but also to encourage men to recognize themselves as sensitive human beings capable of contributing to healthier and more equal communities.
Central America
Guatemala’s President to Hold Private Interviews for Attorney General Candidates
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo de León announced that he will privately interview the six candidates for attorney general this week, breaking with the public format used by former President Alejandro Giammattei.
Speaking during a press conference on Monday, Arévalo said the interviews would not be open to the public because he intends to question candidates about their plans to recover the Attorney General’s Office from what he described as “political-criminal networks.”
Under Guatemalan law, the president is responsible for appointing the country’s attorney general.
The position has been held since 2018 by Consuelo Porras, whose term is set to expire on May 16 after two consecutive terms marked by local and international allegations of corruption.
Arévalo is expected to select the new attorney general later this week from a shortlist recently submitted by a nomination commission.
The Guatemalan president has repeatedly criticized the Public Prosecutor’s Office, claiming it has been compromised by corrupt political interests.
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