Government of Panama
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History of Panama
Early History and Spanish Control
Panama was densely inhabited by different indigenous
peoples before the arrival of the Spanish. The first
European sighting of Panama was by the Spaniard
Rodrigo de Bastidas in 1501, and Columbus dropped
anchor off the present-day Portobelo in 1502. Martín
Fernández de Enciso and Diego de Niuesa failed in their
efforts at colonization in Darién. Vasco Núñez de Balboa
established the first successful colony in 1510 and
became governor of the region. The indigenous
population was soon devastated by the Spanish and by
the diseases they carried from Europe.
In 1513, Balboa made his momentous voyage across the
isthmus to the Pacific, thus highlighting the dominant
factor in the nation's history—the short distance from sea
to sea. Under the governorship of Pedro Arias de Ávila,
Panama City was founded (1519). Soon the isthmus
became the route by which the treasures of the Inca
empire were transferred to Spain, attracting the
unwelcome attention of English buccaneers—such as Sir
Francis Drake, William Parker, Sir Henry Morgan, and
Edward Vernon—who swooped down on the gold-bearing
galleons and the treasures of Portobelo. Panama was
subordinated to the viceroyalty of Peru and remained in
this status until 1717, when it was transferred to New
Granada.
Attempts at Scottish settlement in the Darién Scheme of
the 17th cent. failed wretchedly. With the decline of the
Spanish Empire, Panama lost much of its importance in
the carrying trade. Panama became a part of
independent Colombia in 1821. Its significance as a
crossroad was enhanced again when U.S. settlers bound
for Oregon and the goldfields of California passed
through Panama. W. H. Aspinall built (1848-55) the
Panama RR, and the question of a canal across the
isthmus became paramount. The project ultimately led to
a revolution against Colombian sovereignty and the
establishment of Panama as a separate republic (see
Panama Canal).
Independence, the United States, and the Canal
The new state, proclaimed in Nov., 1903, was under the
aegis of the United States, and the canal and American
interests in it became the determinants of Panama's
history. The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the United
States established the Panama Canal Zone, controlled by
the United States, and authorized U.S. intervention in
Panamanian affairs if necessary to protect the zone. The
internal politics of the republic have been stormy, with
frequent changes of administration. U.S. forces were
landed in 1908, 1912, and 1918. A controversial figure in
Panamanian politics was Arnulfo Arias who was elected
president in 1940 and ousted a year later for being pro-
Fascist. He seized power in 1949 but was overthrown in
1951. José Antonio Remón, elected in 1952, was
assassinated in 1955; Ernesto de la Guardia, Jr.,
inaugurated the following year, survived disturbances in
1958 and 1959.
In the meantime, a new canal treaty was concluded in
1955, as political unrest developed in Panama over the
Canal Zone issue. In 1958 and again in 1960 further
steps were taken to assuage Panamanian discontent by
establishing uniform wages and employment opportunities
in the Canal Zone and by reaffirming Panama's titular
sovereignty over the zone. Roberto F. Chiari, a
conservative landowner, was elected president in 1960.
Marco A. Robles defeated Arias for the presidency in
1964. When U.S. high-school students illegally displayed
an American flag in the Canal Zone (Jan., 1964), serious
riots broke out. Diplomatic relations between Panama and
the United States were briefly suspended. New treaties
were negotiated (1967), providing for Panamanian
sovereignty over the Canal Zone, joint operation of the
canal, and possible construction of a new, sea-level
canal, but Panama refused to ratify them (1970).
In early 1974 Panama and the United States agreed in
principle for the first time to the eventual end of U.S.
jurisdiction over the canal and the Canal Zone. Arias was
again elected president in Oct., 1968, but was deposed
11 days later in a military coup. Gen. Omar Torrijos
Herrera emerged as the dominant figure shortly
thereafter. Torrijos conducted enormous public works
projects that gained him considerable popularity while
plunging the country into debt. In 1977, he concluded a
treaty with the United States that provided for a gradual
transfer of jurisdiction over the Canal Zone and the canal
to Panama by the end of 1999. A second treaty
guaranteed the permanent neutrality of the canal.
The Noriega Years and Modern Panama
After the death of Torrijos in a plane crash in 1981,
Colonel Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno slowly gained
power, and in 1983 he took complete control of the
national guard and of the country. Throughout the 1980s
Noriega manipulated elections, ruling Panama through
presidents who were mostly mere puppets. In 1987 a
former officer of the Panamanian Defense Force (the
expanded National Guard) publicly accused Noriega of
ordering the murder of a prominent political opponent,
manipulating election results, and engaging in drug
smuggling with Colombian drug producers. As a result,
the United States imposed strict sanctions that severely
damaged Panama's economy and resulted in large
protests against Noriega in Panama City.
On Dec. 15, 1989, the Panamanian legislature declared
Noriega president and proclaimed that the United States
and Panama were in a state of war. The same day a U.S.
marine was killed by Panamanian soldiers. On Dec. 20,
the United States attacked Panama City with a combined
military force of more than 25,000 soldiers in an effort to
remove Noriega from power.
Noriega surrendered on Jan. 3, 1990, and was taken to
the United States, where he was later tried, convicted,
and jailed on charges of drug trafficking. Guillermo
Endara Galimany, elected to the presidency in 1989 but
prevented by Noriega from taking office, was sworn into
office during the invasion. The invasion resulted in
considerable loss of life as well as significant damage to
Panama City. In 1994, Ernesto Pérez Balladares, a former
associate of Torrijos and the candidate of the political
party that had once supported but later repudiated
Noriega, won the presidential election. He introduced a
sweeping economic reform plan and pledged to fight
corruption and drug trafficking. In Oct., 1994, the
constitution was amended to abolish Panama's military.
Mireya Moscoso Rodríguez, a coffee company owner and
the widow of Arnulfo Arias, was elected president in 1999.
Martin Torrijos Espino, who had lost to Moscoso in 1999,
was elected president in 2004. He is the son of Gen.
Omar Torrijos. In 2006 Panamanian voters approved an
expansion of the Panama Canal that would add an third,
larger set of locks to the existing canal; construction is
planned for 2008-14.
Source: www.reference.com, The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia
Copyright © 2004, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia
University Press
History of Panama
Early History and Spanish Control
Panama was densely inhabited by different indigenous
peoples before the arrival of the Spanish. The first
European sighting of Panama was by the Spaniard
Rodrigo de Bastidas in 1501, and Columbus dropped
anchor off the present-day Portobelo in 1502. Martín
Fernández de Enciso and Diego de Niuesa failed in their
efforts at colonization in Darién. Vasco Núñez de Balboa
established the first successful colony in 1510 and
became governor of the region. The indigenous
population was soon devastated by the Spanish and by
the diseases they carried from Europe.
In 1513, Balboa made his momentous voyage across the
isthmus to the Pacific, thus highlighting the dominant
factor in the nation's history—the short distance from sea
to sea. Under the governorship of Pedro Arias de Ávila,
Panama City was founded (1519). Soon the isthmus
became the route by which the treasures of the Inca
empire were transferred to Spain, attracting the
unwelcome attention of English buccaneers—such as Sir
Francis Drake, William Parker, Sir Henry Morgan, and
Edward Vernon—who swooped down on the gold-bearing
galleons and the treasures of Portobelo. Panama was
subordinated to the viceroyalty of Peru and remained in
this status until 1717, when it was transferred to New
Granada.
Attempts at Scottish settlement in the Darién Scheme of
the 17th cent. failed wretchedly. With the decline of the
Spanish Empire, Panama lost much of its importance in
the carrying trade. Panama became a part of
independent Colombia in 1821. Its significance as a
crossroad was enhanced again when U.S. settlers bound
for Oregon and the goldfields of California passed
through Panama. W. H. Aspinall built (1848-55) the
Panama RR, and the question of a canal across the
isthmus became paramount. The project ultimately led to
a revolution against Colombian sovereignty and the
establishment of Panama as a separate republic (see
Panama Canal).
Independence, the United States, and the Canal
The new state, proclaimed in Nov., 1903, was under the
aegis of the United States, and the canal and American
interests in it became the determinants of Panama's
history. The Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty with the United
States established the Panama Canal Zone, controlled by
the United States, and authorized U.S. intervention in
Panamanian affairs if necessary to protect the zone. The
internal politics of the republic have been stormy, with
frequent changes of administration. U.S. forces were
landed in 1908, 1912, and 1918. A controversial figure in
Panamanian politics was Arnulfo Arias who was elected
president in 1940 and ousted a year later for being pro-
Fascist. He seized power in 1949 but was overthrown in
1951. José Antonio Remón, elected in 1952, was
assassinated in 1955; Ernesto de la Guardia, Jr.,
inaugurated the following year, survived disturbances in
1958 and 1959.
In the meantime, a new canal treaty was concluded in
1955, as political unrest developed in Panama over the
Canal Zone issue. In 1958 and again in 1960 further
steps were taken to assuage Panamanian discontent by
establishing uniform wages and employment opportunities
in the Canal Zone and by reaffirming Panama's titular
sovereignty over the zone. Roberto F. Chiari, a
conservative landowner, was elected president in 1960.
Marco A. Robles defeated Arias for the presidency in
1964. When U.S. high-school students illegally displayed
an American flag in the Canal Zone (Jan., 1964), serious
riots broke out. Diplomatic relations between Panama and
the United States were briefly suspended. New treaties
were negotiated (1967), providing for Panamanian
sovereignty over the Canal Zone, joint operation of the
canal, and possible construction of a new, sea-level
canal, but Panama refused to ratify them (1970).
In early 1974 Panama and the United States agreed in
principle for the first time to the eventual end of U.S.
jurisdiction over the canal and the Canal Zone. Arias was
again elected president in Oct., 1968, but was deposed
11 days later in a military coup. Gen. Omar Torrijos
Herrera emerged as the dominant figure shortly
thereafter. Torrijos conducted enormous public works
projects that gained him considerable popularity while
plunging the country into debt. In 1977, he concluded a
treaty with the United States that provided for a gradual
transfer of jurisdiction over the Canal Zone and the canal
to Panama by the end of 1999. A second treaty
guaranteed the permanent neutrality of the canal.
The Noriega Years and Modern Panama
After the death of Torrijos in a plane crash in 1981,
Colonel Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno slowly gained
power, and in 1983 he took complete control of the
national guard and of the country. Throughout the 1980s
Noriega manipulated elections, ruling Panama through
presidents who were mostly mere puppets. In 1987 a
former officer of the Panamanian Defense Force (the
expanded National Guard) publicly accused Noriega of
ordering the murder of a prominent political opponent,
manipulating election results, and engaging in drug
smuggling with Colombian drug producers. As a result,
the United States imposed strict sanctions that severely
damaged Panama's economy and resulted in large
protests against Noriega in Panama City.
On Dec. 15, 1989, the Panamanian legislature declared
Noriega president and proclaimed that the United States
and Panama were in a state of war. The same day a U.S.
marine was killed by Panamanian soldiers. On Dec. 20,
the United States attacked Panama City with a combined
military force of more than 25,000 soldiers in an effort to
remove Noriega from power.
Noriega surrendered on Jan. 3, 1990, and was taken to
the United States, where he was later tried, convicted,
and jailed on charges of drug trafficking. Guillermo
Endara Galimany, elected to the presidency in 1989 but
prevented by Noriega from taking office, was sworn into
office during the invasion. The invasion resulted in
considerable loss of life as well as significant damage to
Panama City. In 1994, Ernesto Pérez Balladares, a former
associate of Torrijos and the candidate of the political
party that had once supported but later repudiated
Noriega, won the presidential election. He introduced a
sweeping economic reform plan and pledged to fight
corruption and drug trafficking. In Oct., 1994, the
constitution was amended to abolish Panama's military.
Mireya Moscoso Rodríguez, a coffee company owner and
the widow of Arnulfo Arias, was elected president in 1999.
Martin Torrijos Espino, who had lost to Moscoso in 1999,
was elected president in 2004. He is the son of Gen.
Omar Torrijos. In 2006 Panamanian voters approved an
expansion of the Panama Canal that would add an third,
larger set of locks to the existing canal; construction is
planned for 2008-14.
Source: www.reference.com, The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia
Copyright © 2004, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia
University Press
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