Nuclear resdues transit
A British ship Pacific Sandpiper, with a radioactive cargo, crossed the Panama Canal yesterday bound for Japan, during protests by environmentalists who reject the transit of ships with those types of nuclear residues. "The ship traveled under strict measures of security, after complying with the prior inspections and all the security "required locally and internationally", reported the Panama Canal Authority (ACP).

Two environmentalists of the Friends of the Sea movement let their feeling be known from the highest point of the Bridge of the Americas. After causing serious traffic problems from early morning, the environmentalists descended with the aid of a crane at approximately 6:30p.m. and were taken to the National Police Force headquarters in Ancon where they remained under arrest.

Price of Cement, Quo Vadis
Cement plant executives have been asked by the Ministry of Housing (MIVI) to explain what is happening with the production of cement, it was announced by the Minister, Balbina Herrera. "One must take into account this situation and call for an explanation from the cement works, because we have to prepare for the construction boom", she said. Herrera said that the cost of a bag of cement has increased from US$5.15 a bag to US$8.00 and even US$10.00 and, "they are even selling it tied to other materials in some areas", she added.

In view of the speculation surrounding the price of cement, the Ministry of Housing and representatives of the companies Cemento Panama and Cemex, agreed to establish a mechanism where the businesses that win the tenders for housing that cost less than US$10,000 a unit, can acquire the product directly from these two large companies, so thath there is no increase in the cost of these types of homes.

U.S. Ambassador criticised
Since his arrival in Panama in September 2005, the US ambassador, William Eaton, has had series of meetings with local politicians. "One of my objectives as ambassador is to maintain contact with all the political parties, Martinelli is a friend and we meet frequently to exchange ideas and to speak about Panama and Panamanian and international politics", said Eaton.

The daily newspaper La Prensa commented: "Keeping in mind the history between both countries, the exchanges between Eaton and the Panamanian politicians could be interpreted as interference".

Problems in the U.S. Too
Panama is mentioned a report of the American Congress as one ot the countries where money laundering is "facilitated". US ambassador, William Eaton, pointed out that the U.S. is also named in the report and that the report expresses that his country also has problems with drug trafficing.

Money laundering in Casinos, Real Estate?
Last year the second public drug prosecutor, José Abel Almengor, announced that he suspected casinos of money laundering through virtual bets. Now, a report from the US State Department, published on March 1, confirmed that the casinos and real estate commerce in Panama have been touched by drug trafficking.

Bravo Task Force
The Southern Command and the National System of Civil Protection recently carried out a simulation exercise named COMMEX (Communications) to confront hypothetical situations of emergency and natural disasters. According to colonel Christopher Hughes, commander of the Bravo Task Force, headquartered at the base of Sotocano, Honduras, his unit is in Panama to learn lessons from the floods of November in Panama, Coclé and Colón.

Investors flock in
The real estate boom in Panama has awakened the interest of regional investors, who have shown their intention of analyzing the business opportunities offered by our country, reported Ivan Carlucci, president of the Panamanian Association of Developers and Real Estate Agents (Acobir). Carlucci confirmed that from March 18 to 22 Acobir will bring around 300 international investors of the real estate sector from countries such as the US, Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Canada and México.

Ex presidential yacht.
Former president Mireya Moscoso confirmed to local media that she had purchased a yacht although it had not yet arrived in Panama. The daily, Panama America, reported that the yacht is a 48 feet Cabo fishing yacht, of the "Flybridge" model, valued at nearly US$1,319,777.

Protest over Capture of dolphins
As an "immorality" is how the Mayor of Panama City, Juan Carlos Navarro, described the intention of the transnational company, Ocean Embassy, to capture marine mammals and install a "dolphinarium" in Panama. "I want them to know that I oppose flatly the hunting of dolphins in Panama and I will be in the front line to fight against this action that constitutes a shame. It does not matter to me who is ‘coimeando’ (corrupting) because they will not achieve their ends", Navarro said. He organized a March and meetings with the mass media and the Mar Viva Foundation. "This is a practice that has been prohibited in the United States, Europe and in all the civilized countries of the world",declared Navarro.

Problems in the Old Quarter Two children and two adults died in the suburb of San Felipe when a concrete balustrade of the boarding house, Lyon’s House, collapsed. According to the preliminary reports of the National System of Civil Protection, the lack of maintenance, the state of the structure and the winds that were blowing in the area could have caused the detachment of the balustrade of the building, located between ninth and eighth streets. Almost 10 year after the law was created offering incentives to property owners in the Casco Viejo (Old Quarter) to restore their real estate, the National Culture (Inac), the Department of Historic Patrimony, the Panamanian Institute of Tourism (IPAT), the Municipality of Panama and other institutions will begin the inspection of the old houses to avoid a repetition of this type of accident. Meanwhile an investigation into tax evasion is being carried out by the Department of Income, of the Ministry of Economy and Finances (MEF), against the owners of more than 20 properties in San Felipe. This comes about after the owners of houses requested mortgage loans under incentives of law No. 9 of August 27, 1997, and then did not use them in the restoration of the in decrepit building.

To Study medicine in Cuba
One hundred Panamanian young people travelled to Havana, Cuba, to study medicine under scholarships with Panamanian and Cuban governmental support. In the name of the scholars, a student, Orlando Mendoza, thanked them for the opportunity to study for a career that otherwise would have been beyond the means of their families.

Management of Coiba
In Santiago, Veraguas, a group of experts met to discuss the management plan of the National Park of Coiba and regulations for tourist development and also to motivate the tourism organizers to implement responsible practices.

Bank assets grow
The assets of the International Banking Center (CBI) of Panama grew by 16.4% in 2006, compared with the previous year, and reached "high standards of security" reported the Superintendent of Banks, Olegario Barrelier. During his first appearance before the industry and the press since taking on the job at the end of last year, Barrelier said that the CBI assets reached US$52,258-million, with a total of 84 banks, eight more than In 2005.

Penal charges agains journalists
Statistics of the Attorney General’s Office indicate that in the past two years 33 penal accusations against journalists for alleged crimes against personal honor have been presented. The majority of the complaints have been made by government officials and former civil servants two of whom were investigated for their supposed implication in acts of corruption.

Torrijos in Texas
President Martin Torrijos again travelled to Texas and to the Republic of Guyana. He went to Austin where he was given an international recognition from the former students of his alma mater, Texas A&M University. He also met with the governor of Texas, Rick Perry.

Boxing champ is Sports Ambassador
Roberto Duran will collect US$2,000 a month while he is in the government of Martin Torrijos offering his image as a Sports Ambassador. The appointment was made recently, when the four-times world boxing champion received a homage from the Foreign Minister, Samuel Lewis Navarro.

Colon Looking better
Members of the Chamber of Commerce, Agriculture and Industries of Colon announced that the Atlantic city is getting a face-lift. "There is evidence of a great number of investments in infrastructure in the city of Colon, such as the reconstruction of sidewalks, the improvement of streets and avenues, as well as the water system, that shows the interest of the government in reconditioning the city", said the president of the chamber, Carlos M. Gómez.

Ship owners may seek alternatives to Canal
Disconcerting news was reported by shipping newspaper The Bulletin from the recent Panama Maritime VIII Conference. Lee Johnson, Maersk administrative director for Central America said "the Panama Canal is not the only option to move cargo from one ocean to another, for which its executives should understand that there are other routes for commerce".

Then the Suez Canal Authority announced that it would offer discounts to the shipping companies that use the route from Asia to the US East Coast, which is a main income earner for the Panama Canal. Panama Canal expansion based on rising tolls is also dependent on continuing world economic growth, Maersk is one of the biggest users of the Panama Canal and is the company that started the industry trend to giant container ships too big to fit through the Panama Canal.

The Visitor's recipe corner

Meat with Tomato Sauce
(country style)

Preparation time: 30 mins. aprox.
Dificulty: Easy

Yield: 4 Servings

Ingredients:

1 pound of steak
1/4 teaspoon of oregano
4 medium size tomatoes
2 spoon of butter
1 bit of salt

Directions:

Wash the meat, sprinkle with the salt and the oregano. Let the meat dry a little. Cut the meat in chunks and sauté for a few minutes in butter. Cut the tomato in pieces, sauté them in another saucepan and then add the meat. Cook until soft. If you like you can add a sliced onion.

An important date in Kuna History

Father Leonardo Gasso lands in Kuna Yala

By Howard V.Walker

A group of Kuna men. One hundred years ago, father Leonardo Gasso unsuccessfully tried to convert their islands into Jesuit communities.

Exactly one hundred years ago, Kuna islanders watched curiously as a black-robed, weather-beaten Spanish priest stepped ashore onto the island of Nargana, Kuna Yala. The date was Easter week, March, 1907, and the occasion the arrival of Spanish missionary Father Leonardo Gasso.

The impact of this passionate, zealous priest (the first recorded in these islands) was to prove no less dramatic than his appearance, or voyage, down from Colon. Rocked in his small craft for eight days in high, wind-swept seas and blistered from hot steam leaks spouting from a defective boiler (his umbrella was no match) he gave grateful thanks to St.Joseph, statue in hand, as he finally stepped ashore.

According to James Howe in his landmark study A People Who Would Not Kneel, he wasted no time to begin his conversions – even on chief Henry Clay of the neighbouring island of Nusatupu,, who courteously had gone out to greet him in his dug-out canoe. As it happened, the chief was not receptive to Gasso’s quick summary of the dangers of hell fire and damnation. He rejected the mission forthwith. Fortunately for the determined priest, he did receive a warm welcome from Chief Charly Robinson of Nargana who invited him as his guest into his two storey home and store.

A Kuna girl. Although her people is open to western-style education and tourism, they still hold on to deeply rooted ancestral traditions.

On his second day, Good Friday, Father Gasso raised a large cross at the place of his landing. His followers sang and knelt to kiss it, but arguments broke out with others who had come to mock, and protest, the intrusion of this new religion and outside culture. That morning gave a foretaste of the conflicts and hostilities which were being spawned and which were to characterize succeeding years until the revolution of 1925. Within two short years the cross had disappeared.

For conservative Kuna traditionalists, Father Gasso and Charly Robinson represented threatening change, not only in terms of religion, but with their liberal ideas for literacy and education. Chief Charly was literate and English speaking, one of the few; his foreign up-bringing had given him a taste for things North American. Considered radical by some, his plans soon provoked opposition from his people. Father Gasso also had to contend with a formidable adversary from outside, Anna Coope, an English Protestant missionary who brought to Nargana a quite different message of salvation.

It is tempting to say that ‘it all started’ with Father Gasso, undoubtedly he was a major player at the beginning of the social upheaval that was to rock Kuna society in the coming decades . Also it is clear that, inevitably, the winds of change were headed for the Kuna islands as surely as they had swept over the isthmus with the founding of the new republic, in 1903. Certainly, this fiery proselytizer was the forerunner of the host of 20th century intruders – missionaries, traders, government officials, adventurers and travelers – all of whom subsequently came to Kuna Yala with their own agendas in mind.

Father Gasso did not succeed in transforming Nargana into the Jesuit community that he desired. The cultural resilience and strength of character of the Kuna people had proved too great. He returned home to Spain finally in 1912. On August 27th.1936, at the start of the Spanish Civil War, Father Gasso was taken out to a highway and shot by Republican forces. A martyr’s death, consistent with the life and dedication of this impassioned, controversial and courageous Christian.

The writer is an English-Canadian, an architect retired from practice in Canada and now living in Panama.
Tel:315-1576
Cell.6 515 3691
hvwalker@yahoo.com

Town names in Spanglish:

A colorful, enduring legacy of a not-so-distant past

One of the legacies of the lengthy, special relationship shared by Panama and the U.S. Between the 19th and 20th centuries is a handful of town names in, what many believe, is a form of Spanglish.

One of these is Arraiján, located 8 kilometers (5 miles) west of the Bridge of the Americas. The name could be a corruption of "At the right hand". It is said that, sometime during the construction of the Panama Railroad (mid 1800's) U.S citizens started to call the area "right hand" as a reference point for those traveling to Panama City. Others say the name was given by the Spanish, who settled the area in the mid 16th century.

Arraiján was considered the first town of the interior provinces outside of the metro area until the 1980's, when real estate companies started to lure middle and working class Panamanians to its tranquil setting. Today, it is the western satellite of Panama City.

Another community with a possible "Spanglish" name is Perejíl, downtown Panama City. An area of grandious, early 20th-century mansions, Perejil was the "border" of the elegant Bella Vista neighborhood, which gradually merged with the Calidonia district. Perejil is Spanish for parsley, but many historians believe the neighborhood was developed on a property know as "Perry's Hill", which, sometime in the early 1900's was owned by a Mr. Perry.

Ocean-to-Ocean Event

Cayucos cross Canal in unique race

By Craig J. Weincek

The race has become an international event, with teams from South America, Europe and the United States.

Panama boasts a truly unique international sporting event that is growing in popularity. The annual ocean to ocean cayuco race combines the tradition of indigenous canoes with a vigorous athletic competition through Panama’s most famous landmark. As sponsored by Club de Remos de Balboa, the Balboa Paddle Club, the race gives competitors, Panamanians, ex-pats and visitors, an opportunity like none other in the world to not only test their strength, skill, and endurance, but at the same time to gain an appreciation for the natural beauty of Panama as well as the engineering wonder of the Panama Canal.

This year’s Nissan Ocean to Ocean race will be held March 30, 31 and April 1.

La Regata de Cayucos de Oceano a Oceano is a three-day adventure through the canal that begins at the Cristobal Yacht Club near Colon on the Atlantic coast and, after a first leg of seven miles, finishes at the north end of the Gatun Locks. The second day gets under way bright and early on the south end of the Gatun Locks and after 21 grueling miles ends up in Gamboa. The final day covers 13 lucky miles as the paddlers pass through the Culebra Cut on to the Pedro Miquel Locks. Then the teams of paddlers steer their spiffed-up dug-out canoes through the locks and onto Miraflores Lake before the highlight of the trip, the Miraflores Locks, finally rowing ashore at the Diablo public ramp under the shadow of the Bridge of the Americas.

The trophy class, 14 to 21, is the most serious, with many of the teams, made up of four paddlers, male, female or co-ed young, fit, Panamanian athletes, competing for Master Paddler status, which is awarded to the team that wins all five stages during the three-day event. The winners of each stage receive an important bead, gold, green, red, white and blue; and if all five beads are collected on a ring that hangs from the championship trophy then that signifies the coveted Master Paddler award.

The open class, 22 and over, usually is a more diverse group, with both keen competitors and people who simply want the once-in-a-lifetime experience of paddling a traditional canoe from the Atlantic to the Pacific. (No casual paddlers should attempt this very strenuous endeavor.) The adult category also has the most international participants with teams coming all the way from the States, (Florida and California, last year) as well as Spain, Britain, France, Brazil and other nations, all seeking an opportunity to paddle coast to coast across the isthmus.

The Ocean-to-Ocean Cayuco Race is a tradition started by the Boy Scouts of America in 1952.

While there is one ten person boat and one with eight paddlers, made up mostly of veterans of past events, the rest of the cayucos consist of four competitors. The sight of these well conditioned athletes paddling in unison across one of the most scenic waterways in the world never fails to impress the many spectators along the way.

Of course, none of this is possible without the support of the Panama Canal Authority, ACP, and its director Aleman Zupieta, who works closely with the race organizers Pablo Prieto, the founder of the club and the race coordinator, and Marissa DeArco, the president of CREBA and over a hundred dedicated volunteers, with Nissan as the primary sponsor.

The Ocean to Ocean Cayuco race is a continuation of a 55-year tradition first started by the Boy Scouts of America, when the United States still controlled the Canal Zone. Then in 2000, The Balboa Paddle Club was organized to continue and expand on that grand tradition. The club is non-profit organization and dedicated to the promotion of the sport of paddling and the conservation of the watershed of the Canal and is registered with the National Institute of Sports.

For more information about the Nissan Ocean to Ocean Cayuco Race or about the Balboa Paddle Club, go to www.cayucorace.org.

Important city landmark to be relocated

The statue, at the inauguration ceremony in September, 1924.

After 86 years standing on the same location, overlooking the Bay of Panama, the statue honoring Vasco Núñez de Balboa will be soon relocated. The decision was taken as the government plans to build a new "Cinta Costera" --a coastal landfill around the bay which will create new recreational spaces and space for a new thoroughfare.

The statue's new location will be at end of the soon-to-be extended Avenida Ecuador, on a park identical to where the statue presently stands.

The story of Balboa's statue is an interesting one. In 1910, a local lawyer, Ricardo J. Alfaro (who later became president of Panama) contacted prominent Catalonian sculptor, Agustín Quero,l with the purpose of creating the Balboa monument. Querol accepted, but died before he could finish his idea at the drawing board.

The Balboa monument, 2007.

Three years later, King Alfonso XIII of Spain invited the Panamanian government to revive the project and donated 50,000 pesetas out of his pocket. He also invited his subjects follow his example raising a total of 13,000 pesetas. The Panamanian government donated US$650.00.

Spanish sculptors, Mariano Benlliure and Miquel Blay, were chosen to create the statue –a marble structure placed on a globe sustained by the figures of four men –each representing a different racial background.

The statue was inaugurated on September 24, 1924 by then-president Belisario Porras.

Sitio Barriles, and the mystery of Panama’s first people

By: David Dell.

An archeological artifact from the Barriles culture.

Panama’s oldest and most mysterious archeological site is located six kilometers west of the Chiriqui mountain town of Volcan. First discovered in 1905, it was only fully excavated in 1947. The questions and answers that surround this site and the ancient people that lived there, could mean the re-writing of history books.

The first Panamanians may have been of Asian (Ainu)and African origin; the life-sized statues, unearthed at Barriles, now on display at the Reina Torres de Arauz Mueum, give credence to this theory. One statue shows an Asian featured person with a pear-shaped face, sitting on the shoulders of a distinctively African man. The dating that does exist shows this culture was in the pre-classic period from 2000 BC to 250 AD.

Could this be the figure of an Asian man?

Before Aztecs, Mayas and Incas.
Petroglyph carvings at Barriles are consistent with others at Caldera, and El Valle.

Willian Fredric Houx, owned a coffee farm at Barriles and together with German immigrant Kurt Hemmeling was the first to start documenting the artifacts. I was shown around the site by Houx’s grand-daughter, Edna Houx. She pointed to several cylindrical (barrel shaped) stone rocks - the same stones that give the site its name. Edna theorizes that the stone barrels were an ancient form of wheel, enabling large logs to be moved over rough ground. Edna also believes that the Barriles people disappeared right after the eruption of the nearby Tizingal Volcano, around 300 a.d. This may have been a Pompeii style explosion, that completely wiped out the Dorasque civilization.

Archeologists believe that there were five founding tribes in Panama: The Chocos, Cunas, Talamancas, Guaymis and finally the Dorasques. Edna’s conclusion is that the people that built this ancient ceremonial site, were of the Dorasque tribe.

Carvings found at Panamanian Pre-Columbian sites bear intersting similarities with those of distant cultures.

The "Spiral" the worlds oldest symbol.
The first Panamanians may have links to the equally mysterious culture on Easter Island. The evidence to support this lies in the matching spiral carvings found not only on Easter Island, but also in the New Hebrides (Vanuatu) New Zealand, Hawaii and the Pacific north-west – in fact, spiral carvings are to be found throughout the world.

Startling new theory.
One startling new theory about Panama’s ancestors may point to one of the world’s great maritime exploring nations - the Vikings. There is compelling evidence to suggest that the Vikings sailed around the north-west passage and populated part of the Pacific North-West, and therefore may have sailed further down into the Pacific. Did they settle anywhere? Inter-marry? Could their descendants be part of the ethno-mix that is Panama today?

This statue clearly depicts African features.

Columbus was not the first.
Christopher Columbus is revered as the discoverer of America – as hard as this may be for some to accept - this is not true. History now shows that he was far from being first. Panama and the Americas were discovered and settled thousands of years before he ever set sail. Panama’s first people were intelligent, articulate, had the ability to make exquisite gold jewellery and could fashion intricate stone objects. The artifacts from the Barriles site in Chiriqui, make that a historical fact, one that truly, is carved in stone.