Flag dispute between the United States and Panama in 1964
From January 9 to 11, 1964, in the course of clashes over the so-called flag issue, anti-American demonstrations and riots broke out in the Panama Canal Zone , in the course of which 27 people (23 Panamanians, 4 US soldiers) died and 234 (200 Panamanians, 34 US soldiers) were injured. Panama broke off diplomatic relations with the United States on January 10, 1964 ; on April 3, 1964 the resumption of diplomatic relations was agreed. The events have gone down in history as Día de los Martires or Martyrs' Day .
Occasion and course of the riots
The core of relations between the USA and Panama and the starting point for all disputes between the two states was the question of who should hold sovereignty over the Panama Canal Zone ( Panama Canal question ).
On September 17, 1960, US President Dwight D. Eisenhower announced that from now on the Panamanian flag would be hoisted together with that of the USA in the Canal Zone as an expression of Panama's nominal sovereignty over this area. The Panamanian flag was first hoisted on September 21, 1960 on the Shaler Triangle. On June 13, 1962, US President John F. Kennedy and Panamanian President Roberto Francisco Chiari Remón decided to set up a commission to discuss Panamanian demands for a further revision of the canal treaties. On January 10, 1963, the commission issued a joint declaration that the Panamanian flag should be hoisted in the Canal Zone in addition to the US flags hoisted by civil authorities . On January 23, 1963, the delegations agreed on a corresponding 6-point revision agreement. This included a. also the following points: 1. A labor advisory committee with equal representation to deal with disputes between Panamanian employees and the authorities of the Canal Zone and which is available to advise the Panamanian government and 5. The jurisdiction over the Panama Canal Corridor from the capital to the Panamanian territory is transferred to Panama returned.
On December 30, 1963, the acting governor of the Canal Zone, Major General Robert J. Fleming Jr. , known that the flags of both nations would fly together at eleven points in the Canal Zone, another five points are to follow in February 1964. In addition, the governor announced that as of February 2, 1964, flags would no longer be raised outside the building of the US District Court in Ancón and at three other points. The US flag would continue to be unfurled only in classrooms or within schools.
Between January 7 and 9, 1964, students from US schools (including Canal Zone Junior College , Balboa High School , Cristobal High School ) hoisted the US flag in various places in the Canal Zone, disregarding the existing agreements . On the other hand, first Panamanian students from the elite university Instituto Nacional demonstrated , who violently raised the Panamanian flag . Other demonstrators joined them and 150 to 200 people marched into the canal zone.
On January 9, 1964, the first shootings broke out and the canal police killed the 20-year-old student Ascanio Arosemena. The demonstration escalated. Cars of US soldiers or employees of the Canal Zone were set on fire, houses were damaged or set on fire, and the like. a. a building of the US airline PanAmerican . Since the 70-man police in the Canal Zone could no longer control the situation and many police officers were injured, the acting governor requested Major General Robert J. Fleming jun. stationed in the Panama Canal Zone US forces of the US Southern Command under the leadership of US General Andrew P. O'Meara to take over the security of the channel region and to maintaining order.
According to the US military, the demonstrators included provocateurs trained by Cuba who were armed with hand grenades and rifles and who had also brought home-made bombs into the canal zone. The US armed forces , including soldiers from the US 193rd Infantry Brigade under the command of Brigadier General George Mabry, took command of the Canal Police and fought the demonstrators with tear gas and gun violence. The US Army also deployed armored troop transports and called on the up to 3,500 partially armed demonstrators to withdraw.
The violence escalated and the US Army killed 11-year-old Rosa Elena Landecho, who was standing on a balcony, by gunfire. 33-year-old Rodolfo Sanchez was shot dead in a car. The victims known by name also include the 14-year-old student Gonzalo France and the 29-year-old taxi driver Victor Garibaldo. According to official information, 4 US soldiers and 23 Panamanian civilians were killed in the three days.
On January 10, 1964, the Panamanian government under President Roberto Francisco Chiari Remón (1905–1981) broke off diplomatic relations with the United States. Chiari also refused to use the National Guard against the demonstrators and wanted to persuade the US President to make further concessions regarding the Canal Zone and asked for a US envoy to be sent. Chiari, who was considered pro-American, was about to run for the presidential election and wanted to distinguish himself with his rigid stance. The US embassy in Panama City was evacuated the same day.
As a result of the crisis, 2,000 US citizens left Panama and fled to the Canal Zone. On January 13, 1964, the situation calmed down and the staff of the US Embassy returned to their building.
Efforts to resolve the conflict
US President Lyndon B. Johnson negotiated on January 10, 1964 by telephone with Panamanian President Francisco Chiari Remón, who asked for a US special mission to be sent to Panama. The commission, to which the Undersecretary for Latin American Affairs Thomas C. Mann and the Secretary of State for the Army Cyrus Vance belonged, left on the same day.
On the night of January 11, 1964, at the request of Panama, the UN Security Council held a special session, but after a brief debate decided to await the mediation results of the Organization of American States (OAS).
On January 13, 1964, an OAS peacekeeping mission arrived in Panama. In negotiations with the Panamanian government, it was decided to set up a mixed commission to restore peace and indirectly maintain diplomatic relations. In the course of these negotiations, Panama demanded that as a prerequisite for resuming diplomatic relations, the US had to declare its willingness to revise the Panama Canal Treaties, while the US government stated that it was unwilling to resume diplomatic relations under pressure, it was but, after the resumption of relations, to enter into negotiations without restriction.
On January 15, 1964, the OAS Peace Commission issued a communiqué declaring the restoration of peace and calling on Panama and the US to restore diplomatic relations as soon as possible.
On January 16, 1964, the Panamanian government ordered the embassy staff in Washington to close the embassy and relocate to the OAS offices in Washington. The following day, under pressure from the government of Panama, members of the US embassy in Panama City left the country.
On January 28, 1964, Panama broke off talks within the framework of the OAS peacekeeping mission and urged the convening of the OAS Council. The OAS Council met for a special session on January 31, 1964 and, after hearing the two positions at its meeting on February 4, 1964, decided by 16 votes to 1 to comply with a motion from Panama and to withdraw on the basis of the Rio Pact of 1947 (Treaty of the Inter-American Defense Conference of Petrópolis near Rio de Janeiro in Brazil ) as a consultative body to examine the allegations of aggression brought by Panama.
On February 11, 1964, the OAS sent a special committee to review the incidents from January 9 to 11, 1964. On March 15, 1964, the OAS announced in a communiqué that Panama and the USA had agreed to resume diplomatic relations, and to begin talks and negotiations to resolve the conflict between the two states. The US and Panamanian governments have agreed with the OAS committee to issue statements on a committee communiqué they have approved. Since the two governments could not agree not to present their fundamental differences of opinion in these declarations, the agreed declarations were not made. This led to discrepancies due to an inconsistent interpretation of the communiqué. The Spanish-language text referred to the opening of formal negotiations ( negociaciones ), while the English-language text referred to discussions ( discussions ).
President Chiari said in a radio address that Panama had agreed to resume diplomatic relations and that the negotiated negotiations ( negociaciones ) would result in a revision of the Panama Canal Treaties. His administration sees US consent to negotiations without restriction as an obligation of the US to replace the existing treaties.
In a press conference on March 15, 1964, US President Lyndon B. Johnson stated that, contrary to President Chiari's statement, the differences of opinion had not yet been resolved. US Secretary of State Dean Rusk said the US government had not committed to negotiating a new treaty. The USA was ready to discuss all existing problems, and there was no mention of "official negotiations" that were being discussed on the Panamanian side. After Rusk's remarks, Chiari announced that as a prerequisite for the resumption of diplomatic relations with the United States, his government was demanding that the United States express its willingness to renegotiate the Panama Canal Agreement.
On March 18, 1964, the chairman of the OAS special committees, Juan Plate, from Paraguay, announced that the committee would cease operations because its efforts to achieve reconciliation had been thwarted.
On March 21, 1964, US President Lyndon B. Johnson stated on the Panama issue:
“We are ready to review every issue that now divides us and every issue that the Panamanian government wishes to address. We are ready to do this anytime, anywhere. Our ambassador will be on his way as soon as he is invited by the Panamanian government. We will also appoint a special representative. He will arrive with full authority to discuss any difficulty. He will have the responsibility of finding a solution that recognizes Panama's fair claims and protects the interests of all American nations in the Canal. We cannot determine in advance of the meeting what the best solution to this would be. His instructions will not prohibit a solution that is fair and subject to the appropriate constitutional procedures of the two governments. "
The chairman of the General Committee of the OAS Council issued the following joint statement by Presidents Lyndon B. Johnson and Roberto Francisco Chiari Remón on April 3, 1964:
“In accordance with the friendly declarations of the Presidents of the USA and the Republic of Panama of March 21st and 24th, 1964, which agree on a solemn desire to resolve in a favorable manner all differences between the two countries; The representatives of both governments, who met under the chairmanship of the President of the Council, and recognized the significant cooperation offered by the OAS through the Inter-American Peace Commission and the delegation of the General Committees of the Consultative Body, agreed as follows:
- To restore diplomatic relations,
- To designate, without delay, special ambassadors with sufficient powers to seek an immediate elimination of the causes of the conflict between the two countries, without limitation or precondition of any kind,
- That the designated ambassadors will therefore immediately begin the necessary procedures with the aim of reaching a just and fair agreement which will then be subjected to the constitutional procedures of both countries. "
Outcome of the flag dispute
With the conclusion of the Torrijos-Carter treaties in September 1977, the USA renounced the status of guarantee power for perpetuity ("perpetuity"), which thus existed between 1903 and 1979. On December 31, 1999, the sovereignty of the Canal Zone was completely transferred to Panama.
See also
literature
- Rüdiger Zoller (Ed.): Panama: 100 years of independence, scope for action and transformation processes of a canal republic (= Mesa redonda. New episode 20, ISSN 0946-5030 ). University of Erlangen-Nuremberg - Central Institute for Regional Research - Ibero America Section, Erlangen 2004, ( online ).
- Eric Jackson: Panama Canal Zone: Beginning of the End. ( Part 1 , Part 2 , Part 3 )