Panama History

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. In 1502 Columbus dropped anchor off present-day Portobelo.

In 1513 Balboa made his arduous trip across the isthmus to the Pacific, highlighting the dominant factor in the nation's history—the short distance from sea to sea. Panama City was founded in 1519. 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 plundered 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.

With the decline of the Spanish Empire, Panama lost much of its importance as a trading center. Panama became a part of independent Colombia. In 1821 W. H. Aspinall built the Panama RR, and the question of a canal across the isthmus became paramount. The project ultimately led to a revolution against Colombia and the establishment of Panama as a separate republic.

Independence, the United States, and the Canal

The new country of Panama, proclaimed in November 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 US intervention in Panamanian affairs if necessary to protect the zone.

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. In January 1964 US high-school students illegally displayed an American flag in the Canal Zone and serious riots broke out. Diplomatic relations between Panama and the United States were briefly suspended.

In early 1974 Panama and the United States agreed in principle to the eventual end of US jurisdiction over the canal and the Canal Zone. Arias was elected president in October 1968 but was deposed 11 days later in a military coup. General Omar Torrijos Herrera emerged as the dominant figure . Torrijos conducted enormous public works projects that gained him considerable popularity. 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 the country. Throughout the 1980s Noriega manipulated elections, ruling Panama through presidents who were mostly puppets. In 1987 a former officer of the Panamanian Defense Force publicly accused Noriega of ordering the murder of a prominent political opponent, manipulating election results, and engaging in drug smuggling with Colombian drug producers. The United States imposed strict sanctions that severely damaged Panama's economy and resulted in large protests against Noriega in Panama City.

On December 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 US marine was killed by Panamanian soldiers. On December 20th the United States attacked Panama City in an effort to remove Noriega from power.

Noriega surrendered on Jan. 3, 1990 and was taken to the United States, where he was 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. In 1994, Ernesto Pérez Balladares, a former associate of Torrijos, won the presidential election. He introduced a sweeping economic reform plan and pledged to fight corruption and drug trafficking. In October,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.