Protesters in Panama burned a picture of US President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday following his menace to demand that Washington return management of the nation’s interoceanic canal.
Dozens of protesters gathered exterior the U.S. Embassy chanting “Trump, animal, depart the canal alone” and “Get out of the invading gringo,” as about 20 law enforcement officials guarded the compound.
Some within the crowd carried banners studying “Donald Trump, public enemy of Panama.”
“The (Panamanian) individuals have proven that they’re able to regaining their territory and we is not going to give it up once more,” protester Jorge Guzman instructed AFP.
The canal, inaugurated in 1914, was constructed by the United States however ceded to Panama on December 31, 1999, beneath treaties signed almost twenty years earlier by then-American President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian nationalist chief Omar Torrijos.
“Panama is a sovereign territory and the canal right here is Panamanian,” stated Saul Mendez, the chief of the development union that collectively organized the protest.
“Donald Trump and his imperial delusion can not declare even a single inch of land in Panama,” Mendez added.
Trump on Saturday criticized what he known as unfair tariffs for American ships passing by way of the Panama Canal and hinted at China’s rising affect.
If Panama failed to make sure “the protected, environment friendly and dependable operation” of the canal, “then we’ll demand that the Panama Canal be returned to us, in full and with out questions,” he stated.
The canal’s standing is non-negotiable, President José Raúl Mulino stated in a press release signed Monday along with the Central American nation’s former leaders.
jjr/fj/dr/nro
