Corruption and skyrocketing prices: fatigue has brought thousands of Panamanians to the streets

Fatigue due to the increase in fuel prices and cases of institutional corruption are at risk destroy the stability of Panamain one of the largest wave of protests in the country in the past three decades.

“The cost of living is what people on the street have, people ask for social justice,” says Sergio Gallegos.

He is one of thousands of people who have protested in the past two weeks to demand that the government intervene and contain prices of products in the basic basket and medicines.

The protests provoked closure of public schools, suspension of transport and calls for strike. The UN office in Panama has called on the parties to “seek consensus”, while the Catholic Church offered to mediate in the conflict.

For the most part, the marches were in a festive atmosphere of dancing and singing, although police reported the arrest this Wednesday of 24 people from “demonstrations and vandalism” in Panama.

The discontent manifests itself in an inflation scenario of 4.2% on an annual basis recorded in May and an unemployment rate of around 10%. Also, fuel price increased by 47% since the beginning of the year, it is currently worth $ 5.17 per gallon of gasoline (3.78 liters).

During the accidents, the Inter-American highway was partially closed, fundamental route for the connection with Costa Rica and the transportation of goods throughout Panama.

The situation has sparked the alarms of the government and businessmen, who fear millionaire losses and see trade, tourism and economic recovery following the threat of the pandemic.

“The problems are not just of one sector. The problem is of all Panamanians who are suffering”, warns the indigenous Guna and head general, Rengifo Navas.

The worst crisis since 1989

Thus, Panama is experiencing one of the greatest social crises since 1989 when fell on Military dictatorship General Manuel Antonio Noriega after the US invasion.

“We are in an unprecedented social explosion,” says Enoch Adames, professor of sociology at the University of Panama.

The protests forced the president on Monday Laurentino Cortizo a reduce the price of fuel at $ 3.95 per gallon starting Friday.

“Discontent is widespread and government repudiation is universal,” adds Carlos Guevara-Mann, a political scientist and historian at the Panamanian branch of Florida State University.

With a dollarized economy and services, an interoceanic channel – which contributes over $ 2,000 million a year to the national treasury -, high rates of economic growth and alternation of power, Panama has experienced relative stability since 1989.

The Panamanian economy grew by 17.8% in 2021 and by 13.6% in the first quarter of 2022.

Social inequality

However, the country has one of the highest inequality rates in the worldwith half of the informal work and public health and education services having severe shortages.

“The social explosion is strongly conditioned by the structural crisis, both of the growth model without development and from a political order of privileges highly focused on resources and decisions, “says Adames.

“There is an accumulation of unsatisfied requests which is what caused the protests, but fuel prices were the trigger, ”adds Harry Brown, director of the International Center for Political and Social Studies.

For Brown, the Panamanian protests are similar in scope to those that have recently occurred in Ecuador, Colombia and Chile. “We can place them in the context of the claim throughout the region from to better distribution of wealth“.

In addition to reducing the price of gasoline, Cortizo has also made a commitment freeze the price of a dozen basic productsto reduce the expenses of public employees and to reduce the number of public employees by 10%.

“As he (Cortizo) pretends that with 10 foods from the basic basket he has written down we will be able to survive, it’s impossible“complains student Wendy Ramos.

the trade unions ask greater efforts for Cortizodespite the fact that the public debt accumulated for 2022 may exceed 44,000 million dollars.

Criticism has also increased the salaries of the authorities, the corruption scandals and the expenses of parliamentarianssome of which have been involved in the controversy over a video in which they appear in celebration with a whiskey whose value borders on the 400 dollars.

“There is a profound component of social dissatisfaction and frustration in the face of the degradation and corruption of a greedy and rapacious political class “, says Guevara-Mann.

Manifestations occur at a time when Cortizo tackles blood cancer. The president has two years of management left amidst uncertainty.

By Juan Jose Rodriguez, AFP

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