wfn.org | PANAMA: CHURCH LEADERS CALL ON US PRESIDENT TO HONOUR TREATY

[Audrey Whitefield <a.whitefield@quest.org.uk>]

Oct. 31, 1997
ANGLICAN COMMUNION NEWS SERVICE
Canon Jim Rosenthal, Director of Communications
Anglican Communion Office
London, eNGLAND

[97.10.5.7]

PANAMA: CHURCH LEADERS CALL ON US PRESIDENT TO HONOUR TREATY

(ALC) A group of prominent Church  leaders in the United States has
called upon President Bill Clinton to honour the  1977 Panama Canal
Treaties and totally withdraw U.S. military forces from Panama  by the
end of 1999. The letter also reminded President Clinton that the U.S.
Government bears responsibility to clean up toxic wastes left behind at
firing ranges and military installations in the country. And it urged
President Clinton not to use plans for a  regional drug centre to mask
activities that would include training Latin American military officials
in techniques of repression. The October 15 letter was signed by 50
Church officials and leaders of peace organisations. Among the signers
was Presiding Episcopal Bishop Edmond Browning, Anglican Observer at the
United Nations Bishop James Ottley, three Catholic bishops, former U.S.
Attorney General Ramsey Clark, and leaders from  Baptist, Buddhist and
Jewish religious communities. Signers also included the deputy director
of the Center for Defense Information, Rear Admiral Eugene Carroll, Jr.,
and Ambassador Robert White, president of the Washington-based Center
for International Policy. The letter argued that the U.S. Government
should withdraw from negotiations aimed at ensuring a continued U.S.
military presence after the handover of the canal to Panamanians.
Article five of the "Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and
Operation of the Panama Canal" established that after December 31,
1999,"only the Republic of Panama shall . . .maintain military forces,
defense sites and military installations within its national territory."
Yet U.S. and Panamanian officials have for months been negotiating a new
agreement that would provide for a continued U.S. presence. Panamanian
negotiators have reportedly balked at a provision for
extra-territoriality" for U.S. troops after 1999, something the letter
asserted would "represent a renewed colonial enclave" in Panama. The
signers stated that they supported "Panama's aspirations for complete
demilitarization." The Church leaders called for the U.S. Government to
be accountable for the cleanup of toxic materials present on current and
former U.S. military sites in Panama. The letter demanded
declassification and disclosure of U.S.  documents that could describe
potential environmental hazards. "Without this full history of use,
Panama will be hard put to effectively plan for future uses, implement
programs that protect the canal watershed and safeguard the health of
Panama's people," the letter stated. The Government of Panama recently
proposed the creation of a bi-national environmental center to carry out
cleanup of U.S. bases. According to the letter, "this proposal presents
an unprecedented opportunity for the United States to demonstrate its
environmental leadership and to adhere to the 'polluter pays' principle
affirmed in domestic and international law." The U.S. has proposed that
a regional center to combat drug trafficking be based in Panama. The
letter writers warned that this would be nothing but a "disguised
military base" that would "include military training as part of
its activities, and would involve Latin American militaries, some of
whom are among the worst human rights violators in the hemisphere."
The letter, which was organized by the Fellowship of Reconciliation,
warns President Clinton not to try to relocate the controversial
programs of the School of the Americas, currently located in the U.S.
state of Georgia, "in Panama under another name."