III

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. CON. RES. 61

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding a continued United States

security presence in Panama and a review of the contract bidding process

for the Balboa and Cristobal port facilities on each end of the Panama

Canal.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

OCTOBER 19, 1999

Mr. SESSIONS (for himself, Mr. LOTT, Mr. HELMS, Mr. INHOFE, Mr. ALLARD,

Mr. KYL, Mr. THURMOND, and Mr. HUTCHINSON) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on

Foreign Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding a continued

United States security presence in Panama and a review

of the contract bidding process for the Balboa and Cristobal port facilities on each end of the Panama Canal.

Whereas the 50-mile long Panama Canal, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, is a key strategic choke point

in the Western Hemisphere, is vital to United States and

international economies, and remains a strategic passage

for naval vessels;

Whereas the 1977 Carter-Torrijos Treaty transfers ownership

of the Panama Canal to the government of Panama and
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requires all United States military forces to leave by December 31, 1999;

Whereas under the companion Treaty Concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal the

United States retains the right, and has a responsiblity,

to protect and defend the Canal beyond the year 2000;

Whereas narcotics-funded terrorist forces in Colombia have

spread their bases and logistical operations into southern

Panama;

Whereas Panama does not have an army, navy, or air force,

and the country’s national police units lack adequate

training, manpower, and equipment to deter heavilyarmed hostile narcotics terrorist forces or to adequately

defend the Canal against sabotage or terrorism from internal or external threats;

Whereas the Russian Mafia, Chinese Triad criminal organizations, Cuban government entities, and certain groups

from the Middle East, all of whom have been hostile to

the United States, are active in Panama, conducting

weapons smuggling, money laundering, and massive

counterfeiting and piracy of United States products and

intellectual property;

Whereas systematic smuggling of illegal aliens from the People’s Republic of China has been conducted with the involvement of high-level Panamanian officials;

Whereas the communist People’s Republic of China is making

major political, economic, and intelligence inroads in

Panama, posing a long-term threat to American security

interests;

Whereas the Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa company, which has close ties to the People’s Republic of
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China and has served as a conduit for funding and acquiring technology for the Chinese People’s Liberation

Army, has been granted a 25- to 50-year lease to control

the only port facility on the Pacific end of the Panama

Canal and another port facility on the Atlantic end; and

Whereas Hutchison Whampoa was awarded control of the

Canal ports, despite better offers made by consortia that

included United States companies, through a contract

bidding process that was widely regarded as secretive,

corrupt, and unfair: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the Senate (the House of Representatives

2 concurring), That it is a sense of the Congress that—

3 (1) the United States Government should re4 quest that the new government of Panama, under

5 the leadership of President Mireya Moscoso, inves6 tigate charges of corruption related to the granting

7 of the Panama Canal port leases by the previous

8 Balladares administration;

9 (2) based on any finding of corruption related

10 to the granting of those leases, the United States

11 Government should request that the new government

12 of Panama nullify the lease agreements for the Bal13 boa and the Cristobal port facilities on each end of

14 the Panama Canal and initiate a new bidding proc15 ess that is both transparent and fair; and

16 (3) the United States Government should nego17 tiate security arrangements with the government of
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1 Panama that will protect the Canal and ensure the

2 territorial integrity of the Republic of Panama.

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