Evening star., 1947-12-24
Setback in Punumu

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all its military sites on Panamanian soil,
outside the Canal Zone, the United States
has taken about the only feasible course
left open to it by Panama's National
Assembly. Under a 1912 treaty we ap-
parently are entitled to stay there until
the completion of "def1nitlve" peace
settlement with Germany and Japan. But
the Assembly has unanimously rejected an
agreement to let us have continued use
on five-year and ten-year leases-ot four
teen of the numerous airfields and installa-
tions we built in the country during the
war, including the big heavy-bomber base
at Rio Hata, In the circumstances, from
the standpoint of popular feeling down
there, evacuation would seem to make
sense.
What does not make sense, however, is
the Assembly's vote Wholly apart from
the 1912 treaty, our two countries are
parties to 1896 treaty of friendship, pledg-
ing joint action to insure the continuous
operation and safety of the canal. The
spirit of the rejected agreement is fully
in accord with that, and it is in accord,
too, with the objectives of the inter-
American defense pact and the projected
program of military Standardization and
collaboration to make the goodneighbor
policy an effective security instrument
throughout the hemisphere. Nevertheless,
besides requiring sixteen months of nego-
tiation and causing Panama's foreign
minister to resign a few weeks ago in
protest against it, this simple leasing ar
rangement has now been thrown out by
the National Legislature without single
supporting vote, and there has been wide
spread. Panamanian rejoicing over the
outcome.
How explain this? Native Communist
agitation undoubtedly has had something
to do with it, but that is not all by any
means presidential election is in the
off1ng in Panama, and that fact-plus the
country's traditional sensitivity on matters
involving sovereignty, plus its nationalism,
plus the political popularity to be won by
taking a strong stand against the Yankee
colossus probably accounts more than
anything else for what has happened.
The Assembly's action, in short, smacks of
emotion and campaign politics rather than
of reason and good Judgment. Further
evidence of this can be found in the fact
that some time ago we offered to submit
our treaty rights to international arbitra-
ton, only to meet with a Panamanian
refusal-a refusal plainly indicating
reluctance to deal with the matter objec-
lively, impartially and in an atmosphere
of calm.
All this, of course is SOLDERING and
thoroughly disappointing setback in the
general development of the goodneighhor
program of inter-American cooperation
for security. More particularly, it gives
rise to serious questions regarding what
ought to be done now to protect the Canal
in an age when it has grown so vulnerable
that some authorities recommend its
complete reconstruction at cost of more
than $2,000,000,000. Obviously, though
realistic in view of current Panamanian
sentiment, our abandonment of bases like
Rio Hata will solve nothing. The only
thing we can hope to achieve with that is
to impress Panama enough to persuade it
to reconsider and undertake new agree
ment. Short OF that, we shall have to