Panamanian efforts to renegotiate the original hay-bunau-varilla treaty have been underway almost since it was first signed in November 1903, a few weeks after Panama`s independence from Colombia. However, efforts to renegotiate or repeal the treaty increased dramatically after the Suez Crisis, and the events of 1964 led to a complete breakdown in U.S.-Panamanian relations. On January 9 of the same year, Panamanian students entered the Canal Zone to hoist the Panamanian flag next to the American flag, under a 1963 agreement to defuse tensions between the two countries. Panamanians watching the event began to revolt after the students who hoisted the Panamanian flag were ridiculed and harassed by U.S. school officials, students and their parents. During the fight, the Panamanian flag was somehow torn. There were widespread riots in which more than 20 Panamanians were killed and about 500 injured. Most of the victims were caused by fires from the United States. The troops who had been called in to protect the property of the Canal Zone, including the private homes of the employees of the Canal Zone. January 9 is a national holiday in Panama, known as Martyrs` Day. In addition, the treaty designated many individual areas and facilities as „canal operation zones” for the joint day-to-day operation of the United States and Panama by a commission. On the day the treaty came into force, many of them, including the Madden Dam, were newly surrounded by Panamanian territory.
Shortly after noon local time, on 31 December 1999, all former parcels of the Canal Zone of all kinds had passed under the exclusive jurisdiction of Panama. [13] [14] [15] [16] The Carter administration formulated a strategy to conclude the debate on the channel and obtain Senate ratification. Carter officials worked to sell the contract to the public and held hundreds of forums where policymakers explained why the government signed a contract. Torrijos hosted U.S. senators in Panama, where he stressed that he was neither an enemy of the United States nor a communist. Actor John Wayne, both a conservative and a friend of Torrijos, also supported the negotiations. Negotiators decided that their best chance of ratification was to submit two treaties to the U.S. Senate.
The first, called the Treaty concerning the Permanent Neutrality and Operation of the Panama Canal, or Neutrality Treaty, stipulated that the United States could use its military to defend the Panama Canal against any threat to its neutrality, thus allowing permanent use of the canal by the United States. The second, called the Panama Canal Treaty, stipulated that the Panama Canal Zone would cease to exist on October 1, 1979, and that the canal itself would be handed over to Panamanians on December 31, 1999. Both contracts were signed on 7 September 1977. Despite the fact that Carter and Torrijos were eager to sign a contract, many obstacles remained. A treaty must be ratified by the Senate by a majority of at least two-thirds to enter into force. Many senators were opposed to Panama controlling the Canal Zone. The most notable of these critics was Strom Thurmond (R-SC). Thurmond, who was born twelve years before the canal was built, had a different perspective than the Carter administration. „The loss of this canal would contribute to the encirclement of the United States,” he said during a debate in 1978. Thurmond and other conservatives were also suspicious of Torrijos, whom they considered pro-communist. Because of strong opposition in the Senate, Carter`s consultations with Congress amounted to a second round of treaty negotiations. 1.
Facilities owned or used by bodies or instruments of the United States of America operating in the Republic of Panama under this Treaty and related agreements, as well as their archives and official documents, shall be inviolable. Both parties agree on the procedures to be followed when the Republic of Panama conducts criminal investigations in these locations. The United States Senate deliberated and approved the ratification of the first treaty on March 16, 1978, and the second treaty on April 18, with identical margins of 68 to 32 margins. In both votes, 52 Democrats and 16 Republicans voted to discuss and approve ratification, while 10 Democrats and 22 Republicans voted against. (b) The Treaty of Amity and Cooperation signed in Washington on 2 March 1936 and the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation signed in Washington on 25 March 1936. In January 1955, the Treaty of Mutual Understanding and Cooperation signed in Panama and the accompanying Memorandum of Understanding between the United States of America and the Republic of Panama; The treaties were the source of much controversy in the United States, particularly among conservatives led by Ronald Reagan, Strom Thurmond and Jesse Helms, who saw them as the capitulation of an American strategic asset to what they called a hostile government. The attack was mobilized by many groups, including the Conservative American Union, the Conservative Caucus, the Committee for the Survival of a Free Congress, Citizens for the Republic, the American Security Council Foundation, the Young Republicans, the National Conservative Political Action Committee, the Council for National Defense, Young Americans for Freedom, the Council for Inter-American Security, and the Campus Republican Action Organization. [8] On November 6, the United States recognized the Republic of Panama, and on November 18, the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty was signed with Panama, which granted the United States exclusive and permanent ownership of the Panama Canal Zone[…].