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for exclusive United States control
of its most priceless territorial acqui–
sition. As a last-ditch effort to save
the Canal, defenders of the Panama
Canal are calling upon Congress to
admit the Canal Zone to the Union
as the 51st state. Supporters of the
move realize that they will have a
tough time pushing through such
legislation. Their opponents feel
that enactment of such a bill would
be extremely offensive to Latín
Americans in general, not to men–
tion an outrage to Panama.
Jt
now remains to ask the most
fundamental question of all. Could
there be a deeper reason why the
United States is on the verge of los–
ing one of its prime birthright as–
sets?
A Deeper Reason?
Is there a reason why fellow
Anglo-Saxon power Britain has al–
ready lost Suez, Aden and a host of
other strategic sea gates around the
world?
As
a consequence, Britain's
sun has so declined that she has
sought refuge inside Europe's Com–
mon Market.
Could it be that the United States
- affiicted with mounting interna!
Panarna-u.s. Relations
decay and moral corruption - is un–
wittingly relinquishing its right to
and stewardship of the Panama Ca–
nal, which it acquired by a series of
historical miracles?
Our free book,
The United States
and British Commonwea/th in
Prophecy,
makes it clear how and
why the English-speaking powers
carne to possess the pivotalland and
sea arcas of the globe.
It
also details
what is likely to happen
to
the entire
English-speaking world from now
on - unless sorne rather dramatic
changes are made in the course of
national and individual Lives.
o
THE HIGH
COST
OF
COMPROMISE
A LMOST FROM
the day in Oecem–
~
ber 1903 that the tledgüng
Republic of Panama granted
by treaty to the United States per–
petua! and exclusive authority over
the Canal Zone, that authority has
been contested.
The generous terms of the Hay–
Bunau-Varilla Treaty were ex–
tremely advantageous to the United
States, to be sure. For a lump sum
of $10,000,000 and an annual pay–
ment of $250,000 (since raised to
$430,000 a nd subsequently
$1 ,930,000) Panama granted to the
United States "in perpetuity the use,
occupation and control" of the Zone
and authorized it to exercise "all the
rights, power and authority within
the zone ... whicb the United States
would possess and exercise if it were
the sovereign of the territory ... to
the entiie exclusion of the exercise
by the Republic of Panama of any
such sovereign rights, power or au–
thority."
In implementing the treaty, the
United States proceeded to acquire
26
outright ownership of all land and
other property in the Canal Zone by
purchase from the individual own–
ers. The rights exercised by the
United States in the Canal Zone are
derived, therefore, from a grant by
the government of Panama and pur–
chases from the individual property
owners.
Panama benefited greatly from
the arrangement as well. Its oewly
woo independeoce from Colombia
was guaranteed by the United
States. The $10,000,000 flowed into
its barren treasury instead of Co–
lombia's. And most important for
the future, the Canal and its opera–
tions were to provide the single
greatest source of revenue for the
Republic, as well as providing a ma–
jor source of employment for Pan–
amanian labor.
U. S. Becomes "Whipping Boy"
Over the years, however, Pan–
amanian politicians grew adept at
blaming nearly all of Panama's do–
mestic woes upon U. S. presence on
the Isthmus. The hated Zone - a
piece of prosperous "Little Amer–
ica" with its neat suburban-style
bornes for canal employees and
their families - became the focal
point of Panamanian frustrations.
Not helping the matter was the fact
that many "Zoniaos" rarely ven–
tured out of their comfortable en–
clave, sorne never bothering to learn
Spanish.
Officials in Washington, in an at–
tempt to bend over backward, have
gradually given in to one demand
after another by Panama for a revi–
sion or replacement of the 1903
treaty. As a result of years of com–
promise, the United States - unrec–
ognized by most of its citizens - has
already gone a long way down the
road to total surrender of its most
expensive territorial acquisition
(The U. S. , it should be noted, has
spent nearly $6,500,000,000 in fed–
eral funds for the purchase, con–
struction, maintenance and defense
of the Canal. About $5 billion of the
funds are still un.recovered!)
PLAIN TRUTH Moy 1973