US embassy cable - 04PANAMA914

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PANAMA 000914 
 
SIPDIS 
 
 
STATE FOR WHA/CEN/BRIGHAM 
 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV, PREL, PHUM, PINR, PM 
SUBJECT: PRE-ELECTION VIEWS FROM THE FIELD: NEW 
REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE POOREST OF THE POOR--PANAMA'S 
INDIGENOUS 
 
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SUMMARY 
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1.  (U)  EmbOffs recently visited the western Panama 
reservation (or Comarca) of the Ngobe-Bugl indigenous group 
as part of our pre-election coverage.  The Comarca will elect 
three new representatives on May 2 to the 78-seat unicameral 
Legislative Assembly.  The new seats could provide some 
important political clout for this largely forgotten and 
impoverished people.  Continuing lack of social services, 
horrendous roads, and general malnutrition plague the area 
and were evident on this trip.  Indications point to a likely 
sweep of all three legislative seats for the main opposition, 
the center-left Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) - 
Popular Party (PP) alliance.  END SUMMARY. 
 
 
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WHERE WE WENT AND WITH WHOM WE SPOKE 
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2.  (U)  During April 13-15, EmbOffs visited election 
officials and candidates from three of the major political 
parties in and around the western Panama reservation (or 
Comarca) of the Ngobe-Bugl indigenous group.  EmbOffs 
visited communities inside and outside the Comarca in 
Veraquas and Chiriqui provinces and in two of three Comarca 
electoral circuits.  Meetings (both scheduled and ad-hoc) 
were held with local Electoral Tribunal officials, 
candidates, campaign managers, teachers, mayoral candidates, 
students, and any Panamanian who wanted to share their 
opinions with EmbOffs. 
 
 
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THE COMARCA: POLITICAL HISTORY, POLITICAL PLAYER? 
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3.  (U)  At about 6,944 square kilometers (9% of Panama's 
area), the Comarca Ngobe-Bugl is slightly larger than the 
state of Delaware.  Created in 1997, the Comarca has an 
estimated population of 120,000, over 95% of whom are from 
the Ngobe and Bugl indigenous groups. (Note: The national 
population of the Ngobe-Bugl, including those living outside 
the comarca, is an estimated 180,000.  End note.)  The 
Comarca comprises several hundred small and isolated towns 
and villages, mostly reachable only on foot, sometimes hours 
or days from any road, and only a handful have electricity. 
 
 
4.  (U)  At its creation in 1997, the Ngobe-Bugl Comarca 
gained three dedicated seats in the unicameral legislature. 
Previously, Comarca residents voted as part of larger 
electoral circuits and their interests received little 
attention.  All the candidates for the three new circuits 
(12-1, 12-2 and 12-3) are Ngobes.  If these new legislators 
act in concert, by no means an easy assumption in Panama's 
fractured political culture, they could become a political 
force by serving as a key swing vote in the legislature. 
This is especially true given Panama's history of closely 
divided government.  (Note: Current Ngobe-Bugl legislator, 
Enrique Montezuma (PRD) is from the Comarca and the only 
Ngobe representative.  End note.)  For the most part, 
contacts said that the elections will be relatively fair and 
clean, but some suggested the potential for isolated cases of 
fraud in remote villages. 
 
 
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PROBLEMS ABOUND, NGOBE-BUGLE ARE POOREST OF PANAMA'S POOR 
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5.  (SBU)  The Comarca faces staggering problems. According 
to the latest United Nations Development Program (UNDP) 
survey, about 95% of the residents live at the poverty level 
or below, and about 86% live in extreme poverty. 
Unemployment, malnutrition, hunger, lack of roads, and 
isolation plague the entire Comarca.  EmbOffs were stunned by 
the evident malnutrition and lack of physical development 
among Ngobe children.  The isolation further hampers 
provision of social services - schools, clinics and economic 
activity in general.  Even with a 4WD vehicle, EmbOffs found 
it challenging to reach those villages served by roads that 
locals considered "good."  Isolation has a multiplier effect 
in that it represents lost opportunities in education, health 
care, and economic activity. 
 
 
6.  (SBU)  Many villages have a primary school, but further 
schooling necessitates hours of travel by foot, or arranging 
to live far away from family.  Children drop out of school at 
a young age to join their parents in the fields and have 
children themselves, and the cycle of poverty continues. 
Culturally, the Ngobe-Bugl confront the dilemma of 
indigenous people all over the world.  They face the tough 
choice between continuing their difficult life, or accepting 
modernity and losing more of their culture. 
 
 
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OMAR TORRIJOS, PRD LEGACY LIVES ON 
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7.  (SBU)  Virtually every person EmbOffs spoke with during 
this pre-election tour pointed to a strong showing for the 
center-left opposition alliance of the PRD-PP  (Note: The 
only area that the PRD won in 1999 elections was the 
indigenous comarcas of Kuna Yala,  End note.)  Many people 
fondly recalled current PRD presidential candidate Martin 
Torrijos, father, former strongman and General Omar Torrijos 
(1968-1981), as a politician who "helped" with schools, 
roads, clinics and employment.  They are hoping for the same 
if the PRD-PP alliance wins. 
 
 
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COMMENT 
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8.  (SBU)  Despite the evident hardships, it is encouraging 
to see "democracy in action"  Most Comarca residents with 
whom EmbOffs spoke are generally aware of the issues and 
candidates.  With luck, the Comarca might receive some badly 
needed roads, jobs, social service projects, and increased 
governmental attention.  More attention could increase 
political power, although the cultural bias against the 
indigenous communities will remain an impediment to broader 
influence.  If the Ngobe win as a block (probably under the 
PRD banner), it is possible the Ngobe-Bugl might generate as 
much political clout as the Kuna tribe in northeast Panama, 
who have aggressively harnessed their political power to 
obtain schools, infrastructure, and jobs. 
 
 
WATT