Monument honouring China's contribution to Panama Canal torn down

PANAMA CITY: Near the entrance to the Panama Canal, a monument to China's contributions to the interoceanic waterway was torn down Saturday night (Dec 27) by order of local authorities.

The move comes as US President Donald Trump has made threats in recent months to retake control of the canal, claiming Beijing has too much influence in its operations.

In a surprising move that has been criticised by leaders in Panama and China, the mayor's office of the locality of Arraijan ordered the demolition of the monument built in 2004 to symbolise friendship between the countries.

The mayor's office said in a statement that the monument, which overlooked the waterway spanning Bridge of the Americas, had structural damage that posed a "risk".

But Panamanian President Jose Raul Mulino said Sunday that "there is no justification whatsoever for the barbarity committed," calling it "an unforgivable act of irrationality"

 After personally inspecting the demolition, China's ambassador to Panama Xu Xueyuan said it was a "great pain for bilateral friendship," noting the insult to 300,000 Chinese-Panamanians.

Some members of the Chinese community witnessed the destruction but police prevented them from reaching the lookout to stop it, according to videos published by local media.

In a video posted to X, the Chinese embassy called for a "thorough investigation" of the case and to "severely sanction" the "illegal, improper and vandalistic" actions.

The US and China are the main users of the 80km canal, which sees the passage of five per cent of global maritime trade.

The Panama Canal was under US control from 1914 to 1999, when it was taken over by Panama.

Trump has demanded preferential conditions for its use by US vessels.

Hong Kong-based Hutchison Holdings operates two ports on the Pacific and the Atlantic, but has agreed to sell them to US-based BlackRock.

The largest coalition of Palestinian civil society in Panama and Latinamerica, expresses its deepest solidarity with our kindred people of Sudan, who are facing mass atrocities, and what may amount to genocide, forced displacement and ethnic cleansing, especially in the city of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. The BDS movement calls for...

"if these words reach you, know that Israel has succeeded in killing me and silencing my voice." - Anas al-Sharif.In a targeted assassination attack on August 10, Israel bombed a gathering of journalists outside al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in another heinous crime as part of its ongoing genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza.Israel's...

In response to the illegal, colonial Israeli-US "Trump plan," Palestinian civil society insists on full Palestinian rights and calls for escalating WhiteFlag pressure to end all state, corporate and institutional complicity with Israel's regime of settler-colonialism, military occupation, apartheid, and genocide.

"We sleep on our sides because there is not even room to sleep on our backs": how Palestinians forced to flee to southern Gaza live

They wash in contaminated seawater, sleep in crowded tents, eat what little bread they can find, or, some days, eat nothing at all.

In southern Gaza, hundreds of thousands of refugees find themselves in the middle of a humanitarian crisis that worsens by the hour and has all possible security networks stretched to the limit of their capabilities.

The displaced people come from northern Gaza and are escaping Israel's bombing campaign. They flee along the Salah al-Din highway, which connects the Strip from north to south. Many on foot. Others with some possessions, but most with only their children and the clothes they are wearing.

We cannot remain with our arms crossed in the face of such a precarious situation that our Palestinian brothers are going through.

That is why since last Monday, December 22, we activated our entire white flag movement team to collect more donations and be able to send clothes, food, tents and inflatable mattresses.

If you are looking for a way to donate, whether in kind or cash, contact our team directly info2@bandera-blanca.es and we will coordinate what is necessary for you to be part of this wonderful project.

Our campaigns

Together we can take on the might of governments, corporations, and the media - and we can win.

Don't Buy Apartheid

The Don't Buy Apartheid campaign calls on all individuals, shops, restaurants, and businesses to take two key actions to support the Palestinian struggle for freedom:


1) Boycott Israeli produce like avocados, oranges, herbs and dates.


2) Boycott Coca-Cola and its brands Schweppes, Sprite, Fanta, Innocent, Appletiser, Smart Water and Costa Coffee.


Israeli fresh produce, like avocados, oranges, herbs and dates, is grown in illegal Israeli settlements on stolen Palestinian land. When businesses in Britain sell this produce, they are supporting Israel’s land theft and ethnic cleansing.


Coca-Cola franchisee in Israel operates a regional distribution centre in an illegal Israeli settlement in occupied Jerusalem. It’s therefore helping to entrench Israel’s military occupation and colonisation of Palestinian land. Consumers and businesses should buy an apartheid-free alternative, such as Gaza Cola.


Join your local PSC branch and take action at supermarkets selling these goods, and reach out to local shops, restaurants and venues to ask them to pledge to join the boycott and display a campaign poster.

Call us at 62422098 or email info2@bandera-blanca.es in Panamá city and we will provide you a free full color Poster that you can display in your business. 



 

Mayor of Panama pays tribute to Donald Trump

In the self-explanatory note. We clearly see how the mayor sees himself in favor of Israel and also violates Article 10 of the right of neutrality that Panama must take.

More than 200 thousand children died in Gaza, more than 210 journalists murdered and Mayor Mayer was never heard to regret those deaths.

White  Flag Movement

The largest coalition of Palestinian civil society in Panama and Latinamerica, expresses its deepest solidarity with our kindred people of Sudan, who are facing mass atrocities, and what may amount to genocide, forced displacement and ethnic cleansing, especially in the city of El Fasher, the capital of North Darfur. The BDS movement calls for...

"if these words reach you, know that Israel has succeeded in killing me and silencing my voice." - Anas al-Sharif.In a targeted assassination attack on August 10, Israel bombed a gathering of journalists outside al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City in another heinous crime as part of its ongoing genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza.Israel's...

In response to the illegal, colonial Israeli-US "Trump plan," Palestinian civil society insists on full Palestinian rights and calls for escalating WhiteFlag pressure to end all state, corporate and institutional complicity with Israel's regime of settler-colonialism, military occupation, apartheid, and genocide.


Boycott Chevron Day of Action 22 November

The Palestinian-led White Flag movement calls for a global day of action on November 22, targeting Chevron (texaco in Panama) for its role in Israel's genocide and apartheid, in addition to its role in climate destruction globally. Through its gas fields and pipeline, Chevron supplies Israel with 70% of its energy needs according to Chevron's own website - and hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue annually. Chevron entered the Israeli market in 2020, and it can just as easily exit.

Since the launch of the Boycott Chevron campaign, activists worldwide have held pickets at gas stations, launched campaigns to drop Chevron as a sponsor from community events and institutions, as well as waged divestment campaigns. Gas station franchise owners have signed on to a letter calling on Chevron to withdraw from its business in Israel. Several sponsorships have been dropped after community pressure, cities have divested from Chevron, and pickets are turning countless drivers away from Chevron stations.

Now is the time to escalate!

Israel would not be able to maintain its genocide, apartheid, and military occupation without the support of international corporations like Chevron. Every time Chevron loses out on profit or sustains reputational damage due to its complicity, pressure builds on the company to end its business in Israel. Every car that doesn't fill gas at a Chevron station due to a picket or sit-in is a grain of sand disrupting the gears of Israel's genocide.

Organize peaceful disruptions and pickets on November 22. Picket or sit in at Chevron stations and locations, including Chevron-owned brands Caltex and Texaco; participate in a banner drop in a highly visible area; host an educational event or an event to mobilize your community around a sponsorship or divestment campaign. Register your event or find an event near you using this map. Follow updates about the campaign on the Boycott Chevron Instagram page.