Military Government and Popular Participation in Panama
Westview Special Studies
The concept of Westview Special Studies is a response to the continuing crisis in academic and informational publishing. Library budgets are being diverted from the purchase of books and used for data banks, computers; micromedia, and other methods of information retrieval. Interlibrary loan structures further reduce the edition sizes required to satisfy the needs of the scholarly community. Economic pressures on university presses and the few private scholarly publishing companies have greatly limited the capacity of the industry to properly serve the academic and research communities. As a result, many manuscripts dealing with important subjects, often representing the highest level of scholarship, are no longer economically viable publishing projects--or, if accepted for publication, are typically subject to lead times ranging from one to three years.
Westview Special Studies are our practical solution to the problem. As always, the selection criteria include the importance of the subject, the works contribution to scholarship, and its insight, originality of thought, and excellence of exposition. We accept manuscripts in camera-ready form, typed, set, or word processed according to specifications laid out in our comprehensive manual, which contains straightforward instructions and sample pages. The responsibility for editing and proofreading lies with the author or sponsoring institution, but our editorial staff is always available to answer questions and provide guidance.
The result is a book printed on acid-free paper and bound in sturdy library-quality soft covers. We manufacture these books ourselves using equipment that does not require a lengthy make-ready process and that allows us to publish first editions of 300 to 1000 copies and to reprint even smaller quantities as needed. Thus, we can produce Special Studies quickly and can keep even very specialized books in print as long as there is a demand for them.
About the Book and Author
This study details the formation of a populist alliance by the Panamanian military in order to legitimize its leadership and restructure the rules of the political process. Along with the move for popular support, the Torrijos regime introduced an economic strategy based on export-oriented industrialization. The shift toward such policies by General Omar Torrijos Herrera, whose ideologies and political strategies were neither the left nor the right, bewildered and confused many in Panama and the United States, especially groups accustomed to having their vested interests coincide with those of the Panamanian military. The lessons drawn from this study illustrate an alternative to exclusionary and repressive military regimes in Central America.
George Priestley is assistant professor of political science and chairman of the Latin America Area Studies Program at Queens College, New York.
First published 1986 by Westview Press
Published 2018 by Routledge
52 Vanderbilt Avenue, New York, NY 10017
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Copyright 1986 by Taylor & Francis
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Notice:
Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.
Priestley, George.
Military government and popular participation in
Panama.
(Westview special studies on Latin America and the Caribbean)
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Panama--Politics and government--1946
2. Torrijos Herrera, Omar, 1926- --Political and
social views. 3. Political participation--Panama-
History--20th century. 4. Military government--Panama-
History--20th century. I. Title.
F1567.P74 1986 972.87052 85-3168
ISBN 0-8133-7045-0
ISBN 13: 978-0-367-00877-2 (hbk)
Obviously there are too few pages to extend my thanks to all those who have contributed to this book. However, there are a few without whose help the completion of this manuscript would have been impossible. Alice Priestley, my mother, encouraged me in my intellectual pursuits until the day she passed away, January 21, 1978. Without the dedication and immense sacrifice of my wife, Marva, the task would have been simply impossible. Amilcar, my seven-year-old, showed unusual comprehension as I absented myself for weeks at a time.
In Panama, Marco Gandasegui provided me with everything: he was a friend, a critic, and a source of information. He is one of Panamas most outstanding social scientists, and to him I remain forever indebted. I am equally indebted to all the young scholars who returned to Panama in the 1970s and who enriched Panamas political literature with their writings, manuscripts, and debates, particularly Simeon Gonzalez, Egbert Wetherborne, Juan Jovane, Gerardo Maloney, Javier Gorostiaga, Omar Jaen Suarez, Ricaurte Soler, Hildebrando Araica, and Graciela Dixon. I also extend thanks to Roberto and Mita Mears who provided me with valuable support and a home base from which to operate from 1973 through 1975.
To all those humble men and women who served in the National Assembly of Community Representatives, asentamientos campesinos (small-scale production settlements), juntas agrarias (agrarian production cooperative ventures), and health committees and who spent countless hours educating me as to the realidad Panamena, I say thank you.
In New York, Prof. Douglas Chalmers, chairman of the Political Science Department at Columbia University, spent countless hours reading earlier and later drafts. Without his patience and commitment, I would not have completed this book. My colleague Ronald Schneider of Queens College read several drafts and made valuable comments. Humberto Brown, Carolyn Brown, Omayemi Agbeyegbe, Alem Habtu, and Monica Jardim all helped in reading and criticizing earlier versions. Terry Carmichael, in Canada, edited a few chapters of an earlier draft. My colleague Juan Flores of Queens College read the latest draft and offered invaluable theoretical insights on Gramscis works. Last but not least, Stefan Kass, a friend and critic, read the manuscript, challenged many assumptions, and piovided me with invaluable theoretical and historical insights on Bonapartism.
Palmira Rios and Eduardo Vega offered many helpful suggestions and technical assistance. Judy Butler, editor of NACLA, edited an earlier version of the book, and Dolores Schaefer typed it. The colossal task of editing this book, however, was undertaken by Martha and Richard Bush. Martha and Richard, thank you very much. Much thanks is also owed to Westviews editor Krista Hayenga, who while being tough, provided me with a torch to see the light at the end of the tunnel,
For the better part of 1985 my staff and friends at Queens College Latin American Area Studies have shared with me the anxiety and burdens of producing the final draft of this manuscript. To all of them--Raul, Segundo, Gloria, Liliana, and David--thank you. Special thanks goes to my assistant, Adriana Conde, for her efficiency and understanding in my most difficult moments.
