The Remon–Eisenhower Treaty, was a 1955

treaty A treaty is a formal, legally binding written agreement between actors in international law. It is usually made by and between sovereign states, but can include international organizations, individuals, business entities, and other legal pe ...

between the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

and

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

that updated and amended the original

Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty The Hay–Bunau-Varilla Treaty ( es, Tratado Hay-Bunau Varilla) was a treaty signed on November 18, 1903, by the United States and Panama, which established the Panama Canal Zone and the subsequent construction of the Panama Canal. It was named ...

of 1903 for the Panama Canal and Panama Canal Zone. Other aspects of the treaty covered local trader / worker rights, upgrades and military base usage.

Background

In 1952,

José Antonio Remón Cantera Colonel José Antonio Remón Cantera (11 April 1908 – 2 January 1955) was the 29th President of Panama, holding office from 1 October 1952 until his death on January 2, 1955. He was Panama's first military strongman and ruled the country behi ...

, a former police commander in chief, won the presidential election in Panama. To further get the approval of the town of

Panama City Panama City ( es, Ciudad de Panamá, links=no; ), also known as Panama (or Panamá in Spanish), is the capital and largest city of Panama. It has an urban population of 880,691, with over 1.5 million in its metropolitan area. The city is locat ...

, Remon followed a famous saying in

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

, "''Ni millones ni limosnas, queremos justicia''." ("Neither millions nor alms, we want justice.")

Negotiations

The negotiations began in September 1953. Amazingly, they partially ended in December 1954—partially, because in December, one point of the treaty was missing. Panama was to grant the United States its military base in

Rio Hato Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

. This brings back the treaties in 1942, when Panama actually granted the United States around 130 bases throughout the country, for

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

. These bases were to be given back to Panama, but the USA tried extending that in the Convent of 1947. The USA failed. A couple of days later, they were given back to Panama. The negotiations ended on 25 January 1955.

Jose Antonio Remon Cantera

President Remon got shot and died on 2 January 1955. Nevertheless, the treaty was given his name (Remon–Eisenhower) due to the large efforts and never-ending fights against the U.S. for this treaty. The story of his death is unknown, and the person who shot him was caught, but was found only to be the killer; he had personal reasons. A further theory says he got shot because of not allowing the United States the Rio Hato base, which was granted after he died, in the treaty. Nevertheless, there is no actual evidence of this.

Treaty summary

In summary, the treaty contains the following: #The treaty raised the annual payment of the canal (from US-Panama) from $430,000, to $1.93 million. As a consequence, Panama agreed to lower, by 75%, the tax on national liquors sold in the Panama Canal Zone. #Panama was granted the right to charge taxes to Panamanians working in the canal and railroads operating inside the Zone or out of it. #The United States gave back Panamanian jurisdiction of the lands in "Punta Paitilla". It also gave back the lands of "Nuevo Cristobal", "Playa de Colon", and the Lesseps area. Panama, as a consequence, had multi-tasks to "beautify" the U.S.

embassy A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually den ...

in Panama. These tasks included the construction of a park in front of the embassy, and the fixing of two properties next to the embassy. #The construction of a bridge over the canal, by the USA. #The permitting of local traders to sell to ships crossing the canal. #The equality of local workers and Americans in the Canal. (Finally, the elimination of the Gold/Silver roll.) #The United States was to avoid contraband in the canal. #One point which Remon did not approve, and which the U.S. had been requesting since 1947. This point was finally conceded after Remon's death. The United States was granted, with no cost or 'trick', the military base and beach in Rio Hato, for a period of 15 years. The base was given back on 22 August 1970, after the government of General Torrijos refused to renew US use.

References

Sources