Ecological Unrest in Panama
On Nov. 3, 2023, the parliament of Panama convened and vetoed a private business decision—a deal made with the Canadian drilling company First Quantum Minerals—after being subjected to a month of civil protests, with activists taking the streets, a decision which shows the true power of the civilian voice. This veto terminated a 20-year, possibly extending to 40-year, contract that would give First Quantum Minerals complete control over the extraction and selling of copper found in the country’s largest copper mine.
First Quantum Minerals, specifically their subsidiary Minera Panama, is a “global copper company” that produces “copper in the form of concentrate, cathode, and anode, and have inventories of nickel, gold, and cobalt.” They have acquired mines worldwide in Western Australia, Cajamarca, Peru, Sevilla, Spain, and Colon, Panama. In these mines, which they have full dictation over for a “lifetime,” copper is exclusively produced due to its role in cell phone production. In addition, this company has been present in Panama since 2013, when it acquired the Petaquilla Gold mine—a competitor agency—and quickly turned it into the copper producer we see today, Cobre Panama. Cobre Panama is, officially, the world’s largest open copper mine, potentially accounting for over 40% of the company’s yearly revenue, including their other 11 operable mines.
This conflict began in August 2023 when Panama’s government, specifically President Laurentino Cortizo, began increasing investments within Minera Panama, acquiring several new royalties, eventually accumulating into 1.5% of the global copper output managed by this company alongside an extension of their contract. Cortizo hopes this money would boost the gross domestic product (GDP) of Panama, believing the agreement could bring in $375 million annually.
It’s because of this belief that Cortizo expedited approving this contract to be poised before the government and parliament, making it nearly instantaneous and ensuring that the public would have no say in the matter. This move was inherently corrupt and shady, which was recognized nearly instantly by most of the public, who began taking to the streets and protesting the horrible decision made by their government in what seems to be the best example of modern-day Environmental Justice.
These civilians took up the mantle of participants, actively pushing for change and risking themselves alongside their beliefs, with hundreds being arrested for their beliefs. Many have gone on record explaining their reasoning for doing so in unanimous agreement: The rainforest, in which Cobre Panama is located, is at risk for massive levels of deforestation due to Minera Panama’s continued jurisdiction in the area, and though not currently affecting the water levels, extractions like this are water-intensive, ensuring that the Panama Canal be drained steadily over the next 20 to 40 years; a belief which is coming true, as the Panama Canal hits record lows of water level— all this, plus the belief that corruption has swept through all of the government.
For one month straight, these protestors—made up of people from all walks of life and backgrounds—made the life of their government hell and forced their voices and concerns to be heard on the national level, plus internationally, for a time. Everything these people did made it so the government could not ignore their voices or beliefs, and they showed their government that they would never have a complete say over decisions made for the public; Panama is their home, too, and they will not allow someone to ruin the sanctity of tier land for the sake of corporate profit.
This was never expected by Cortizo, who, maybe naively, assumed that the people of Panama would lie down and accept something so grotesquely unsustainable, never anticipating the utter outrage at his dishonest way of going about this issue. This forced Cortizo to bring the contract back to the floor of the Supreme Court in Panama, being brought back through the process of approval, with a high chance of failure, for its unconstitutional procedures.
Though never truly proven unconstitutional, the contract was put on a moratorium for the next several months, with the possibility of it being rediscussed come 2024. As for right now, all mining projects within Panama have been temporarily halted, and the civilians believe this to be the biggest of victories they have won thus far; however, due to the temporary scale of this pause, only time will tell what came of these protests.
Thumbnail Photo courtesy of WikiMedia Commons