Feb 13 2008
Riots and Protests – What To Expect For Tomorrow
By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Tomorrow according to SUNTRACS union leader Saul Mendez, construction workers will be returning to the street to continue the protests they started today. Most of the protesting is being done by members of the Sindicato Único Nacional de Trabajadores de la Industria de la Construcción y Similares (SUNTRACS) (Single National Union of Construction and Similar Workers). They received support from the different university student organizations as well as administrative workers from the Office of Social Security who came out to close Transistmica later in the afternoon. (more)
At Least Six Police Officers Injured: Late this afternoon the Minister of Government and Justice Daniel Delgado Diamante and Labor Minister Edwin Antonio Salamín Jaén held a joint press conference and said that at least six police officers were injured during the riots today. One police vehicle was burned and destroyed in Colon, and two of the injured police officers were burned in that incident.
A Newer, Harder Diamond: In Panama the person responsible for taking care of street protests is generally the Minister of Government and Justice, in this case Daniel Delgado Diamante. He was hired last fall in the shakeup of the Executive Cabinet specifically because there was a general perception outgoing Minister Olga Golcher was not being "tough enough" on street protesters and had allowed them to run wild. Daniel Delgado Diamante, known as "Triple D" was promoted from his post as the Chief of Customs in the shakeup, and was given orders to keep the streets open.
A Reflection of the Leadership: In any organization the troops on the street tend to reflect the spirit, attitude, and intent of the leader. In this case, I think the Minister ordered the troops in Colon to breakup the construction worker's strike and to keep the streets open. Some 30 striking workers were arrested and two were sent to the local health clinic with injuries. The fatal confrontation between the police officer and the construction worker occurred at the health clinic. I think the police officers went to the clinic with orders to arrest the two striking workers who were injured. At the clinic, health care and administrative workers, as well as more construction workers sympathetic with the strikers, confronted the police officers and would not allow them to enter the clinic to arrest the two injured workers. In the escalating conflict, tragically one construction worker was killed, shot by a motorcycle cop.
SUNTRACS Losing Punch: It might not look like it after today's clashes, but what you are actually witnessing is the slow death of SUNTRACS. Consider this - anyone who is going to build anything in Panama will now do anything necessary to hire workers who are NOT affiliated in any way with the SUNTRACS labor union organization. You see, SUNTRACS has one critical problem - they are not an authentic labor union. SUNTRACS has turned into some kind of an ultra-left wing quasi-political organization. And the problem with that is that the rank and file membership of SUNTRACS do not, for the most part, reflect the extreme political views of the leadership.
So Why So Many Members? In Panama the construction labor unions collect 2% of the pay of every member on their books. In order to "organize" any construction project they need 50% (+1) of a popular vote to take control. Once that's done, then SUNTRACS gets 2% of the payroll. The leaders of SUNTRACS are millionaires. But then a funny thing happened on the way to the construction boom.
For A Long Time They Ruled: SUNTRACS was "the" construction labor union for years. There were several others, but they were considered to be minor players with no punch or power. The big dog on the street was SUNTRACS. But lately people have figured out that there are other options and ways to avoid having your construction project organized by SUNTRACS. For example the Corcione Group has their own labor union and all of the construction workers building their projects are not members of SUNTRACS. Today, for example, a building being built by the Corcione Group in El Cangrejo was going along just fine, while the buildings being built by SUNTRACS workers got exactly nothing done today.
Slowly Squeezed To Death: SUNTRACS will not die overnight, nor will they go away without a fight. But by shifting from a "true" labor union which cares first and foremost about their members to a political entity that just wants to stick it to the government of Martin Torrijos at every opportunity, SUNTRACS has sacrificed the most important weapon in their bag - the sympathetic support of their core members.
You Do The Math: There are 1,901 construction projects that have been granted in Panama City. If you were able to watch today's demonstrations carefully, look past who was protesting to see who was not. SUNTRACS called out their troops from several projects and buildings to block streets. In many areas the workers would come down, block the street for a couple of hours, and then head back to work. Political agenda of the leadership or no, the kids still have to eat. Some buildings and areas fought harder than others - in some places the resistance was a lot weaker and was actually little more than just a token gesture. Just enough to say they were there.
Now What Happens, Strategically Speaking: "Labor Management 101" will be a core topic for anyone who wants to build anything, anywhere in the entire country. And, anyone with a brain will start the conversation with "anyone but SUNTRACS." Project managers will go out of their way to avoid having their projects organized by the SUNTRACS labor union, and in reality that is already happening, all over the place. Saul Mendez and the rest of the SUNTRACS leadership is simply looking at their books, and they don't like the trends they are seeing. Unfortunately for them, their strategy is somewhat suicidal. They will continue to lose power, money, and members, but they probably will never go away completely.
Finally, What Happens Tomorrow: There will probably be one more day of strikes and protests. I expect tomorrow will be about half as "energetic" as today's protests, and that by Friday the wad will just about be blown. The small group of die-hard core members, especially those at the University of Panama, will probably be able to close Transistmica through Saturday. SUNTRACS members from a few construction sites will probably make "gesture" protests through Friday or Saturday. I guess my prediction is that this thing loses steam quickly, rather than gaining energy or expanding support. Today was about the best SUNTRACS can do under any circumstances.
Government Reaction: The authorities will open an investigation into the shooting in Colon, and simultaneously prosecute those who spent all day long today breaking the law. In short, SUNTRACS once again brought this whole thing upon themselves. Just what, exactly, were they protesting against in Colon yesterday in the first place? Anyone know? High price of gas? It was a stupid protest in the first place - and certainly there was no cause worth losing your life over. Apparently, this is a lesson the rank-and-file of the SUNTRACS organization needs to learn - again. This is the third time this has happened - SUNTRACS soldiers giving their lives so that the union leadership continues to get richer. Doesn't make any damn sense...
Copyright 2008 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.
