Panama News

By Irlanda Sotillo for La Estrella - Sixty armed men arrived in the community of Bajo Chiquito in the Darién province where they entered the store in the town, took all of the food and threatened the rest of the population before returning to the jungle. According to reports from television channel TVN 2, this might be just one of three incursions that have occurred in the sector in the last 48 hours. Inhabitants living in the area say this is not the first time that this has happened, and that the same people came into town last Friday. (Photo Credit: Camilo Jipsión) (more)
Editor's Comment: Hammer and Anvil - Colombia should coordinate more closely with Panamanian security forces when they are going to be conducting sweep ops to flush out guerrillas near the border. Well, who knows, maybe they did. It's not like Panama is itching to get into a fight with the FARC in the Darien. In fact, if they every did clash in numbers the FARC would probably inflict considerable damage on the Panamanian border police. For the most part the Panamanian border forces avoid direct conflict with the FARC. And this event is a reflection of a classic FARC tactic - run across the border, raid the local store for food, scare the locals, then go quietly back into the jungle. No one was killed or injured and in fact the Panamanians have little motivation to go very deep into the jungle to look for them. What's more they can't - the government of Panama simply does not have the capability on the ground to mount and sustain a substantial counter guerrilla attack force on the ground in the jungle away from support bases and lines of logistics. They lack just about everything - communications, intelligence, logistics, and air support (helicopters). As long as the FARC keeps their activities on Panamanian soil generally non-fatal, then Panama will probably continue to focus on drug trafficking, organized crime, arms trafficking, and money laundering (the stuff they can do from the road network.) In short, the FARC and the Panamanian National Police are playing a kind of cat and mouse game along the border, with neither side particularly itching for a fight. The Colombian Army on their side of the border is getting more and more capable with every passing year, and this is another reflection of the results of their improvements. Among the political elites In Panama City the Darien border is still considered to be somewhere out there on the edge of the universe, and the FARC is a bee hive best left undisturbed.
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These men could be from the 57th Front of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC). The National Police could not confirm the reports. “We have heard the same reports that you have," said National Police spokesman Eduardo Lim Yuen when asked about the incursions. Lim Yuen said that in response to these reports reinforcements have been sent to the area. It is estimated that approximately 200 police officers could be involved in this operation. It is thought that these incursions into Panama are being caused as a result of heavy fighting between the Colombian Army and elements of the FARC in the areas of Ungía and Arcandí in Colombia, which has left the rebels dispersed and without resources. Bajo Chiquito is located in the Northeast part of the Darién province near the Colombian border. The small village has a population of approximately 200 people, mostly indigenous persons of the Emberá ethnic group.


Investigan supuesta incursión guerrillera


[Agrandar Imagen - Investigan supuesta incursión guerrillera]


La Policía ha enviado refuerzos al área. / Foto Camilo Jipsión


Irlanda Sotillo isotillo@estrelladepanama.com


Sesenta hombres armados llegaron a la población de Bajo Chiquito en la provincia de Darién, entraron en la única tienda del pueblo, se llevaron toda la comida y amenazaron al resto de la población, con regresar.


Según informes divulgados en TVN-Canal 2, esta puede ser solo una de tres incursiones en el sector durante las últimas 48 horas. Versiones de los moradores aseguran que esta no es la primera vez que se suscita una situación similar: el pasado viernes también fueron visitados por estas personas.


Según estas mismas teorías, podría tratarse de integrantes del Frente 57 de las Fuerzas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia (FARC).


La Policía Nacional no pudo confirmar el hecho. “Nosotros tenemos los mismos reportes que ustedes”, dijo el vocero de la institución Eduardo Lim Yuen, al ser consultado sobre el tema.


Lim Yuen solo confirmó que debido a estos reportes se han enviado refuerzos a la provincia fronteriza.


Se calcula que más de 200 unidades podrían estar involucradas en el operativo.


Se cree que las incursiones se originan en los fuertes enfrentamientos entre el Ejército colombiano y grupos guerrilleros en el área de Ungía y Arcandí en territorio colombiano, lo que ha dejado a estos dispersos y sin recursos.


Bajo Chiquito está al noreste de la provincia del Darién, cercano a la frontera con Colombia. Unas 200 personas viven en el lugar, en su mayoría indígenas de la etnia emberá.

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