A Deadly Shooting In Panama and Why It Matters
Environment and land protests turn deadly in Panama
Environment and land protests turn deadly in Panama
Protests in Panama turned violent on Tuesday, November 7th, after two environmental demonstrators were shot dead by an armed gunman.
According to TVN, a retired lawyer with dual American-Panamanian citizenship confronted a group of demonstrators blocking the Pan-American Highway protesting a government mining contract with a Canadian mining company (1).
After a tense verbal exchange, the individual — Kenneth Darlington, 77 — shot at the demonstrators, killing a teacher, Abdiel Diaz Chavez. Another, Ivan Rodriguez Mendoza, 62, died en route to a hospital.
Darlington’s actions mark the deadliest episode in ongoing demonstrations that have rocked Panama since late October and further highlight the growing risks environmental protesters face around the world.
What’s Going On In Panama?
In the preceding months, the Panamanian government struck a deal with a Canadian mining company to exploit the largest open copper mine in the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (2).
In exchange for extracting minerals for a 20-year term, the contract between Panama and a Canadian subsidiary of First Quantum Minerals, Minera Panama, promises a minimum annual income of $375 million for the nation (3).
Despite all potential profit returns, lawyer Giovanni Olmos observes the government’s measure — Law 406 — was passed in haste (72 hours) without any preliminary environmental impact studies.
Moreover, the company’s presence has already created a notable impact on the environment, with accusations of pollution, poor waste management, and deforestation being raised in recent years (4).
One Estelina Santana of Nuevo San Juan recalled to Mongabay in 2018 how contaminants from the copper mine effectively decimated a nearby river on which the town relied for water supply:
While it is true that the mining company has brought some benefits to the communities such as the construction of the streets, pollution has degraded the environment. We do not swim in the river anymore.
Since October 20th, thousands of Panamanians — led by Panama’s Construction Workers Union, educators, indigenous groups, and young activists — have pressured the government to revoke the law.
Though mostly peaceful, government and local authorities have deployed riot police in some areas. Per an OAS report on November 9th, approximately 60 people have been injured and 900 have been arrested for acts of vandalism (5).
One tactic deployed by the protesters— the road blockade — has impacted economic and transportation services throughout the nation.
In particular, the provinces of Darien, Herrera, Los Santos, and Chiriqui (where significant rice producers are located) have faced substantial losses in approximately 20,000 quintals of rice.
Panama’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, and Agriculture has also reported a loss of anywhere between $60-$90 million stemming from ongoing closures.
Prior to the November 7th shooting, 1 demonstrator was killed on November 1st after being run over by a foreign citizen trying to cross a roadblock (6).
The Incident.
TVN reports 77-year-old Kenneth Franklin Darlington Salas was traveling with a group of individuals on errands when he encountered a roadblock near the entrance to Punta Chame.
Darlington — of Paitillia, Panama City — is a retired lawyer and professor who served as spokesman for Panamanian accountant Marc Harris (7).
No stranger to these roadblocks in recent days, Darlington reportedly told his companions, “This ends today,” before emerging from a line of parked vehicles.
Amateur footage portrays Darlington as being verbally combative before drawing a pistol. He allegedly insisted on speaking with men in the group, stating he would not “talk to women.”
After a verbal exchange with three protesters, Darlington fired three shots. Abdiel Diaz Chavez and Ivan Rodriguez Mendoza succumbed to wounds inflicted by Darlington, while another was rushed to a hospital with a gunshot wound.
Darlington returned to his vehicle afterward but was unable to leave as one of the passengers — possibly his girlfriend — refused to move. The National Police detained Darlington not long after. Thus far, he has been charged with aggravated homicide and possessing an illegal weapon.
Why It Matters.
The shooting on November 7th reflects a disturbing trend of violence against environmental and climate activists worldwide.
In July, The Nation addressed the rise in government repression of climate activism from the United States to Europe (8).
In the United States, an environmental activist — Manuel Páez Terán — was shot dead by state troopers in Georgia while protesting the construction of a $90 million Atlanta police and firefighting facility dubbed “Cop City” in January.
In France, the government delegalized a group calling itself Les Soulèvements de la Terre (Earth Uprisings) after protests turned violent. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin dubbed the group “eco-terrorists” in support of the move.
In the United Kingdom, British newspapers such as The Daily Mail and Telegraph have gone as far as to stamp the Just Stop Oil activist movement as “eco-zealots” and have compared it to Qanon.
Darsen Hover of The Nation warns said nations — especially the United States — continually play a dangerous game in utilizing “War On Terror” era classifications, tactics, and laws to clamp down on environmental and land defenders.
Likewise, episodes of vigilante-related violence could easily become a factor in future environmental protests, as in the case of Kenneth Darlington.
Worse yet, Darlington has apparently received accolades from users across social media (9), including the notorious Andrew Tate, who posted Darlington’s photo in two separate Twitter/X posts reading, “Extinction Rebellion,” and, “The masculine urge to instantly fix the problem” (10).
Said ingredients can only have foreboding implications, as Darsen Hover observes:
As the severity of the climate crisis becomes ever more immediate, it is imperative that activists are able to keep their resistance going. But instead, we are seeing a political environment that is becoming more and more hostile to activists — one where the risks that they must overcome are increasingly severe.
As for Panama, President Laurentino Cortizo has expressed willingness to hold a referendum on potentially revoking the contract and has called for a halt to future mining projects (11).
Until then, protests to repeal Law 406 will likely continue in the coming weeks.
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