ASUNCIÓN, Paraguay, June 3 (UPI) -- Panama is facing one of its most intense social crises since the return to democracy in 1989, with nearly 40 days of nationwide protests, strikes and roadblocks sparked by a controversial pension reform law approved by President José Raúl Mulino's administration.
The protests escalated April 23, when the national teachers' union launched an indefinite strike. Construction workers and banana industry laborers soon joined, expanding the demonstrations nationwide.
Mulino has taken a hard stance, referring to some unions as "mafias" and insisting he will not repeal the pension law, which he says is necessary to preserve the system's financial viability.
On Monday, Mulino sent a delegation of seven cabinet ministers to Bocas del Toro province, the center of the protests, and offered to draft a bill restoring labor benefits for banana workers, provided the roadblocks are lifted.
Related
