The union has exhausted dialogue with the regional government of Chiriqui and is a blockading the border preventing the movement of freight carriers in Central America.
The provincial government in Chiriqui has failed to prevent Panamanian carriers, organized by the National Chamber of Cargo Transportation in Panama, (Canatraca) from indefinitely blocking the passage of trucks across the border in Paso Canoas (information at time of going to press at 3:30 p.m).
“… We are here blocking the entry and exit of cargo in order to put pressure on the government. We will not let any cargo go through; (transportors with) passengers and tourism, yes, ” said President of the Union of Truckers in Chiriqui, Fernando Rios to Nacion.com while in Paso Canoas.
“… Carriers are complaining that their Central American colleagues receive preferential treatment from Panamanian authorities, and that they are even pay kickbacks (bribes) to move their goods quickly across the region. According to Conatraca, the union has lost about $87 million in the last seven years because of the lack of customs controls.”
Meanwhile, in a statement, the National Customs Authority of Panama called for “… implementation of a procedure, along with freight carriers to control triangulation affecting the Panamanian industry and benefiting its Central American counterpart.”
Source: Nacion.com
Unions should not be allowed to damage the economy of a country by blocking exports or other harmful activities. Union leaders who advocate doing such things should be in jail.