Annotations for Places: Panama

Singer, songwriter, Hollywood actor, Harvard Law School graduate. These are just a few of the personas of Panamanian-born Ruben Blades. A Renaissance man, if there ever was one. Blades and his group, Seis del Solar, have just completed what may be their last tour for a good while because Blades is looking to begin a new career. As he told reporters in San Antonio recently, he'll be returning to his native Panama to head up a new political party.

Blades' new party was recognized earlier this year by Panama's National Electoral Tribunal. Still, Blades says he is not currently a candidate for president, but that his move into politics will give the Panamanian people an option.

Blades says that given the breakdown of Panama's economy and infrastructure, it's going to take honesty, organization and a lot of education to turn things around for the country. When asked whether he'd like to see US troops leave Panama, Blades replies that he wants his native land to take care of itself. As to charges that his campaign is one of demagoguery that is far removed from the lives of everyday Panamanians, Blades said this:

The scenario in Panama will be determined by the Panamanian people, by its will and its desire to carry out a specific position. And if you try to become a Messiah, and if you try to become a demagogue, you're going to end up with pie all over your face because people are going to determine whether what you're spouting or defending is going to work or not. What good is it for you to say, "Oh, do this," and then have 60, 70% of the country say, "That's not what we're going to do." Well then, what do you do? What do you do?

I don't find that there is a scenario of antinomy or any kind of contradiction. On the contrary, I think that the fact that I was involved in the arts is giving me the kind of credibility amongst the majority of Panamanians who are sick and tired of business as usual in politics.

The Clinton administration has announced a major push to encourage legal residents to become US citizens. As Patricia Guadalupe reports from Washington, this represents a major policy shift by the Immigration and Naturalization Service.

The US Immigration and Naturalization Service, which spends only 10% of its budget on naturalization efforts, will be trying to persuade this country's more than 10 million legal residents to become US citizens. The INS says it hopes this will help to cut down on hostility towards immigrants. Policy Analyst, Cecelia Munoz of the National Council of La Raza said this is a step in the right direction.

Naturalization is about welcoming people as new Americans, not keeping people out, and there's too many people in INS who have a focus on the negative and not the positive, and that's a focus that's been needing to change for a long time.

INS Commissioner Doris Meisner has said that she intends to work with immigrant rights groups to promote the advantages of citizenship and to streamline the application process. Munoz added that if Commissioner Meisner follows through on her intentions and more residents become citizens, it could be especially beneficial to Hispanics, which make up the majority of these legal residents. For Latino USA, I'm Patricia Guadalupe in Washington.

The internationally known singer and actor, Ruben Blades is now officially a candidate for the presidency of his native Panama.

The scenario Panama will be determined by the Panamanian people, by its will and its desire to carry out a specific position and if you try...

Blades says he's willing to give up the comfort of life as a US entertainer to try to end political corruption in Panama. You're listening to Latino USA.