Introduction
Panama Canal was constructed in 1904 – 1914 on the territory of the Latin American republic, Panama, on the resources of the U.S. government. Before that, at the end of the 19th century, France was intended to build it, but it was unsuccessful; then, the United States purchased their already made assets. Before the construction, the United States participated in obtaining independence by Panama. Then, it temporally took over some part of its territory at the construction time: it was called the Canal Zone. During the canal construction, the United States organized a construction town for those participating in the construction process. The canal became a miracle of engineering and a triumph for the United States, which could complete it successfully. However, there were also ethical controversies: while the government supported its citizens during constructions, they rarely took into account the native Panamanians and their towns in the Canal Zone.
General Overview
Panama Canal is an essential route for various ships, as it connects water areas of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans. Without it, vessels were obligated to sail around South America, which was lengthy, costly, and often dangerous. The idea to build the canal, which would save sailors time and money, emerged as early as the 16th century, but the technological advances to accomplish this task were insufficient at that time (History.com Editors). In 1855, the Panama Railroad was built between Colon and Panama City; it was the initial point for the future canal building (Waltham 217). In 1882, French representatives began to build the canal, led by Lesseps: they were inspired by the recent success in the Suez Canal building and thought it would be this easy. However, it was not the case; eventually, the United States government bought the French assets and completed the Panama Canal.
Initial French Construction: 1881 – 1888
At first, the canal which should connect the Pacific and Atlantic oceans was planned by France. Construction began in 1882, led by Ferdinand de Lesseps, who was before involved in constructing the Suez Canal in Egypt (Abdulhafedh 320). They quickly faced challenges with the harsh tropics where the canal had to be located, lack of necessary equipment, and wrong planning. Mosquitos, tropical fevers, malaria, casualties during the construction were reasons for the death of more than 20000 French workers (Abdulhafedh 322). The average time of working for them was just six months, after which they almost certainly died from specified reasons (Waltham 217). In 1888, the French government stopped work with the canal, leaving all its already built assets.
Thus, the building was unsuccessful: the French administration was not able to cope with all those challenges. It tried to return to work in the 1890s without any positive result (Waltham 217). When it became apparent that Lesseps was not a good candidate to build the canal connecting two oceans, he was trying to develop at least a lock canal (History.com Editors). Eventually, he was revoked from the project and even tried by French officials for his failure (Abdulhafedh 320). Thus, the first stage of the construction was unsuccessful; the developed infrastructure and technologies were necessary to cope with all challenges of a tropical environment.
The U.S. Construction: 1904 – 1914
The continuation of the canal story began in 1902, when the U.S. government, led by President Theodore Roosevelt, bought French assets left by them. They paid $40 million and also $10 million to Panama; the canal was planned to be built on this territory (Abdulhafedh 318). The U.S. government helped Panamanians gain independence from Colombia, which led to establishing a new country, Panama, which government was loyal to the United States (Carse et al. 4 – 5). This political move was an essential part of the canal building, as it allowed the American government to obtain the support of the Panamanian government. The U.S. was a guarantee of Panama’s independence, using its status to build the canal and maintain control over it.
The construction had started in 1904: The United States established a Canal Zone based on the left French assets and built the complex for its citizens involved in construction. There were medical and police stations, accommodations, theaters, cinemas, and even supermarkets with all available goods (Lasso 91 – 93). It was primarily a military project performed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers due to careful planning and the usage of all recent inventions such as steam shovel (Waltham 217 – 218). As mentioned, Panama is a tropical country with harsh weather, mosquitos, and tropical fevers: thus, various specialists, such as physicians, were required. More than 75000 workers were involved in the construction for these ten years (Abdulhafedh 341). Eventually, the building was successful, as the developed infrastructure enabled saving workers’ lives and made their job much more effective.
Panama Canal was finished in 1914, becoming the largest and most fabulous building, the miracle of engineering thought, as it was called. Its locks are still among the largest manufactured structures in the world, even after one hundred years (Waltham 219). In the middle of the 20th century, the Canal became the subject of tensions between the U.S. and Panama: the more independent and stronger Panamanian government wanted to be free from the U.S. influence (Carse et al. 77). Eventually, the Canal Zone was returned to Panamanian property, and it still belongs to this country.
Ethical Issues
While the building of the Panama Canal is connected with tremendous economic growth in various parts of the world due to the facilitation of sea transportation, its building process was associated with human rights violations. In the Canal Zone, many native Panamanian towns were depopulated and even destroyed during the construction by the assets of the U.S. government (Lasso 95 – 96). During the construction, those towns were often located in the territory of the Zone; the U.S. officials planned not to dismantle them but instead to regulate and “civilize” (Lasso 136). The construction flooded the whole ecological zones as well: it led to massive changes in local ecology (Carse et al. 27). The conquer of nature, as it was called at that time, was exciting, but its negative consequences were mostly neglected.
In general, while the construction of the Canal was indeed a technological miracle and led to economic growth in various parts of the world, its influence on Panama itself is controversial. The study of the fate of the Panamanian people, which territory was directly used for the canal construction, began only several decades ago (Donoghue 393). It means that the U.S. government did not consider their possible problems during the construction; one may conclude even that they were treated as second-class people. Some of the Panamanian people living close to the building site, Gatun, reported that they were tormented by the Canal construction, forced to abandon their place of origin, and were left in complete poverty (Lasso 191). In that way, there were cases of neglect of human life, which made the story of the Panama Canal building controversial.
Consequences
When complete, the canal enabled quick travel between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans without going around South America. Today, roughly 5% of all sea transportation is connected with Panama Canal, and it is an integral part of the world economy (Carse et al. 2). The Canal was widened in 2016 to enable the transition of larger modern ships; its other modernizations are also planned (Waltham 223). Still, canal construction and exploitation’s social and ethical consequences are controversial. While its building was associated with violating Panama citizens’ rights by the United States, it also facilitated Panama’s economic growth. Nevertheless, Panamanians who lived inside the Canal Zone often were subjects of forced relocations. In the 1950s – 1970s, Panamanian government started to obtain a control over the Canal Zone (Lasso 248). Eventually, Panama fully regained control over the Zone at the end of the 20th century.
Conclusion
Panama Canal may be considered the marvel of human engineering and an essential part of the world economy. It serves international water routes from the Pacific to Atlantic oceans: touristic, transportation, trading. Its construction started in 1880 by France but was unsuccessful and tragic for the country: their workers usually died, unable to cope with all challenges. It was eventually completed by the United States in 1904 – 1914: they organized a developed infrastructure in the construction site, where its workers could comfortably live and perform their duties. Its completion was the immense triumph of humanity, as it was an enormous structure built in jungles, using cutting-edge technologies of those times. It facilitated international trade, made the world more connected, and improved sea travel quality. However, it was also a difficult situation with local Panamanian citizens, mostly neglected by the U.S. government. They were forced to change or leave their living places, often located in the Canal Zone. Eventually, it led to tensions between the U.S. and the Panamanian government; the canal became the Panamanian property.
Works Cited
Abdulhafedh, Azad. “The Panama Canal: A Man-Made Engineering Marvel.” International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research, vol. 5, no. 1, 2017, pp. 318–42, Web.
Carse, Ashley, et al. “Panama Canal Forum: From the Conquest of Nature to the Construction of New Ecologies.” Environmental History, vol. 21, no. 2, Mar. 2016, pp. 206–87, Web.
Donoghue, Michael E. “Ethnic Cleaning for Progress: A Forgotten Chapter of the Panama Canal.” Diplomatic History, vol. 45, no. 2, Feb. 2021, pp. 393–95, Web.
History.com Editors. “Panama Canal.” HISTORY, A&E Television Networks, 2018, Web.
Lasso, Marixa. Erased: The Untold Story of the Panama Canal. Cambridge, Massachusetts Harvard University Press, 2019.
Waltham, Tony. “Civil Engineering Meets Geology: At the Panama Canal.” Geology Today, vol. 36, no. 6, 2020, pp. 217–25, Web.