The protesters joined social organizations, which for the second time are concentrating near the National Assembly (parliament) to call on MPs to reject the pact, which is currently being debated in the Trade and Economic Commission.
The trigger for the dispute was that the students at the university received information that their spokespersons were allegedly not allowed to take part in these deliberations.
The violent situation forced the temporary closure of the subway station near Plaza 5 de Mayo due to the use of pepper spray, which also hit residents of this central area of the capital, causing chaos in vehicular traffic.
The protest was joined by members of the Single National Union of Workers in the Construction Industry and Similar in support of University of Panama students demanding that the mining contract not be approved.
The Legislative Commission declared in a standing session this Monday that it would evaluate this text. Although she can only approve or reject it, she has no power to change its content or add a letter previously approved by the Council of Ministers.
Later in the day, one of the spokespersons for the United People for Life Alliance, Marcos Andrade, confirmed at a press conference that statements of refusal of the pact signed by the executive and Minera Panama, a subsidiary of Canadian transnational corporation First Quantum, will be permanent. This violates national sovereignty and threatens nature.
Also secretary-general of the National Confederation of Independent Entities of the Union denounced that the pact includes concessions to foreign companies not only for areas such as the open pit copper mine and affects in the districts of Donoso and Omar Torrijos in Colón, but also for almost half of the national territory, which led to the plundering of natural resources.
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