Nationalism came back to haunt the United States. With the
treaty signed and a 99-year lease given to the United States, the
Canal was built. Since then, the United States has varied on its
stance of ownership and the principles of sovereignty concerning the
Canal. The ever persistent debate of who owns the Canal and who should
have sovereign control over it, has not been solved. The United States
has occasionally attempted to "claim" the Canal zone through various
methods such as military occupation, exclusion of Panamanians for
important jobs in Canal operations and even through the customary
aspect of international law. However, each time the Panamanians have
managed to maintain claim to the Canal despite the United State's
imperialistic posturing to get it.

http://www.cyberessays.com/History/121.htm



"Skipper" wrote in message
...
BTW, the original treaty the U.S. signed in 1903 gave it the rights to
build and operate the canal *for perpetuity*. The agreement also gave
the U.S. the
right to govern the 10-mile wide, 40-mile long strip of land around the
canal, called the Panama Canal Zone.

It was poor leadership by Democrats that cost us OUR canal.

--
Skipper