Neighborhood Meetings

We live in a Panamanian neighborhood of about 130 houses. Occasionally if there is a concern in the neighborhood, they have a meeting about the issue. I try to go if I can. I’m a foreigner so I don’t want to make decisions, but I will support and help where I can, And, it’s a chance to meet some more of my neighbors. It’s also interesting to see how they run meetings here.

Here in Panama things don’t always make sense, even to Panamanians. There is a nice little park in the middle of the neighborhood that is managed by the city. Unfortunately it isn’t maintained well, and it often has weeds and grass so high that the kids can’t play. Recently the city decided to do some improvements. They planted trees, built a ranchero (kind of like a pavilion), and a couple bathrooms.

The neighbors are very unhappy that nobody was consulted or even informed about what was going on. Workmen just showed up one day and started doing things. The bathrooms are especially a concern. At this point there is no water. Is it going to be hooked up? Will there be a reserve tank system for those frequent times when the water isn’t on. Who is going to clean the bathrooms, take care of trash, supply paper and soap? Will there be any security or can people go in the bathrooms and do whatever? There also is no electricity, so no lights.

Maybe it was nice of the city to plant trees, but there isn’t nearly enough space in the park for the number of trees they put in. I think they put in 6 which will grow very large, in a park fit for one or maybe two at the most. There were already two fairly large trees at one end of the park, and a guyacan at the other end that is medium size now, but can grow to be very large.

Who is going to maintain the park? Who is going to cut the grass often enough that the park is usable. There are batting cages, a soccer area a slide, swings and other things but by the time the city cuts the grass they are almost invisible in the vegetation. Who is going to set rules for the park about get togethers, loud music, parties, etc. that will affect the nearby neighbors? Who will enforce the rules?

You see why the neighbors are upset and full of questions. So, they had a meeting in the ranchero one afternoon. I think almost 30 people showed up and it lasted two hours. There was a sign in sheet for your name, house number, phone number, ID number… I think that was it. There was a bit of socializing, and the customary greetings from everyone for anyone upon arrival. The meeting got underway after a while with a couple of the organizers presenting the problems to be discussed. Then, anyone who wanted to say anything was invited to speak for as long as they wished until everyone had said everything they wanted to say. One of the organizers took notes. Of course there was a lot of repetition since everyone had pretty much the same concerns, and people occasionally got off on another tangent, but I’d say the main concerns of the day were thoroughly covered. The only thing decided was to have another meeting in a week.

I went to that meeting, and I think 18 people showed up. One of the organizers had printed out what looked an enlarged google map in satellite view so it was easy to identify houses. Another had notes from the last meeting on who spoke and what they said, so that was read at the beginning of the meeting. Then again, people were invited to speak to the group and again the main concerns were thoroughly covered. It was decided that there should be a committee to represent the neighborhood, so a president, vice president, an alternate, a secretary, and a spokesperson were all nominated and approved by the participants of the meeting. That was a week ago and I haven’t heard anything about another meeting or any plans going forward.

I’ve learned that things don’t always progress like we think they should. I’ve been to other meetings where they were going to do this and that to secure or improve the neighborhood, meetings that took place even years ago and nothing ever actually happened. Are they going to convince the city to undo the unwanted work? or maintain the park better? or have a plan for water hookup, bathroom cleaning, security, etc. etc.? I have a feeling not much will actually happen but we’ll see.

I also got to see a little of the cultural differences here. In the US it’s meeting time now, and we make decisions, and we limit talking time, and we get things DONE, NOW! Here it’s much more relaxed. Everyone is extremely kind and respectful with each other. Everyone gets to say as much as they want, and everyone else listens attentively. This takes more time but I like the more relaxed attitude. But, being a gringa, I’d rather see more actual results. But it’s all good. I don’t live near the park or need to use it. I’m mostly curious to see what goes on and how things are handled.

I don’t share pictures without permission, and I didn’t feel like asking permission from all those people so just imagine a bunch of nice Panamanians hanging out in the park. But, I will share a picture of the sky tonight from our evening walk. We’ve had a lot of beautiful skies lately, and a fair amount of rain. Last night was a very big rainstorm that went well into the night. Today though has been beautiful and comfortable.

I have more ideas knocking around in my head but I seem to be unusually busy lately. One day though, maybe even soon!