Panama City’s Chinatown reveals historic ties

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Europe

Panama City’s Old Chinatown is one of the best places in the historic center of the country’s capital for Chinese food, products and culture.

The first Chinese arrived in Panama in 1850 – as contract laborers to build the Panama Canal Railway. Successive waves of immigration would follow. Today, the ethnic Chinese community in Panama is about 200,000 – about five percent of the country’s population.

Panama has the largest Chinese community in Central America. The old Chinatown in the central area of the Panamanian capital is their most traditional neighborhood. But the community has expanded well beyond these streets.

Panama City’s Chinatown /CGTN Photo

The El Dorado neighborhood has been dubbed as the new Chinatown that has many shops. Juan Tam, the secretary for the National Council of Ethnic Chinese, has written and published four books about the history of the Chinese community in this country.

Between 1900 and 1950, the Chinese were not allowed to go outside of this Old Chinatown because the area was a walled city. It opened up in the 1940’s. El Dorado is the first place where they moved to from the Old Chinatown.

Antonio Chong speaking with CGTN America /CGTN Photo

Antonio Chong runs a travel agency in the mall in El Dorado. Chong immigrated from China when he was 19 years old in 1977. Now his son – Jimmy Chong – works with him in the family business. He’s enthusiastic about Panama’s decision to establish diplomatic ties with China.

“We have to look towards the future, and every day, every year, things are getting better for the Chinese community in Panama. In June the president of Panama, Juan Carlos Varela, agreed to establish diplomatic relations with China and I think this will be very good for both our countries and foster trade and investment, ” Chong said.

While the formal relationship between China and Panama are still quite new, the community hopes a century old relations will be strengthened.

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