Panama News Briefs

BY JOANNA RAMONDETTA Wichita Eagle correspondent - Colorful, bold, intricately patterned and exquisitely crafted aptly describe the Central American textiles on view at the Wichita Art Museum. The pieces are contemporary clothing articles from the collection of Jerry Martin, director of the Lowell D. Holmes Museum of Anthropology at Wichita State University. It is a staggering exhibition, both in the aesthetic punch it carries and in the sheer number of pieces. Stephen Gleissner, the museum's chief curator, said they represent only a fraction of Martin's collection. Martin has been collecting textiles from regions in southern Mexico and Guatemala since the mid-1990s. But his interest in the indigenous peoples of Central America began in 1963, when he had a chance to study the Cuna and Choco Indians in Panama. The visit not only sparked his interest in a career as an anthropologist, but also laid the foundation for his lifelong passions for traveling and collecting ethnographic art. (more)

Martin has traveled extensively to the South Pacific islands, Southeast Asia, China, India, West Africa and South America, but it was in 1970 when he first visited Guatemala that he became captivated by the peoples and culture of the region. The inhabitants are direct descendants of the ancient Mayans. Within their textiles are fascinating combinations of Christian and pagan imagery, representative of their ancient religion and the world encroaching upon them.

"Martin recognized from early on the importance of these textiles and how they are representative of a dying form of material culture because of the mass importation of Western-style clothing," Gleissner said. "He appreciates not only the color and technique but the actual forms of the clothing that are so unique to this region."

Many of the sites Martin visited in Guatemala were so remote that, up until the 1980s, there were no roads leading to them, he said.

"They were so geographically isolated and this is what helped keep this art form true and insular for so long," he said. "Unfortunately, this is quickly changing."

The textiles represent everyday apparel of the native people. They were not made for the tourist trade, but rather for other locals who bought them at town markets. Traditionally, they are woven on either backstrap or treadle looms, Gleissner said, but machine-made textiles are becoming more and more common.

"I'm very glad to have both hand-woven and machine-woven textiles in the exhibition," he said. "It's a great way for people interested in weaving techniques to compare the textiles."

About 90 pieces are in the exhibit, which is divided by region.

"It's interesting to see the different colors and different motifs that are unique to each region," Gleissner said. "I hope people will have an appreciation for the garments that represent this way of life that is really being quite threatened by the Western commercial encroachment."

If you go

'CENTRAL AMERICAN TEXTILES'

What: Contemporary clothing articles from the collection of Jerry Martin, director of the Lowell D. Holmes Museum of Anthropology at Wichita State University

Where: Wichita Art Museum, 1400 W. Museum Blvd.

When: On view through March 1. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and noon to 5 p.m. Sundays.

How much: Museum admission is $5 except on Saturdays, when it is free.

Note: A reception will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Jan. 30 in the museum's Great Hall, with hors d' oeuvres and a cash bar. Admission is free.

ISMAILIA (Reuters) - A Panama-flagged ship caught fire while passing through the Suez Canal on Wednesday, temporarily blocking oil tankers from the waterway, canal sources said. Most ships were diverted around the fire, but canal officials would not allow oil tankers to pass because of the danger, said the sources, who did not give their names. They gave the name of the ship as Shingal and said it was carrying 60,000 tonnes of goods, without giving further details. No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was unclear, they said. The ship caught fire in the southern part of the canal, as it was crossing from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean, the sources said. The 190-km (110-mile) waterway linking Europe and Asia is a main foreign-currency earner for the Egyptian government.

Colombia Reports.com - DMG director David Murcia Guzm

Source: The Panama Jazz Festival Website: American jazz saxophonist Wayne Shorter's acclaimed quartet with Danilo Perez, John Patitucci, and Brian Blade, and the legendary Cuban pianist Chucho Valdes are among the headliners at the 6th annual Panama Jazz Festival, which will take place in Panama City January 12 through 17, 2009. The Boston-based Panamanian pianist Danilo Perez, who founded the festival in 2003 and whose Danilo Perez Foundation coordinates its educational component, anticipates more than 16,000 attendees. "The Panama Jazz Festival has been a magical journey to a dream we've had for years in Panama," says Perez. "We, as a country, see the entire world pass through the Panama Canal every day, and we are honored to be the bridge of the Americas. But today, we are proud to say that every year -- for the past six years -- the Panama Jazz Festival has been the national event where the world does not pass by, but makes a stop in our wonderful land. The world's best jazz artists, as well as students and volunteers from all over the globe, unite in Panama with one goal in mind: to celebrate the world's diversity through jazz." The 2009 festival will be dedicated to the late bassist, composer, and arranger Clarence Martin Sr., whose contributions to Panamanian jazz date from the 1940s and have influenced several generations of musicians from many genres such as jazz, classical, and Caribbean music.

By Dudibben Jim

Telemetro Reporta - Unemployment in Panama dropped to 5.6% in 2008 according to the Ministry of Labor, and they estimate that in 2009 the Panamanian economy will maintain the conditions necessary to continue to generate new jobs. "One should not fear an apocalyptic scenario because there are conditions to generate dignified and decent jobs," said Labor Minister Benjamin Salam

By CURT ANDERSON

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - This evening for the 6:00 pm daily news the polling company Dichter & Neira will release the results of their most recent evaluation of the Panamanian political scene with regards to intent to vote in the upcoming national general election. Leaked information indicates the presidential candidate from the Cambio Democratico (CD) political party Ricardo Martinelli will extend his lead by about two to three percentage points, and will be the first candidate to break the 40% barrier with a total of about 42%. Supposedly Partido Revolucionario Democratico (PRD) candidate Balbina Herrera will increase her support by about one or two points but she remains about five points behind Martinelli. These two candidates gain support at the expense of Paname

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By Manuel Luna G. for La Estrella - 2009 will be a year of challenges; the global financial crisis will strike the country forcefully and the projections are not good. Economist Rolando Gord