Martinelli pulls back from conflicts in Panama
Wednesday, June 20, 2012
Ricardo Martinelli, Panama's president, withdrew two proposals that caused a furore in the National Assembly and sparked protests in the streets.
One proposal was the privatization of the government's minority stakes in two privately owned utilities, the British-owned telecommunications company Cable & Wireless, and Unión Fenosa, the Spanish electricity distributor.
Martinelli, who has frequently been accused of being autocratic, also withdrew a plan to pack the Supreme Court with judges that have his support.