The World : Panama Dissidents Exiled

Three Panamanian opposition leaders who had been in hiding for nearly two months were hustled past a crowd of friends and relatives at the Panama City airport and placed aboard a flight to take them into exile in Venezuela. Chamber of Commerce President Aurelio Barria, National Council of Private Enterprise President Eduardo Vallarino and former Chamber of Commerce President Gilbert Mallol were charged in August with inciting anti-government protests. The three were allegedly forced into exile by a Foreign Ministry official after the government discovered they were hiding in the Vatican Embassy, a source close to the opposition leaders said.