Page 253 - The Rough Guide to Panama (Travel Guide)

Guna Yala 251
provided you can speak Spanish – since you may well be the only outsider there. Even
on islands unused to seeing tourists, you are likely to be able to negotiate a hammock
for the night in someone’s home for a few dollars.
Brief history
Guna oral history traces their origins to the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta of present-
day Colombia. Fleeing from tribes such as the Emberá, in the fifteenth or sixteenth
century, they took refuge in the mountainous areas of the Darién, including Mount
Tacarcuna – the highest peak in eastern Panama (1874m), lying just outside the
comarca – which became a sacred place in folklore. Violent conflict ensued against
the Spanish, with the Guna often forming unlikely alliances with English and French
pirates, and gradually being forced towards the Caribbean. Though Guna had visited
the coast for many years, colonization of the islands they inhabit today did not start
until the mid-nineteenth century as they sought greater access to passing traders and
escape from disease-carrying insects on the mainland.
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Panamanian independence
Geographical isolation ensured the Guna were pretty much left alone until Panamanian
independence in 1903, when the new state refused to recognize the Comarca Dulenega,
which had been established by Colombia in 1870. It covered Guna territories
straddling the two countries and had guaranteed a certain measure of independence.
The Revolución Dule
Tension between the Guna Congress and Panamanian authorities escalated as the latter
granted concessions to outsiders to plunder resources in Guna territory and persistently
attempted to suppress Guna culture – banning women’s traditional attire or forcing
missionaries and colonial schooling onto the communities. Matters came to a head in
1925, when a gathering of Guna leaders on Ailigandi – today’s Agligandi – resolved to
declare independence and rose up in what is proudly commemorated as the Revolución
Dule (Guna Revolution). Around forty people lost their lives, and only the intervention
of the US – concerned for the safety of the Canal – prevented further government
reprisals. A settlement was finally reached in 1938, when the Guna agreed to recognize
Panamanian sovereignty in exchange for a clearly defined comarca and a high degree of
political autonomy.
aRRIVal anD DEPaRTuRE Guna Yala
Most visitors, and the Guna themselves, bound for the western or even some of the central islands, travel from Panama
City by road, which connects with one of two dock areas at the western end of the comarca. The main departure area is
by the disused Cartí airstrip, which in turn has three jetties: Sugdub, Dubbin and Carti Tupile. A 15min walk away, close
to the mouth of the Río Barsukum, is the much smaller riverside Barsukum dock. Cartí is often used as shorthand to
refer to both places. From the docks speedboats and motorized dugouts fan out to the various islands; there are few
scheduled services, however, so access is limited and unpredictable. You can also reach some destinations by light
aircraft from Albrook Airport.
BY ROAD opposite), in addition to the entry fee, and there’s a charge
By car It takes 2hr 30min–3hr by road (4WD only) from of around $3–5 for parking.
Panama City to the dock at Cartí or Barsukum. Head east Hostel/hotel transfers Hostels and hotels in Panama
out of Panama City on the Interamericana; the turn-off for City can arrange a pickup in a 4WD vehicle – $30 one way
Guna Yala is just east of Chepo, where the 40km El Llano– to the Cartí/Barsukum dock, plus taxes (see box opposite).
Cartí road crosses the peaks of the Serranía de San Blas to Vehicles should only take four or six passengers, though
the Caribbean coast. Though now paved, the road is still they may try to squeeze in more – check in advance – and
treacherous as it’s incredibly steep, winding, narrow and will collect you from your accommodation at around 5am.
increasingly potholed; only 4WD vehicles are granted Drivers generally stop at a hypermarket in the suburbs to
entry. The vehicle fee is $10, payable at Nusugandi (see box allow passengers to stock up on supplies.

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