- 119 - Introduction 1. The Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, established by the Economic and Social Council to monitor the implementation by States parties of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, considered reports submitted by Panama (E/1984/6/Add.19, E/1988/5/Add.9, E/1986/4/Add.22 and E/1989/5/Add.5) at its sixth session, in 1991. 2. The Committee expressed appreciation for the reports, noting that they had been submitted against the background of the extraordinary circumstances in the country resulting from political turmoil and the aftermath of the invasion by the United States of America in 1989 - a situation that had created great disorder in all sectors throughout the country with serious consequences for the enjoyment of economic, social and cultural rights. At the same time the Committee expressed concern that a number of questions relating to housing rights and evictions had not been satisfactorily answered by the State party representative. The Committee’s concerns in this regard related in particular to the following: The Government’s claim that 3,000 persons had been affected by the bombing of El Chorillo differed substantially from the number reported by other sources, which placed the figure at between 12,500 and 20,000 persons. This disparity was of serious concern to the Committee in view of the Government’s obligations under the Covenant. The responses given by the State party to questions concerning the living conditions of residents of El Chorillo made homeless by the bombing differed substantially from other information available to the Committee. That information included many complaints by residents who had received alternative accommodation to the effect that they had to travel long distances to and from their places of employment on relatively expensive public transportation and that the overall quality of the housing at the resettlement sites was poor. Moreover, two years after the invasion, a large number of persons had yet to be rehoused. The justification provided by the Government for the forcible removal of over 5,000 persons from their homes by the Panamanian and United States forces in Tocumen, San Miguelito and Panama Viejo in early 1990 was unacceptable under the terms of the Covenant. The Committee was concerned in particular that a large number of houses had been demolished and that the evictions had not been accompanied by legal eviction orders, which not only infringed upon the right to adequate housing but also on the inhabitants’ rights to privacy and security of the home. 3. At its seventh session, in 1992, the Committee considered additional information (E/1989/5/Add.8) submitted by the Government of Panama subsequent to the consideration by the Committee of the reports of Panama at its sixth session, in 1991. 4. The Committee expressed appreciation to the Government of Panama for having responded quickly and thoroughly to its request for additional information. It indicated, however, that that information referred to legal norms rather than to their practical application. In particular, with regard to the right to adequate housing, the Committee was of the opinion that the