[6] The small but well-organized party then exerted considerable influence on the Panamanian Federation of Students and on the trade union movements in Panama and the Canal Zone.

"After World War II the party concentrated on attacking the United States presence in Panama, leading the Panamanian government to crack down on it and then outlaw it in 1953.

Subsequently, Communist influence in Panama's trade unions declined greatly and many party members defected to other groups".

[7] Although small in membership, for several years during the 1970s the PPP acted as the principal source of organized political support for the Omar Torrijos government,[8] particularly on the Panama Canal issue.

[6] It resisted the formation of the broader based Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) and lost a considerable amount of its power during the late 1970s as a result.