Hydro-dam exiles one of Latin America`s last kings

Tito Santana, one of the last tribal kings in the Americas, has been driven into exile from his lands deep in the Panamanian jungle by a fight over a hydroelectric project that has divided his tiny kingdom.

King Tito, 40, heads the Naso tribe -- one of just a handful of native groups in Latin America that has a royal inheritance system recognized by a civilian government.

But some members of his royal family have turned against Tito after he sanctioned the building of a hydro-electric plant on a pristine river in tribal territory in western Panama, causing a rift among the some 2,500 Naso.

"Many of us are opposed to a king who, for us, is selling our society without any thought for tomorrow," said Eduardo Santana, a nephew of Tito.

In 2004, Tito agreed to let Panama's government and Colombian firm Empresas Publicas de Medellin, or EPM, build a $50 million plant to harness the power of the River Bonyic, which flows by the Naso's wood and palm-thatch huts built on stilts.

The tribe's general assembly accused Tito of putting his own interests first. It drove him into exile and installed his uncle, Valentin Santana, as the new king. Police were deployed to the jungle to prevent violence and SEIYIK, Panama, May 21 (Reuters) - Tito Santana, one of the last tribal kings in the Americas, has been driven into exile from his lands deep in the Panamanian jungle by a fight over a
hydroelectric project that has divided his tiny kingdom.

King Tito, 40, heads the Naso tribe -- one of ...