<P> However, the end of the encomienda system in Azuero sparked the conquest of Veraguas in that same year . Under the leadership of Francisco Vázquez, the region of Veraguas passed into Castillan rule in 1558 . In the newly conquered region, the old system of encomienda was reimposed . </P> <P> After the region of Veraguas was conquered, the two regions settled for a mutual dislike of each other . Inhabitants of Azuero considered their own region symbolic of the power of the people, while Veraguas represented an old, oppressive order . Diametrically, inhabitants of Veraguas saw their region as a bastion of loyalty and morality, while Azuero was a hotbed for vice and treason . </P> <P> The tension between the two regions peaked when the first printing press arrived in Panama in 1820 . Under the guidance of José María Goitía, the press was used to create a newspaper called La Miscelánea . Panamanians Mariano Arosemena, Manuel María Ayala, and Juan José Calvo, as well as Colombian Juan José Argote, formed the writing team of the new newspaper, whose stories would circulate throughout every town in the isthmus . </P> <P> The newspaper was put to use for the cause of independence . It circulated stories expounding the virtues of liberty, independence, and the teachings of the French Revolution, as well as stories of the great battles of Bolívar, the emancipation of the United States from their British masters, and the greatness of men such as Santander, Jose Martí, and other such messengers of freedom . </P>

What role did the us play in panama's independence