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High waves warning extended

Posted on February 17, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 147

 

CIVIL protection authorities have extended earlier high waves alert for the Caribbean coast They are expected until Thursday, February 22.

Waves from 1.5 meters to 4 meters are predicted.

Authorities ask light boat owners and bathers, who go to the beaches to take extreme security measures.

Initially, the notice was until Monday, February 19 and also included adverse conditions for boats and bathers on the Panamanian Pacific coasts.

But after a review of forecasts and weather conditions, the alert was changed and will be valid for the Caribbean.

Boat captains and the operators are warned to take into consideration the climatic conditions before sailing.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/high-waves-warning-extended

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One dead 45 injured  in bus crashes

Posted on February 17, 2018 in Panama

 

THE PICKUP driver was killrd

Post Views: 186

 

A second traffic accident in 24 hours involving a bus, sent 15 passengers to hospital on Saturday, February 17, bringing the total of injured in two incidents to 45, and one person dead.

The latest accident was on the La Pintada-Panama route when a bus believed to be speeding overturned on the Inter-American highway in San Carlos.

SPEEDING bus.

The injured were taken to hospitals in La Chorrera, Penonomé, San Carlos and Antón, some of which had received victims of the previous incident, a head-on  collision between a pickup and a bus on Friday morning on the Inter-American Highway, about 200 meters from the entrance of the community of Juan Hombrón, El Chirú, Anton, Coclé.

The 25-year-old driver of the pickup was killed, the bus driver and a passenger seated behind him, were critically injured.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/one-dead-45-injured-bus-crashes

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OPINION: Panama tourism in tech age

Posted on February 17, 2018 in Panama, Travel

 

Tourists in Casco Viejo

Post Views: 168

 

New technological change and innovative business models confront state regulators with the reality of a dynamic economy.

The Tourism Authority of Panama has the challenge of establishing a viable framework for accommodation digital platforms for tourists planning to visit our country.

As with the Transportation Authority, the tourism entity is still linked to the sector that traditionally dominated the market. What is at stake is not only determining the rules so that new actors make our tourism more competitive, it can also eliminate another barrier to entrepreneurship and creativity. Let’s not be slaves chained to the past … La Prensa, Feb 17.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/opinion-panama-tourism-tech-age

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High-extreme UV alert for all areas

Posted on February 17, 2018 in Panama

 

Not recommended during alert

Post Views: 317

 

A UV  (Ultraviolet radiation) alert ranging from high to extreme for all parts of the country was issued by  Etesa’s Hydrometeorology Management on Saturday, February 17 and will likely extend through Sunday.

In Bocas del Toro, the Ngäbe Buglé region and the north of Veraguas, the index of UV rays will be between 8 and 9, which is considered very high.

In Colón, highlands of Chiriquí, Darién and Panama it will be from  9 to  10 and extreme conditions will reign in Panama Oeste, Coclé, Herrera, Los Santos, and in maritime sectors of the Caribbean and Pacific of the country.

 

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/high-extreme-uv-alert-areas

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Airbnb ready to collect Panama  lodging tax

Posted on February 17, 2018 in Panama, Panama

 

INCREASING the tourist flow

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Airbnb The San Francisco based internet platform is ready to collect the 10% lodging tax on apartment rentals to tourists in exchange for the dropping of the  45 days minimum stay rule.

The agreement could bring to an end the long battle between the government, the hotel industry and property owners.

Last year, some 2,200 owners in Panama registered in Airbnb collected $7.2 million through the rental of about 3,800 properties distributed throughout the country reports La Prensa.

Shawn Sullivan, Airbnb representative for Central America and the Caribbean, indicated that they are willing to sign an agreement with the Government to collect the lodging tax of 10%, which is also paid by the hotels, but with conditions.

Among the requests of the company, which earns 15% of the final value of each rental, is the elimination of Article 21 of Law 80 of 2012, which prohibits the rental of properties to tourists  purposes for less than 45 days, as well as the protection of the data of the owners of the properties registered in the platform.

Sullivan said that in countries with which they have signed similar agreements tourism has grown between 20% and 30%.

Armando Rodríguez, president of the Panamanian Hotel Association, told La Prensa that Airbnb must comply with market rules if it wants to operate legally in the country, the main concern of hoteliers is to attract more tourists.

Last year 54,000 customers entered the country  while in Costa Rica the figure reached 380,000.

“Panama has the potential to attract more tourists, but we must increase the promotion, “said Rodriguez.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/travel/panama-2/airbnb-ready-collect-panama-lodging-tax

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Police Deactivates Criminal Network in Panama

Panama, Feb 9 (Prensa Latina) Under the suggestive name of ´Operacion Templarios´ (OT), the National Police and the Panamanian Anti-Drug Prosecutor''s Office carried simultaneous raid out and today three Colombians and four Panamanians, presumed members of an international criminal network, are detained here.

 

After the follow-up since February 2013, the authorities executed simultaneous raids in five places located in the interior of the country and the capital, in which, in addition to the captures of six men and a woman, they seized five vehicles, cash and two firearms, the Prosecutor's Office informed.

'The use of special investigative techniques led us to be able to charge them with the crimes of drug trafficking, robbery to other criminals) and illicit association to commit a crime,' told the press Eduardo de la Torre, anti-drugs' prosecutor.

The police operation was carried out in silence on Wednesday in several places of the capital, the province of West Panama and in the city of Santiago, head province of the Veraguas power plant, without it being transcended to the press usually updated of those facts.

An absolute secrecy around the case prevented the leak of the names of the detainees and what is their link outside borders, but the term Templarios used in the file suggests that they could be linked to the Knights Templar Cartel of Mexico.

A note from the Public Ministry said that during the monitoring of the recently dismantled network, they seized 932 kilograms of drugs, 130,000 dollars in cash of illicit origin, cars and vessels with dual purpose to hide illicit substances and weapons.

When this blow to drug trafficking began to circulate, the Public Ministry also reported the arrest of two people and the confiscation of 102 kilograms of drugs inside a container located in the Caribbean port of Colon and destined for Spain.

Panama is part of the international narcotics trafficking routes, mainly from the region's first producer, Colombia, and the authorities sometimes warned of links between these organized crime networks and local power structures.

http://www.plenglish.com/index.php?o=rn&id=24420&SEO=police-deactivates-criminal-network-in-panama

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66 Panama kids in pitch hit and run final

Posted on February 16, 2018 in Panama, Sports

 

EL DUQUE will give tips

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Sixty-six kids from across the country  with their eyes on  one day adding their names to  a long  line  of Panamanian  baseball stars will participate in the final round of the 2018 Caja de Ahorros Pitch, Hit & Run competition, on  Saturday, February 17 at the Rod Carew Stadium.

Participants will compete in competitions for a chance to be one of four winners who will earn the grand prize: all-expenses-paid trips to New York City to watch a Yankees game at Yankee Stadium this season.

Winners and a guest will also receive $500 to spend on their trip courtesy of Caja de Ahorros.

Highlights of the event will include a special appearance from former Yankee great and four-time World Series Champion Orlando ‘El Duque’ Hernandez. The former pitcher will provide pointers and sign baseballs for each of the 66 participants.

Past player appearances have included Baseball Hall of Famer and twelve-time All-Star Roberto Alomar, thirteen-time All-Star and Panama native Mariano Rivera, five-time All-Star Bernie Williams and two-time All-Star Carlos Delgado.

The youth skills competition, which is in its sixth year in Panama, has been sponsored by Caja de Ahorros since its inception and visited ten cities engaging over 2,200 total participants, ages nine through twelve, this year.

Major League Baseball Pitch, Hit & Run encourages youth players to develop their skills by competing in pitching, hitting, and running competitions, which include Regional and National levels.

The competitions were conducted in partnership with Pandeportes, a government agency focused  on encouraging the development of recreational sports, and Prodena, a Panamanian sporting events production company.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/66-panama-kids-pitch-hit-run-final

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Second  bomb detonated in tourist heartland

Posted on February 16, 2018 in Panama

 

Isla Iguana

Post Views: 312

 

A SECOND 500-pound bomb abandoned on Isla Iguana, Pedasi, by the US military after World War II, was detonated by Panama security specialists on Friday, February 16.

The discovery of two unexploded bombs in a fortnight in  the wildlife refuge  has led Pedasi district mayor , Miguel F. Batista to call on the Panamanian government to carry out “as a matter of urgency” a study to determine if there are more bombs because “Isla Iguana represents the tourist heart of the District of Pedasi.”

Isla Iguana, located five kilometers off the coast of Pedasí, in the central province of Los Santos, was used as a training base by the United States during the Second World War.

The Ministry of Environment closed the island to tourism on Wednesday, and a similar measure was imposed for five days when the first bomb was found on January 29.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/second-bomb-detonated-tourist-heartland

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Mother watched as driver fled injured daughter

Posted on February 16, 2018 in Panama

 

Lazarus waits at court

Post Views: 281

 

The mother of a 14-year-old girl watched as her daughter was hit by a vehicle whose driver wound down the window and drove away. The daughter died in hospital.

The  judge of guarantees Harry Díaz, accepted the prosecutor’s request to label the case against  Cambio Democrático (CD) lawmaker, Mario Lázarus as  aggravated homicide

The decision was taken on Friday, February 16 in an hour-long hearing in the Supreme Court (CSJ), which began at 10:35 a.m.

Magistrate Angela Russo, who is acting as the prosecutor asked the judge to rate the possible crime as aggravated homicide, after sustaining the 15 elements of conviction of the incident and death of the girl.

The abuse of the minor occurred on the night of December 27,  in Buena Vista, in Colon province.

Among the elements of conviction presented were the statements of witnesses and reports of the National Police.

Russo cited, the report of Lieutenant Fernando Archibold, from the Colon police zone who received a radio message that there was an orange  Ford Ranger in “flight”, after being involved in an “outrage”.

When he found it, he interviewed the driver, who identified himself as Mario Lázarus. and  told him that he left the scene of the accident for “nervousness”

Russo also included, as an element of conviction, the testimony of the minor’s mother who explained that she was drinking a “soda in the mini-supermarket” that night.

She said that she watched her daughter cross the street when a white vehicle gave way; but as she approached the sidewalk, an orange car rolled over her. The driver, “just lowered the window, watched and left the place.’

The prosecutor also presented a “forensic accidentology” report which shows the state of the vehicle that was driven by the deputy.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/mother-watched-driver-fled-injured-daughter

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One killed 10 injured in bus collision

Posted on February 16, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 248

 

AT LEAST one person was killed and 10 injured in a collision between a bus and a pickup on Friday morning, Jan 16, in Juan Hombron, Cocle.

the director of the Panama Fire Department, Jaime Villar reported that the 60 seater bus belonged to a private company serving hotels in the beaches area.

The latest incident raises the death toll on Panama highways so far this year to 54.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/one-killed-10-injured-bus-collision

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Fire threatens oldest protected area

Posted on February 16, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 317

 

A FIRE  that started at noon on Friday, February 16, in the municipality of the Macaracas landfill in Los Santos is threatening the El Colmón forest, the country’s oldest protected area created 100 years ago.

Strong breezes and intense heat moved the fire throughout the afternoon.

Juan Martinez, mayor of the Macaracas district, said that the municipality’s staff, firefighters and officials of the Ministry of the Environment (Miambiente) are working to control the fire reports La Prensa.

The municipal landfill of Macaracas is located within the El Colmón protected area, characterized by a rich flora and fauna in a tropical dry forest.

Several of the 14 protected areas created in the provinces of Los Santos are identified as vulnerable to wildfires during the summer season.

The most vulnerable are the La Tronosa forest reserve,  Caña Island, in the Tonosí district, the Cerro Hoya National Park, between the provinces of Los Santos and Veraguas and La Loma Flores, El Joaquín Arriba and El Colmón.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/fire-threatens-oldest-protected-area

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By restricting ships to narrow lanes outside the Panama Canal, regulators have cut the risk of collisions between ships and whales by an estimated 92 percent. Photo by Peter Vallance/Alamy Stock Photo

Caution, Whale Crossing

In the sad saga of ships killing whales, the Panama Canal is a bright spot.

Authored by

by Andrew Wight

In the balmy, rich waters of the Gulf of Panama, hundreds of humpback whales gather to feed and mate. But this sunny spot isn’t just a refuge for the southern hemisphere’s mighty whales, it is also the Pacific end of the Panama Canal. This shipping superhighway sees more than 36 ships ply its waters each day, including massive cargo vessels weighing hundreds of thousands of tonnes. Until recently, unregulated shipping patterns caused whales and ships to frequently collide, damaging vessels and injuring or killing the animals. From 2009 to 2012, there were 13 whale deaths in the gulf, many thought to be the result of ship strikes.

Fortunately, a combination of solid whale biology and regulations passed by the International Maritime Organization (IMO) has resulted in a scheme that has lessened the frequency of those ship strikes, and is now being expanded to other countries. These traffic separation schemes (TSS), which require ships entering and leaving the Panama Canal to follow specific routes, are estimated to have cut the potential for whale strikes by as much as 92 percent, says Héctor Guzmán, a marine biologist at the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute in Panama whose research was crucial to the development of the new regulations.

Nearly a decade ago, Guzmán and his colleagues began to use satellite beacons to track 15 humpback whales in the Gulf of Panama, and overlaid their tracks with transit records for nearly 1,000 ships. They found that because there was no set path for ships to take as they entered the canal, whales and ships frequently came into contact. Further research showed that during one 11-day period, whales and ships moved within 200 meters of each other 98 times.

“This started as basic, fundamental research,” Guzmán says. The next step was to find partners to do something about it. Guzmán worked with Panama Canal pilot Fernando Jaén, the Panama Canal Authority, and a range of other stakeholders for two years to refine a proposal to keep ships away from the majority of the known whale concentrations.

In 2013, they took the proposed TSS to the IMO, the United Nations agency responsible for shipping safety and marine protection. The proposal was adopted in December 2014, and global shipping charts were updated to reflect the now-mandatory shipping lanes. The IMO also requires ships to move no faster than 10 knots in the area from August to November, when humpback whales tend to congregate in the gulf.

So far, the regulation has been working. “From ship tracking, we know we’ve had 100 percent compliance,” Guzmán says.

Guzmán is now studying whales all along the Pacific coast, from the Gulf of California to Chile, and helping countries establish their own TSS. According to an IMO spokesperson, Costa Rica’s first TSS, a two-way lane in the Golfo Dulce, is expected to be submitted to IMO for approval soon.* An area to be avoided by ships off the Península de Osa (a feeding and breeding ground for whales) has already been adopted and came into force on 1 January 2018. Peru has plans to submit a proposal to the IMO by the end of 2018 as well.

Right now, Guzmán is busy surveying blue and fin whales off Chile to provide the raw data that will eventually feed into a new scheme.

“These things take years, so you really need to have passion to push them through,” he says.

Correction: This story originally got Costa Rica’s two protected areas backwards. It said the Golfo Dulce TSS was already approved, while a plan to protect the Península de Osa was to be submitted soon, when in fact the reverse is true.

https://www.hakaimagazine.com/news/caution-whale-crossing/

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Central American Banana Trade Growing

From January to September 2017, countries in the region exported $1.92 billion worth of bananas, 9% more than was sold abroad in the same period in 2016.

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Figures from the Information System on the fresh or dried banana market in Central America compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData:

Exports by country 
In the first nine months of 2017, the main exporter of fresh or dried bananas in Central America was Costa Rica, with $784 million, followed by Guatemala, with $661 million, Honduras, with $380 million, Panama with $74 million, Nicaragua with $20 million and El Salvador, with a million dollars.

Variation of exports  
Between January and September of the years 2016 and 2017 the export volume of bananas registered an increase of 9%, rising from 4.1 million tons in 2016 to 4.6 million tons in 2017.

For the periods in question, the export value also recorded growth, rising from $1.762 billion in 2016 to $1.92 billion in 2017.

From January to September of the years between 2013 and 2017, the value of regional sales abroad has grown steadily at an annual average of 7%.  

Destination of exports 
From January to September 2017, 69% of the value exported from Central America went to the USA, 6% to the Netherlands, 4% to the United Kingdom and 3% to Italy.

https://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/main/Central_American_Banana_Trade_Growing

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Carnival brought bumper crop of tickets

Posted on February 15, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 128

 

POLICE MONITORING some 152,055 vehicles on the road for Carnival festivities handed out a bumper crop of 13,077 tickets for driving infractions, the majority for speeding and impaired driving.

There were 505 accidents resulting in 163 people injured according to a report of the Joint Task Force (FTC) at a Thursday, February 15 press conference,

Over one million people attended celebrations in the interior with 400,000 traveling by bus from Albrook terminal.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/carnival-brought-bumper-crop-tickets

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Corks stay in bottle for Martinelli celebration

Posted on February 15, 2018 in Panama

 

LA PRENSA Cartoonist Low's take on Martinelli's dilemme

Post Views: 142

 

ON TUESDAY, February 13, some of the shrinking band of supporters of ex-president Ricardo Martinelli inspired by the fireworks at the end of carnival were engaged in some premature celebration of his release from eight months of incarceration in a Miami detention center.

One of his outspoken allies,  Eduardo Camacho who served as the presidential spin doctor when Martinelli was still ruling “in the shoes of the people” and has since been one of his legal advisors,  even flew to fly to Miami to join his mentor at his Coral Gables mansion.

But the popping of  corks was halted when Florida Judge Marcia Cooke overturned his release on bail, and he will now face more months behind bars while his case goes to an Atlanta appeals court, and his lawyers earn their keep figuring out new ways to block his extradition to  initially face wiretapping  and embezzlement charges, and later, nearly a dozen criminal investigations.

Camacho has long labeled the investigation of alleged corruption ranging from Odebrecht to stock market manipulation via  Financial Pacific as “political persecution”, overlooking the possibility that the door may finally be starting to close on impunity, even for ex-presidents.

His Twitter  reaction was: “After knowing the incredible decision of Judge Marcia Cooke I must conclude that there is no country where the hairy hand of politics does not get involved in judicial decisions Today we understood that the only difference is that some do it in Spanish and others in English,”

 Olga De Obaldía, director of the Panamanian chapter of Transparency International, applauded the decision to keep Martinelli in jail, “Simply because the measure diminishes the risk that he will not face justice when his extradition is finally executed” she said,

In canceling bail for Martinelli  Judge Cooke opined on his flight risk that there would be an “irreparable damage” to American authorities if, after his release, Martinelli was not “available” to be extradited to Panama.

This – added s the judge – would overcome any damage that Martinelli may suffer  “who is already arrested and he will simply remain where he is. ”

Meanwhile, some of his victims are reserving their champagne for the day he appears in a Panama court.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/corks-stay-bottle-martinelli-celebration

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Second  bomb in wildlife refuge

Posted on February 15, 2018 in Panama

 

BOMBS on Island paradise

Post Views: 175

 

A SECOND  500-pound bomb  left behind by the US Army during World War II. was found on a beach  on  wildlife refuge Isla Iguana, by  a group of fishermen on Wednesday, February 14;

The discovery on El Cirial beach was the second – in less than a month – on Isla Iguana in the

The previous one of the same weight was found on January 29 and and was detonated on February 2 by experts from the National Security Council.

The Ministry of Environment (Miambiente)    suspended visits to the wildlife refuge from  Wednesday, February 14.

The 52 hectare island was decreed as a wildlife refuge in 1981.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/second-bomb-wildlife-refuge

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Workplace harrassment law in place

Posted on February 15, 2018 in Panama

Ana Matilde Gomez

Post Views: 85

 

A LAW governing sexual and moral harassment, racism and sexism in the workplace takes effect in Panama on February 16.

All employers, public institutions and official education centers or individual will have “the responsibility” to establish an internal policy that prevents, avoids discourages and punishes harassing behavior, sexual or moral harassment, racism and sexism.

The new norm was sanctioned by President Juan Carlos Varela, and published in the Official Gazette on February 15, 2018.

Under the law employers, schools and public institutions must  implement counseling, guidance and publicity programs on the prohibition of the listed behavior

They must establish, through internal labor regulations, collective agreements or orders an adequate and effective internal complaint and resolution procedure.

The law was proposed by independent deputy Ana Matilde Gómez in  February 2015, and approved by the National Assembly in April 2017.

Another important point of the sanctioned law is the establishment of the definition of the terms harassment, racism and sexism.

It also protects people who file complaints about cases of harassment or racism.

False denunciations will be punishable,

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/workplace-harrassment-law-place

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Panama's (potential?) Agriculture

Of the 2 million hectares of land estimated to be available for agricultural crops, only 40,000 are dedicated to fruit production.

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

Because of its climate and quality of soil, Panama has great potential for growing tropical fruits, such as mango, papaya, pineapple, avocado, coconut and citrus. However, the country's agricultural capacity is not being fully exploited. A report by the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said that in order to take better advantage of these conditions, "... integration of fruit chains needs to be improved in order to take advantage of the agro - ecological, logistical advantages and the geographical position Panama has. "

See also "Central America: Frozen Fruit Exports Up 60%"

An article in Prensa.com reports that "... according to the study "Diagnosis of the fruit sub-sector of Panama", by the FAO, one of the reasons why the country is not taking advantage of its potential, is ... lack of organization of producers through agricultural associations, which constitutes one of the constraints for the sustainable growth of the fruit sector in Panama."

See: "Panamanian Watermelon in Holland"

"... The enormous potential that the country has for the development of fruit growing should focus on the agro-industry, said Gerardo Escudero, representative in Panama of the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA).  'Panama, because it is entering the fruit system last, must consider an agribusiness strategy for fruits ...  More than increasing production, we should focus on adding value to the fruit that makes a difference locally and internationally."

https://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/main/Panamas_potential_Agriculture

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The Fourth Bridge over the Panama Canal is Delayed

A year and a half after having published the tender for its design and construction, the company that will be responsible for designing and building the bridge has not yet been selected.

Wednesday, February 14, 2018

According to the tender specifications, the initial date to deliver bids was April 25, 2016, but the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) repeatedly decided to postpone the act to receive proposals to build the fourth bridge, which it is planned to be built within a period of 42 months, with an estimated investment of $1 billion.

See "Tender for Fourth Bridge over the Canal Postponed" and "New Date for Tender of Fourth Bridge Over the Canal"

After so many changes, finally in October of last year four consortiums made up of companies from China, Spain, Italy and South Korea presented themselves to participate in the tender. However, four months after receiving the proposals, the MOP has not yet released the results of the evaluation. 

See tender and details of the work (in Spanish)

.

https://www.centralamericadata.com/en/article/main/The_Fourth_Bridge_over_the_Panama_Canal_is_Delayed

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Air China will travel to Panama

14-January-2018

Executives of the Chinese airline, Air China visited Tocumen International Airport recently to make preparations for the inauguration of the first direct flight between Beijing and the Panamanian capital that will begin in March 2018.

The airline delegation had a meeting with the General Manager of the Tocumen International Airport, Carlos Duboy, as well as with companies that supply fuel, help planes on the ground, those that provide food and drinks, explained a press release of that terminal.

 

“Air China has said in several occasions that will open their regional offices in Panama and will begin its hiring process soon, generating more employment for Panamanians in one of the main airlines in Asia,” explained the press release.

There will be flights twice a week between Beijing and Panama, with a technical stopover in Houston (south of the United States) and will have an approximate duration of 16 hours and 30 minutes.

The Asian airline will use for these direct flights Boeing 777-300ER airplanes, which have a capacity to transport 380 passengers.

Air China will fly twice a week to Panama.

The air connection was announced last November during the visit to China of the Panamanian president, Juan Carlos Varela, who signed with his Chinese counterpart o, Xi Jinping, a total of 19 cooperation agreements, among them it was one about civil air transport.

The Panamanian government expects that Panama will become the main air point for China in Latin America, because Tocumen receives around 5,900 weekly flights and has connection with 85 cities and over thirty countries in America and Europe.

China is currently the second most important user of the Panama Canal, after the United States, and the first supplier of the Colon Free Zone, located in the Panamanian Caribbean.

https://www.thevisitorpanama.com/2018/01/air-china-will-travel-panama/

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OPINION: Carnival or Disease?

Posted on February 14, 2018 in Health, Opinion, Panama

Post Views: 220

 

MORE than a century ago, the American doctor William C. Gorgas applied the discoveries of the Cuban scientist Carlos Finlay in the Canal area and in the cities of Panama and Colon, eradicating yellow fever and controlling other diseases transmitted by mosquitoes.

Aedes aegypti

Currently, the  Gorgas Commemorative Health Studies  Institute (Icges) continues with scientific research and effort to defeat the mosquito Aedes aegypti, the carrier of Zika, dengue, chikungunya and yellow fever. The Icges’ work is an international pioneer, and for much less than a Carnival costs can perfect a method that, using specialized bacteria, would neutralize Aedes aegypti. The Government must understand that providing this institution with the necessary funds is the best way to take care of the health of Panamanians … LA PRENSA, Feb.14

http://www.newsroompanama.com/health/health-1/opinion-carnival-health-care

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Martinelli bail – in or out of cell?

Posted on February 14, 2018 in Panama

Post Views: 199

 

Miami prosecutors are appealing the decision of  Miami Judge Marcia Cooke to grant ex-president Ricardo Martinelli bail on payment of $1 million cash, but there are conflicting views on whether or not he will immediately leave the cell he has occupied for eight months.

Martinelli’s lawyer Sidney Sitton told Panama America that the judge had recognized high possibilities that the  Atlanta Court of Appeals would grant a  Habeas Corpus and revoke Martinelli’s extradition.

Sitton who informed Martinelli about the decision of his release on bail indicated that the request for emergency suspension of the bail order that the Prosecutor’s Office will ask, does not suspend the freedom of Martinelli.

Panama’s  Foreign Ministry issued a statement that the prosecution appeal would suspend bail granted by Judge Cooke until the appeal was filed with the Court of Cassation of Atlanta circuit

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/martinelli-bail-cell

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Canal bridge contract snail’s progress

Posted on February 14, 2018 in Panama, Panama

Post Views: 219

 

Proposals for the award of the fourth Panama bridge are 10 months behind in spite of an October 2017 promise by    Juan Carlos Varela said that the order to proceed would be delivered in January this year and construction would start, in March.

A new future for Arriajan dwellers

On October 4, four groups applied to get the billion dollar contract. The type of bid selected by the Ministry of Public Works (MOP) is for the best valuewith separate evaluation, which hides the reference price.

It is the same corruption tainted  scheme used by the last administration to contract line 1 of the Metro,

the third phase of the coastal belt and the majority of major road projects, awarded in many cases to Odebrecht and that, subsequently, have been audited and investigated to supposedly,  end acts of corruption reports La Prensa.

Despite the questions and legal proposals to change the model of contracting, the current Government used it for the second line of the Metro, also awarded to the Odebrecht-FCC consortium.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/canal-bridge-contract-snails-progress

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Martinelli Jail Soap Continues

Posted on February 14, 2018 in Panama

 

KEYS to mansion snatched back

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While Ricardo Martinelli’s team of well-heeled lawyers in Miami were preparing the paperwork for his release from eight month’s behind bars, Judge Marcia Cooke, upended on  Wednesday, February 14, the decision to grant him bail for $1 million made the previous day.

The Panama ex-president who was arrested near his Coral Gables mansion on June 12 last year will stay behind bars, at least until a court hears an appeal from prosecutors who consider the billionaire a high flight risk.

An extradition order is based on charges of illegal wiretapping of political opponents, journalists and businessmen. When he returns he will also face numerous corruption charges.

The Embassy of the United States in Panama said in an official statement signed by the judge, Cooke: “Mr. Martinelli will remain in jail.”

Martinelli’s team of attorneys was in the process of doing the legal proceedings to get the ex-leader’s bail order in effect when they were caught by Judge Cooke’s last-minute decision.

Martinelli has described Italian judicial proceedings involving him as a “soap opera”  as  Valter Lavitola,  a central figure in corruption trials related to Finmeccanica and Panama was jailed, released and jailed again.

http://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama/martinelli-jail-soap-continues