Moderator_03
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Two critical among 16 injured in bus crash
Posted 02/07/2022
Sixteen people were injured, two critically- on Friday afternoon on the Pan-American highway, in Bágala in Boquerón, Chiriquí when the driver of a bus lost control during a persistent downpour
The bus turned several times before colliding with a power line pole.
The injured included two minors between 9 and 17 years old and 14 adults between the ages of 20 and 60.
Paramedics and rescuers from the Bugaba Fire Department attended and transferred the injured to the Pablo Espinoza Polyclinic and the ER of the Rafael Hernández Regional Hospital in David.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/two-critical-among-16-injured-in-bus-crash
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Court rejects move to separate judge from Soho case
Posted 01/07/2022
The Third Contentious Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice rejected an incident of recusal filed by the Administration attorney, Rigoberto González, to separate Judge Cecilio Cedalise from the compensation claim filed by Abdul Waked against the National Bank of Panama (BNP) and the Panamanian State, for an amount of $1.268 billion
Through Edict No. 1574, posted in the Third Chamber of the Court on June 24, the parties were notified of the decision made by Judges Carlos Vásquez and María Cristina Chen de Stanziola.
The appeal filed is based on the fact that, in González's opinion, Judge Cedalise has issued opinions that affect his impartiality in this case.
The challenge filed in August 2020 claims that Cedalise has raised "critical value judgments, of clear and sufficient forcefulness", in relation to the case, which is still under discussion by the Third Chamber.
This criterion was not shared by magistrates Vásquez Reyes and Chen Stanziola, so Cedalise will continue to hear the process.
In 2018, Waked filed a $1.268 billion claim against BNP for compensation for alleged damages.
In his lawsuit, , Waked argues that he was pressured by the BNP – an entity that acted as trustee – when signing the trust to which he transferred the Soho Mall shopping center, in July 2016, after being included in a sanction list of the US Treasury Department.
González recalled that on August 21, 2019, the Third Chamber decided, by the majority, not to admit a similar claim by Waked against the BNP, for the alleged damages it suffered when transferring the Felix chain of stores to a trust, a similar maneuver to the one in Soho Mall.
On that occasion, Cedalise issued a save vote by not agreeing with the decision of the rest of the magistrates of the Chamber. The Chamber then considered that it did not have jurisdiction to resolve this conflict.
Cedalise issued a save vote, since –according to him– that trust “is of an administrative nature, as its purpose is to satisfy a public interest and have exorbitant clauses”.
González decided to appeal the admission of the Soho Mall lawsuit, but Cedalise rejected it on the grounds that the appeal was unfounded.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/court-rejects-move-to-separate-judge-from-soho-case
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5 Panama arrests in international operation against child pornography
Posted 01/07/2022
Five people were arrested Thursday in the provinces of Panama, West Panama and Chiriquí for alleged involvement in child pornography, through the international operation "Luz en la Infancia ( Light in Childhood) " The operation was carried out simultaneously in Argentina, Costa Rica, Ecuador, the United States, and Paraguay. During the search, evidence was found such as laptops, hard drives, and cell phones, among others. “Operation Light in Childhood ” began in 2017 in Brazil and since then has arrested hundreds of people accused of child pornography, with the collaboration of authorities of other countries.
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Mandatory use of masks ends July 11
Posted 01/07/2022
President, Laurentino Cortizo, announced Friday during his presentation of the report to the nation, before the plenary session of the National Assembly that from July 11, the mandatory use of the mask in closed spaces will be eliminated, with the exception of health facilities and public transport.
In Panama, the mandatory use of the mask in open spaces or outdoors has been eliminated since March 28 a decision that was made after a decrease in covid-19 infections.
At the time, the Ministry of Health (Minsa) stated that the measure applied as long as a physical distance of at least one meter was maintained, in open spaces. However, on June 26, the infectious disease pediatrician Xavier Sáez Llorens said that the use of the mask should be "left to personal discretion", since "removing mandatory does not mean withdrawing the recommendation to wear a mask".
The president also highlighted the successful vaccination strategy that guaranteed the vaccine to all Panamanians, which is a determining factor for economic recovery.
"Panama has international recognition as one of the countries with the best and most effective mass vaccination systems per capita in the world," he said.
UN recognition
He reminded the Assembly that Panama had the honor of receiving, on June 2, the United Nations Public Service Award in the category of Institutional Resilience and Innovative Responses to the Covid-19 Pandemic. He said that to date, Panama has received a total of 10,343, 850 doses and more than 8,390,000 doses have been applied.https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/mandatory-use-of-masks-ends-july-11
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American pedophile awaits sentencing in Boquete
A smiling and handcuffed Friedler gives a thumbs up as heads to court.
Posted 30/06/2022
American citizen Robert Ryan Friedler, 43, has been found guilty of aggravated rape, corruption of minors, and libidinous acts, to the detriment of eight children, in Palmira in the district of Boquete, Chiriquí.
Eight minors revealed to the court that the North American gave them cell phones and computers to play with, and he put them to watch adult movies and abused two of them, which were certified with forensic tests.
The prosecution also managed to certify that the other six minors were victims of libidinous acts, acts committed in April 2019, in Palmira Boquete.
Some 57 witnesses gave their version of the events in an oral trial that lasted seven days.
Friedler is awaiting the sentence to be imposed by the magistrates of the Court, The Public Ministry was represented by prosecutors Ladys Palacios, Carlos Alvarado, and Eva Monrroy.
Reports from the DIJ were shown during the trial where an attempt was made to bribe the parents of several of the children, who testified that they were approached by a citizen of Colombian origin, the same person who was later presented as a witness for the defense of the foreigner.
The case began in the community of Palmira, district of Boquete after several complaints were filed by parents of minors against the accused before the district Personería.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/american-pedophile-awaits-sentencing-in-boquete
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Metro moving over 300,000 a day
Posted 30/06/2022
The movement of passengers in the Panama Metro has increased in recent weeks with at least 300,000 users a day in the months of May and June. “With the increases that have occurred in the price of fuel, in the month of June there are already average demands of 323,000 travelers on working days (Monday to Friday), throughout the network, reaching one day 330,000. Demand throughout this year has not stopped growing. Until the last week of June, 44,610,832 have traveled by the Metro so far in 2022 with the movement of the year projected to exceed 100 million.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/metro-moving-over-300000-a-day
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The case for televising the Odebrecht trial
Posted 30/06/2022
The restricted interpretation of the Judicial Branch regarding the knowledge and immediate perception that citizens should have in the different criminal hearings of high-profile corruption cases is a factor that increases the lack of credibility of justice.
In principle, all criminal trials should be broadcast on radio, television, and digital media. The reality is that new technologies allow the Judicial Branch to have its own digital portal for the transmission of these cases, or to establish various YouTube channels to provide the population with knowledge of what happens in a criminal trial.
Obviously, there are exceptions when it comes to minors, or victims or witnesses requesting the protection of their privacy, but the general rule should be that more publicity is better for the justice system itself.
The American Convention on Human Rights says in its article 8.5 that: "The criminal process must be public, except in what is necessary to preserve the interests of justice." This principle is both a protection for the accused and a guarantee for citizens to control their judicial system. While more courts of justice in the world opt for the live transmission of their hearings, Panamanian justice goes in the opposite direction.
The Principles
The Judicial Code establishes the principle that the hearing will be public “under penalty of nullity”, except for the exceptions mentioned above. The concept of “publicity” has traditionally meant that a limited number of stakeholders, including the media, could attend hearings.Thus, article 358 of the Code of Criminal Procedure establishes that one of the principles of the hearings is their public nature. In turn, Article 363 of that same Code, develops the access of the media to the hearings, and although the article is loaded with good intentions, it establishes the possibility that the access of the media be limited or excluded: "If the victim, the accused or any person who must give a statement requests that the media not be authorized to record their voice or image, the Court will enforce their request."
The access of representatives of the media, only makes it easier for citizens to know what the media was capable of synthesizing and complementing with the triumphalist versions of all parties outside the courtroom. Citizens are left with a perception of a boxing encounter, and their access to the truth of the process was limited.
Interestingly, the foundation of Criminal Law —which is what is applied in these hearings,— must take into account what is said by the Penal Code in article 7: “The penalty shall comply with the functions of general prevention, fair compensation, special prevention, social reintegration and protection of the sentenced. The “general prevention” function means that the whole of society knows what the justice system does, that crimes are punished and that judges can be trusted.
Historical precedent
Historically, major trials, such as the trial of former President Arnulfo Arias Madrid, by the National Assembly in 1951, and the trials for the assassination of President José Antonio Remón Cantera (1955-1957), were broadcast by radio. More recently, the process against Supreme Court Justice Alejandro Moncada Luna (2015) was broadcast on radio and television. Likewise, the formalization of the effective collaboration agreement between Odebrecht and the Panamanian State (2017) was broadcast on radio and television.It does not make sense that if the hearing of this collaboration agreement was disclosed to the four winds, the trial in which that agreement is used, is limited to a closed-circuit screen available only to the media.
Given that this case is about a company whose trail of corruption involved three governments and has two former presidents as defendants, it is fair that the citizens listen to their testimony live, and see their language in full color. Body language and other paralinguistic signs sometimes reveal much more than what is expressed orally. Furthermore, it is necessary for public opinion to learn from the experts and international judicial cooperation, the sinister details of the corruption that plagued the country. It is necessary to show the citizenry that its justice works, and that it is capable of bringing to court the most powerful actors in Panamanian political life. Rodrigo Noriega, La Prensa
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/the-case-for-televising-the-odebrecht-trial
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Why the Electoral Court lifted Martinelli’s jurisdiction
Posted 30/06/2022
TVN has published an explanation of why the Administrative Electoral Court decided to lift the jurisdiction of former president Ricardo Martinelli for the Odebrecht case.
The most important argument the court made in the 16-page ruling that TVN Has fully reviewed, is that the judicial process that is being followed by Martinelli for the Odebrecht bribes has nothing to do with the internal elections of the RM Party.
These elections are the reason why Martinelli had electoral jurisdiction. According to the judge, the Odebrecht case began in 2015, many years before the creation of the former president's new party, so it does not interfere with his internal process.
The second reason for the court to lift Martinelli's jurisdiction is that there are several judicial resolutions, even protected by the Supreme Court, which establish that he is no longer covered by the principle of specialty that would prevent him from being tried for a different case than the punctures (illegal wiretaps) after being extradited from the US.
In fact, the ruling reveals that Martinelli lost this right because almost two months after leaving prison, he traveled to the Dominican Republic and Mexico and returned to the country voluntarily.
The Procedural Code establishes that by leaving the country after being detained and returning voluntarily, an extradited person loses the principle of specialty.
The ruling also ensures -and this is the third reason- that, although the Electoral Court had ruled on Martinelli's jurisdiction and the principle of specialty, justice had every right to request his removal again. Just as it happened.
Political Persecution
Luis Eduardo Camacho, the spokesman for Martinelli, once again repeated the well-worn mantra, claiming political persecution and said that the former president will not give up his rights.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/why-the-electoral-court-lifted-martinellis-jurisdiction
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Tax collection up 21% in 5 months
Increasing economic activity.
Posted 29/06/2022
Higher levels of economic activity so far this year are reflected in government tax collection.
Of the $2,661.8 million in current revenue collected by the Government in the first five months of the year, tax revenue represents a majority of 79%, according to a recent report by the General Directorate of Revenue (DGI). Within tax revenues, both direct taxes ($1,184 million, 17.4% more) and indirect taxes ($910.2 million, 30.2% more) grew.
The income tax declared by companies grows in an environment of greater economic activity. In March of this year the income tax was paid based on the results of the 2021 financial year, a period of more activity than 2020, when there were strong restrictions on the economy due to the pandemic.
15% Discounts
In the real estate tax, whose collection grew 37.5% year-on-year, the prompt payment measure would be reflected, which this year was more extensive and with a higher percentage. The DGI granted a 15% discount for those taxpayers who paid the property tax for the entire year before the end of April. This measure is usually until February and with a 10% discount.Indirect taxes, for their part, are an indicator of consumption behavior. The tax on the transfer of personal property and services (Itbms) on sales generated $338.6 million in the first five months of the year, an increase of 37.4% when compared to the same period of the previous year, while the selective consumption tax records an increase of 34.9%.
Non-tax revenues, , generated $551.8 million, 20.1% more than the previous year, the main component of this group being tolls and Panama Canal services, which contributed $247.9 million.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/business/tax-collection-up-21-in-5-months
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Electoral court blocks Martinelli’s escape route
Ricardo Martinelli
Posted 29/06/2022
An Electoral Court (TE) has lifted the criminal electoral jurisdiction of former president Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014) for the Odebrecht case says an edict. edict published on the morning of Wednesday, June 29.
The news comes the day after the DGI ordered an audit of Martinelli and the revelation that a million-dollar lawsuit against La Prensa by the former first lady netted only $3000 and that a challenge that Martinelli presented against the magistrate María Eugenia López had been rejected.
Martinelli had been granted the electoral privilege due to the internal elections of the Realizing Goals (RM) party that took place April.
Martinelli is the president and legal representative of RM, a party recognized by the TE through Resolution No. 4 of March 24, 2021.
The former president's defense has two business days to file an appeal against the decision of the electoral court.
The preliminary hearing in the Odebrecht case is scheduled to take place between July 18 and August 5. The process tracks the multi-million dollar bribes paid by the Brazilian construction company in Panama and links 62 people, including former presidents Martinelli, and Juan Carlos Varela (2014-2019); as well as former ministers, lobbyists, and businessmen, among others.
Media outlets and civil rights activists have demanded that the Odebrecht hearing be televised.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/electoral-court-blocks-martinellis-escape-route
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Gasoline prices tumble on Friday
Posted 29/06/2022
After months of continuous increase in the price of fuel, 95 and 91 octane gasoline will fall although diesel will continue upward. The 95-octane gasoline will be reduced 7 cents a liter and the 91-octane will drop 8 cents a liter, while diesel will increase one cent. The new prices will be effective July 1 -15.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/gasoline-prices-tumble-on-friday
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Business chamber demands end to state of emergency
Currently it is no longer mandatory to wear masks in open spaces.
Posted 26/06/2022
Panama’s Chamber of Commerce, Industries, and Agriculture of (Cciap) has called on the government to end the state of emergency declared in March 2020 following the arrival of the Covid-19 pandemic.
In its weekly newsletter, the business association recalled that although it is true that the special procedure for State purchases has already been suspended, measures such as the Panama Solidarity Plan are still in force, with its different components and the mandatory use of the mask in closed spaces.
The Chamber emphasizes that these initiatives have fulfilled their purpose and that these resources must be allocated efficiently to priority needs such as productive investment and boosting employment.
“Clearly, the conditions of the pandemic are today considerably different from the last two years, so it makes no sense to maintain such a state of emergency. Just as we see how neighboring nations in the region have already taken the step towards total normality” said the Cciap statement.
For example, the neighboring country of Colombia will end the state of emergency on Thursday, June 30.
According to the Cciap, efforts must now be aimed at advancing as a country and guaranteeing a sustainable and equitable future for citizens.
It is recalled that the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC) reported that the unemployment rate decreased to 9.9%, but that informality increased to 48.2%.
Priorities ahead
“This clearly marks the priority that lies ahead: create jobs and stimulate formal entrepreneurship; without losing sight of the great effort that must be made in terms of education to have enough qualified people to fill the jobs that are generated”.Likewise, it is emphasized that the promotion of the employer sector is essential for the creation of jobs, especially with the support of micro, small and medium-sized companies that generate between 60% and 70% of employment.
“Not having clarity regarding the dismantling of the emergency structure not only exerts increasing pressure on public finances but also prolongs an interim period that threatens citizens, to the extent that these resources are not directed to the creation of jobs and opportunities that allow them to carve out a better quality of life”.
Last week the President Cortizo, announced that the digital voucher (Panama Solidarity Program) will be extended until December 30.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/business/business-chamber-demands-end-to-state-of-emergency
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Ex-First Lady sues for $1 million - gets $3,000
Posted 28/06/2022
The First Superior Court Justice confirmed a sentence against Corporación La Prensa, SA ( Corprensa ), for a publication about Marta Linares de Martinelli, but reduced the amount claimed by the former first lady, from one million dollars to $3,000, by way of non-pecuniary damage.
Magistrates Miguel Espino (rapporteur), Yira Bernal and Juan Carlos Tatis, also sentenced Corprensa and the journalists Olmedo Rodríguez and José González Pinilla , to pay $750 in concept of costs.
Although the plaintiff claimed compensation of one million dollars, "it is considered that no material damage was proven," says the ruling of magistrates Espino, Bernal and Tatis. Although it mentions that the news supposed a "deterioration" of the reputation of the plaintiff, the Court emphasizes that a breakdown was not provided on the distribution of damages and the amount demanded by each one, so it was not possible to determine what consists of the intended million dollars.
“Not even invoices were provided for the expenses for psychiatric medical care which the plaintiff had incurred,” the ruling mentions.
Nor can it be deduced from the opinions provided that the plaintiff suffered any economic damage as a result of the circulation of the news. "Even in her income tax returns, her income was higher than in previous years," the magistrates said in their ruling.
The civil lawsuit is related to a note in English, published on February 11, 2016 on the website prensa.com, in which the investigation that Rafael Guardia Jaén , director of the National Aid Program (PAN) made that day, was reported about irregularities in the purchase of some Christmas bags that were destined for the first lady's office. At that time, for this case, the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor's Office requested to lift the criminal electoral jurisdiction of the former first lady.
On April 17, 2019, the Sixteenth Civil Circuit Court sentenced Corprensa, but rejected the compensation of one million dollars sought by the plaintiff. Instead, he ordered $25,000 in compensation and $6,000 in court costs. This decision was appealed by both parties, which resulted in the ruling of the First Court on June 24, which upheld the sentence, but reduced the compensation even more, this time to $3,000.
Judges Espino, Bernal and Tatis explained in their ruling why the amount claimed by the former first lady was reduced.
“Taking into account that pecuniary damage was not proven and that it is not admissible that compensation for moral damages become a source of unjust enrichment, as the Court has already stated in two rulings, this court considers that the sentence required by the plaintiff, such as the one imposed by the court of the first instance, exceeds the reality of what the evidence allows us to deduce in this case, ”says the ruling.
The magistrates also maintain that it was later known that the published information lacked truthfulness, but they recognize that the news published on February 11, 2016 does not contain any assessment or judgment about the former first lady.
Corprensa's defense argued at all times that " real malice " of the publication or of the authors of the note could not be proven, a criterion that constitutes the parameter established by the Inter-American Court of Human Rights to determine the civil responsibility of the media for their publications.
Previous action
It is not the only action taken by Marta Linares de Martinelli against Corprensa and its journalists. Earlier, she filed a "family protection" lawsuit, intended to prevent information about the judicial processes of former President Martinelli and the couple's children ( Ricardo Alberto and Luis Enrique Martinelli Linares ), convicted in the United States for conspiring to launder bribes from Odebrecht.On June 22, 2020, Judge Alba E. Flores Musmanno, head of the Second Sectional Family Court of the First Judicial Circuit, rejected the lawsuit, considering that the right to the image had not been violated, since what was disclosed by La Prensa was of public interest and had no connection with the intimate life of the Martinelli Linares family.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/ex-first-lady-sues-for-1-million-gets-3000
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Firearms, and ammo seized - 604 arrests in security blitz
Posted 27/06/2022
Security establishments arrested 604 people and seized 30 firearms and 543 rounds of ammunition in the weekend "Operation Bishop 2022" developed at the national level.
During the operations, seven vehicles and three boats were recovered, 309 drug packages were seized and $11,820 in cash. In an additional emergency evacuation, 47 foreigners were detected with expired stays, evasion of immigration controls, and impediments to alert and undocumented respectively.
There were 4,807 infractions to the Traffic Regulations, of these 1,440 were for speeding, 279 for proven drunkenness, 51 for talking on the cell phone, 79 for alcoholic breath, 396 for inadequate lights, and 62 for expired licenses.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/firearms-and-ammo-seized-604-arrests-in-security-blitz
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Arrest of nine con-men posing as government officials
Posted 27/06/2022
Nine fraudsters posing as high-ranking government officials while soliciting payments from corporations were arrested on Monday, June 27 in operation "Genius" in Chiriquí and Coclé.
They were apprehended for their alleged link to a criminal organization.
According to investigations by the Prosecutor's Office, the group made use of the creation and use of corporations, where they posed as government entities and requested donations from individuals in several provinces of the country on behalf of the Panamanian State.
At least 10 raids were carried out in different areas of the provinces of Chiriquí, Panama, and West Panama.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/arrest-of-nine-con-men-posing-as-government-officials
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Supreme Court candidate has resignation baggage
Posted 26/06/2022
Next Tuesday, José Abel Almengor will appear before the evaluation commission that interviews the aspiring judges. This should be seen as an excellent opportunity to finally hear the explanations that have been owed to the population for years writes Monica Palm in La Prensa. Accustomed to not showing his face, in 2009, when he was a prosecutor and they opened a disciplinary process for allowing a person accused of money laundering to leave the country, he settled the matter with his resignation.
Two years later, he did the same: he resigned as a magistrate, in a hurry to shelve the odyssey that represented his participation in a plan to remove Ana Matilde Gómez from the PGN, which is why he accumulated up to six complaints in the assembly. If the evaluation commission already said that the future magistrate must have a "personal and professional history characterized by integrity, independence, the absence of conflicts of interest and a commitment to justice”, then Almengor -without being asked- should step aside, understanding that his circumstances do not fit the required profile.
But since he insists, then let him use those precious minutes before the commission, to tell the truth, reveal the full list of his accomplices, and apologize once and for all.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/supreme-court-candidate-has-resignation-baggage
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Thousands march in twin Panama Gay Pride events
Posted 25/06/2022
Thousands of people participated in the two 'Gay Pride' marches in Panama, which took place on Saturday, June 25, in Panama City organized by the World Pride Panama 2022 committee and the Fundación Iguales.
The World Pride 2022 march started at 4:00 pm, from the Via Argentina Metro station and ended at Parque Urraca, in the Bella Vista district, where thousands of people gathered to participate in the Rainbow Show, featuring drag queens and artists
The other march, from Fundación Iguales, left at 3:00 pm, from Plaza 5 de Mayo, took the coastal strip and ended in Plaza V Centenario, in the Casco Antiguo, district of San Felipe.
Both activities were aimed at making the LGBTIQ+ community visible in the country and claiming the rights of this population. The multicolored flags were not lacking, balloons, joy, and enthusiasm.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/thousands-march-in-twin-panama-gay-pride-events
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Italy returns stolen artifacts to Panama
Posted 25/06/2022
Italy has returned to the isthmus two pre-Colombian artifacts found in Naples and Calabria La Prensa. The pieces received consist of a polychrome terracotta vase and typical decorations of the Maracas style, belonging to the Gran Coclé culture (850-1000 AD) and a pre-Columbian ceramic vase, an archaeological asset made between 850 and 1500 AD, reported the Ministry of Government. Italian authorities delivered these pieces to the Deputy Minister of Multilateral Affairs and Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Panama, Ana Luis Castro, accompanied by the Minister of Government, Janaina Tewaney Mencomo.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/italy-returns-stolen-artifacts-to-panama
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Third high-profile prosecution stalled by defense
Posted 23/06/2022
Another hearing of a high-profile process, whose investigation has taken several years, was postponed due to a legal appeal filed by one of the defendants.
This reports La Prensa is the investigation followed by the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor for the alleged commission of the crime of embezzlement in the contract for the design and remodeling of the Domingo Díaz road.
The defense of the former Minister of Public Works Federico Suárez appealed a decision of the Second Liquidator Court of Criminal Cases, which rejected a request to join the process with the investigations – also for alleged embezzlement – inherent to the contracts for the design and construction of phases I and II of the Vía Brasil corridor and the Old Town road remodeling project.
This is the second time that the preliminary hearing of the case of the Domingo Díaz road has been suspended due to the resources of the accused. Now, the process must go to the Superior Court of Liquidation, so that it decides if it accumulates the three files.
New Business
It is the third high-profile case that suffered setbacks in recent days. This week the Prosecutor's Office against Organized Crime was notified of a ruling by the First Superior Court that annulled the preliminary hearing in the New Business case – which follows the trail of the purchase of the group Editora Panamá América, SA presumably with public funds –, due to an injunction filed by Daniel Ochy.This implies that Judge Baloisa Marquínez must repeat the act held on January 27. However, the prosecution appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court.
In addition, the lack of notification of Ricardo Alberto and Luis Enrique Martinelli Linares forced the suspension last Monday of the trial of the Blue Apple case, related to the alleged payment of bribes by state contractors so that they were awarded works in the government of Ricardo Martinelli (2009-2014). The new trial date was set for August 16.
Another hearing suspended this year is that of the Piso y Techo case. It was scheduled from April 11 to 13 and then from May 25 to 27, but was suspended both times.
Meanwhile, the Second Liquidator Court of Criminal Cases suspended on March 31 the trial of four people for alleged embezzlement in the allocation of contracts through the extinct National Assistance Program for the purchase of dehydrated food; this, after several of the defendants appealed evidence from the prosecution.
In the opinion of the former Minister of Security Rodolfo Aguilera, these are resources that delay the processes, aimed at seeking the prescription of the criminal activity.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/third-high-profile-prosecution-stalled-by-defense
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Former finance minister resigns from PRD
Posted 23/06/2022
Fernando Aramburú Porras, former Minister of Economy and Finance during the government administration of former President Ernesto Pérez Balladares, resigned Thursday from the ruling Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD).
The announcement was made by Aramburú Porras himself on his twitter account: "Today I submitted my resignation from the Democratic Revolutionary Party of which I was a founder in 1979, for not identifying myself with the ideals and values that its leadership has manifested for some time, having become a clientelistic party without a north".
Aramburú Porras was the first Minister of Economy and Finance of the Republic of Panama in 1999, for which he was in charge of merging the Ministries of Finance and Planning and Economic Policy; He previously served as General Director of Revenue and General Director of the Institute of Hydraulic Resources and Electrification (IRHE), from which he led the restructuring and privatization of the electricity sector.
In addition, he was a member of the Banking Commission (currently the Superintendency of Banks) and General Manager of important companies and entities in the energy and industrial sectors, such as Petro-Terminal de Panamá, the Transístmico Pipeline, and Azucarera Nacional SA
The resignation of the PRD of Aranburú Porras joins the one already announced a few months ago by the former Minister of Youth, Children and the Family, Leonor Calderón, and that of the economic adviser in the Ministry of the Presidency, David Saied Torrijos, who a few days he was removed from office after questioning the actions of some PRD leaders. At the time, Calderón stated that the evolution that our political system has taken in recent years led him to the conviction that it is necessary to seek new spaces to participate and contribute to the strengthening of the country and move towards the construction of a welfare state. , at the service of each and every one of the Panamanians. "I feel that there is an exhaustion of these traditional spaces and I believe it is imperative to oxygenate our political system," he said.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/former-finance-minister-resigns-from-prd
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Plane crash in Changuinola
Posted 22/06/2022
The pilot of an aircraft that crashed on a farm, in Changuinola, Bocas del Toro province on Wednesday, morning damaging a house and two vehicles is in good health, confirmed the Civil Aviation Authority (AAC). The pilot was engaged in fumigation tasks. The AAC reported that it began an investigation to determine the causes of the event.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/plane-crash-in-changuinola
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First Lady speaks on President’s health
Posted 22/06/2022
The first lady, Yazmín Colón de Cortizo, assured that her husband, President, Laurentino Cortizo, "feels very well", while reporting that the trip they will make to the United States is only to carry out more in depth examinations, after that in regular review studies it was detected that "he has anemia" reports TVN.
“He feels good, he doesn't feel at all, he doesn't feel tired, he has much more energy than me, he has more energy than me. He is a man who has a lot of strength, ” she said.
She said that he is already being treated by Panamanian doctors but will travel to the United States to carry out more in-depth studies.
President Cortizo's statements about his state of health have generated many theories of scenarios that could be presented in the event that he has to leaveoffice.
However, Colón de Cortizo emphasized that they will travel to the United States, not for a second opinion, but rather to carry out more in-depth examinations
She said that the president already treats himself with Panamanian
doctors , and they do not doubt the diagnosis they have made, only that he he seeks a second opinion.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/first-lady-speaks-on-presidents-health
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Certification of airline raises questions
Posted 21/06/2022
If something has become clear in the certification of the Bocas Air airline, it is the opacity with which a public issue is handled, including the identity of all its shareholders and the process to obtain the operating certificate for passenger and cargo routes. The opacity leaves potential victims defenseless in case one of them wants to go legally against the main owner of the company. And very worrying is the evident sloppiness in the certification process of this company, riddled with omissions, false data, and obvious violations of aviation regulations. The director of the Civil Aeronautical Authority (AAC) acted with the utmost irresponsibility when last year he personally declared that the company had successfully completed the process to commercially exploit the route. Just weeks after its joyful announcement, the company itself had to temporarily suspend operations, and a few months later, the AAC reported a door detachment on one of the Bocas Air planes. The investigation of the incident resulted in the discovery of further irregularities that lead us to question whether the AAC, its director, and staff can be trusted.- LA PRENSA, Jun. 21.
https://www.newsroompanama.com/business/certification-of-airline-raises-questions
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Public Ministry to appeal Mossack Fonseca ruling
Posted 21/06/2022
The Attorney General in charge, Javier Caraballo, announced that the Public Ministry will file an appeal against the ruling that provisionally dismissed Mossack and Fonseca from the Lava Jato case.
Caraballo indicated that, as an institution, he does not agree with the ruling of the Judge Third Liquidator of Criminal Cases of the First Judicial Circuit Baloísa Marquínez, who ordered the provisional dismissal of Jürgen Mossack and Ramón Fonseca Mora and 37 people, in the investigation of the Second Prosecutor's Office against Organized Crime, for the Lava Jato case.
“After the Public Ministry collects a series of evidentiary examples that in our opinion are sufficient for a person to respond in court, these elements have to be analyzed by a judge and that is what not what has happened," said Caraballo.
He said that, as a result of the decision by the judge, who argued that the Public Ministry failed to prove a crime in this case, he will present the appeal of the decision. The judge, Baloísa Marquínez Morán, indicated in her resolution that the investigation did not show which accounts were created in Panama, in order to hide money of illicit origin, nor the amounts of the money entered from companies offshore.
The investigation did not prove that the investigated law firm managed any funds or bank accounts from Brazil. The investigation began in 2016, "the product of a news event" in the framework of the Lava operation in Brazil that linked "a law office in Panama that created legal-financial structures to hide money from illicit activities."
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/public-ministry-to-appeal-mossack-fonseca-ruling-2
Panama earns second gold at regional meeting
in Sports, Hobbies, Fitness Training, Health Activities
Posted
https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/panama-earns-second-gold-at-regional-meeting