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Keith Woolford

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Blog Entries posted by Keith Woolford

  1. Keith Woolford
    Recently I have noticed that prosecutors from the Ministerio Publico in Chiriqui have been appealing the length of prison sentences bestowed upon gang members, as in this case.
    At the request of the Anti-gang Superior Court Prosecutor, Third Judicial District Overturns Sentencing Ruling
    The Superior Court of the Judicial District of the province of Chiriqui, reformed a sentence for the crime of gang activity that had not been applied to several people in the gang "Niño Divino", then that the Superior Prosecutor specializing in crimes of unlawful association, Nathaniel Murgas, sustain an appeal against the judgment No. 2 of 10 January 2017 issued by the liquidator.
    The judgment of the Court of criminal circuit of Chiriqui, had ordered the conviction of Ronald Orlando Rodríguez González, José Enrique Rivera Arauz, Boniche Pedro González, José Andrés Castro, Ameth Abdiel Sanabria Medina, the penalty of 40 months imprisonment to Elvis Axl Viquez to the penalty of 48 months imprisonment for the crime of gang activity.
    After the prosecution's appeal, the Superior Court amended the judgment of 10 January and increased the sentence to 120 months imprisonment to all these accused as perpetrators of the crime of gang activity.
    In addition, convicted as perpetrators of the crime of gang activity to eight persons who were acquitted at first instance by the trial judge
    In that judgment the Court of first instance had been acquitted: Gatian Odilio Mendoza, Guillermo Anfernee Samundio Horacio González, Manuel Alejandro Reyes, Jospeh Anthony Rovira, Eduardys Clemente Rivers Quintero, Carlos Alberto Lezcano, José Camilo Rivera Arauz and Randy Luis Arosemena Villarreal, of the gang charges for which they had been called to trial.
    The prosecutor Murgas said in his stall the discrepancy in this judgment, indicating that there were legal and evidentiary elements that evidence linking the defendants, making it clear that it did not agree with the penalty imposed, because the defendants belong to the gang "Niño Divino" of Chiriqui.
    Support the prosecutor in his notice of appeal, that there is evidence of the identification of the members of the gang, on-site inspections, police reports, inspections to social networks that give account of the link that exists between them and the tattoos that have each of the defendants, as well as the declaration of protected witnesses.
    Murgas argued that this gang is dedicated to collective security offenses, possession and trafficking of arms and explosives and sale of drugs, facts for which the Court accepted their request and amended the judgment with the signing of the Judges Carlos Humberto Slopes, Carmen Luz de Gracia and Asuncion Castillo.
    source Ministerio Publico
  2. Keith Woolford
    Public Ministry Charges 43 Individuals in the Odebrecht Case
    Officials at the Public Ministry have been under terrific pressure from civic groups and the press to move ahead with justice in this case.  It must have taken thousands of work hours by prosecutors and forensic accountants to put these charges together.
    The Brazilian mega constructor is still working for Panama on projects including the Tocumen Airport expansion and the massive Colon redevelopment scheme.
    Odebrecht has worked in a dozen or more countries and paid bribes to government officials in almost every one of them. They even had a separate division set up exclusively to organize and effect laundered payments to whomever, wherever. 
    Organized crime is an understatement in this case.
     
  3. Keith Woolford
    Report Concludes Panama Requires More Skilled Labour
    12 Jul 2017 Catherine Perea 03.38pm
    A progress report on the 'Evolution, Situation and Prospects of Employment in Panama' concluded that the Panamanian economy generated 104,156 jobs between August 2014 and March 2017 and will continue to generate jobs, requiring more trained Panamanian human resource personnel.
    The Ministry of Labor and Social Development, MITRADEL, said that 39,230 people entered the labor market between March 2016 and March 2017, of which 38,269 (98%) found stable employment.
    This figure is 40% higher than the 27,397 jobs created between March 2015 and March 2016, which in turn has had an important impact on the decline in unemployed, 18,392 between 2014 to 2015 and 10,226 between 2015 to 2016, down to only 961 between 2016 to 2017.
    With regard to the evolution of employment by educational level, two out of every three jobs require 12 years of schooling and the trend over the past 10 years is that 81% of new jobs are demanding 12 or more years of schooling, 47% of them university degrees.
    The average age in the new formal jobs 2016-2017 is 53 years, 8 above the average in 2009-2014, as referred to in the report of the United Nations High Commission for Employment (2014), which reiterates the importance of maturity and the "soft skills" as fundamental requirements for the sustainability of youth into the labour market.
    The report was presented on Wednesday at a press conference of the Ministry of Labor and Social Development, in which the holder of that portfolio, Luis Ernesto Carles, in addition to representatives of chambers of commerce as APEDE, CONEP, CAPAC, and international bodies such as the International Labor Organization (ILO).
    At the same it was recommended to strengthen programs of the National Institute of Vocational Training for Human Development (INADEH), strengthen and promote entrepreneurship, and productive inclusion through the authority of the Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (AMPYME), and, on the other hand, in the initiatives that the Ministry can develop in partnership with the employer sector unions.
    source: Telemetro
  4. Keith Woolford
    About twenty 'excursionists' had to be plucked off Volcan Baru last night around midnight, with the first group arriving to Boquete about 5:00 a.m.
    What's up with these folks? One guy there appears to be only wearing a t-shirt.
    Does anyone else feel that these tpes should be heavily fined or sentenced to community service.? These rescues cost money, and a lot of lost sleep, for personnel and volunteers who are putting their own selves at risk.
    No word as to whether the partiers are foreigners or nationals.
    https://twitter.com/BCBRP/status/944907296278228992 
     
  6. Keith Woolford
    A link to this great bit of satire showed up somewhere today.
    Russia 2018: Selection of Panama will Train in Chiriqui

    The Sele is already training in Boquete to acclimatize to the low temperatures in the face of their first match in Russia 2018 against Belgium
    Moscow  -  After the culmination of the draw for the 2018 World Federation, it was decided that the Panamanian Selection will train in Chiriqui to acclimatize for what will be their first World Cup appearance.
    The Panamanian Football Federation (FEPAFUT) commented on the climate of the host country, specifically on the snow storms that hit Moscow, the Russian capital.
    "We have accepted the invitation of a Chiricano colleague', someone who has lived in the flesh in the Russian climate, who indicates to us that the climate in Russia is nothing compared to what it's like to live in Chiriqui", and he facilitated the stay so that the selection can train in sub-zero temperatures, which according to the Chiricanos are very similar to those experienced in Russia'- said FEPAFUT
    Many Panamanians present at the drawing indicated that the weather can be an important factor for Panama, which will start the World Cup trying to gain points from Belgium, a team prepared to play in cold weather. The newly convened Gregorio Querini also made comments but did not confirm the date on which the Panamanian selection will train in Chiriqui.
    The Chiricano stated that the Russian winters are like a summer breeze in comparison to the cold weather of the Highlands Chiricanas. 
    "It's not for nothing they call them the Alpes Chiricanos", he commented.
  8. Keith Woolford
    Expect the Unexpected
    When Police were called away and left behind some traffic cones on the highway to Bocas near Chiriquicito, a couple of guys went into business for themselves. They set up a roadblock and were shaking down motorists while wearing vests from the D.I.J.
    They were  later arrested and found to be members of the 'Kilamanjaro' gang. Two firearms were recovered.
    https://www.tvn-2.com/nacionales/Detectan-falso-reten-Chiriqui-detenidos_0_4809269055.html
  11. Keith Woolford
    In 1962, during the JFK administration, the U.S. explored the possibility of widening the Panama Canal by exploding atomic devices. A program called Project Plowshare was looking for peacetime uses of nuclear power.
    National Security Action Memorandum No. 152 (dated April 30, 1962, subject: Panama Canal Policy and Relations with Panama) signed by President Kennedy is still in effect. In particular, this memo states that, "The Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission, will establish within the Plowshare Program a research goal to determine within approximately the next five years the feasibility, costs and other factors involved in nuclear methods of excavation," (referring, of course, to the Trans-Isthmian Canal).   
    Another Plowshare proposal was to blow a totally new sea-level waterway through Nicaragua nicknamed the Pan-Atomic Canal
     
     
  13. Keith Woolford
    President Varela is returning from opening the new Panamanian Embassy in China with at least a dozen and a half economic agreements beneficial to business and agriculture.
    Today he proposed that Panama become China's platform in Central America.
    Young adults from Panama are being hosted in China on cultural missions to prepare them for ?
    Varela proposes Panama as a China’s platform in Latin America
      EFE Mon, 11/20/2017 - 11:16   Panamanian President Juan Carlos Varela said on Monday that Panama will play a key role as China's platform in Latin America in investment, transport, logistics and tourism.
    The country's central position in Latin America and the Caribbean, plus the Canal and the fact that Panama is a financial and logistical hub, with legal security and political stability, "will help us channel a lot of investment from China", Varela said at a press conference where he closed the Beijing stage of the first official visit by a Panamanian leader to the Asian country.
    Varela went over the main achievements of this trip and noted his confidence that, despite Latin American countries are eager to attract Chinese investment and trade, Panama will attract a significant part of the Asian giant's economic activity in that region.
    "There will certainly be a lot of (Chinese) investment in the region, but each country has to create favorable conditions" to attract it, he highlighted, and said that he hopes  not only to atract Chinese investment in his country, but also in other countries of the region with Panama as a base.
    The Panamanian president also considered that the "strategic partnership" between his country and the United States "is fully compatible" with the "approach" to China and its use of the Panamanian platform to "increase its presence in Latin America".
    Varela recalled that there are Chinese companies that are building a cruise port in Panama, including water projects and housing, or are established in the Colon Free Zone, with investments totaling 1,000 million dollars until the establishment of diplomatic relations in June.
    "I am sure that many Chinese companies will follow the same route," he said, trusting that "Panama will be the door for many Chinese companies in Latin America".
    Concerning transport, Varela highlighted the importance of the air "hub" of his country, with connections to almost 80 American cities, that will be reinforced when, starting in March 2018, Air China will beging the first Beijing-Panama direct flight with a technical stop in Houston (USA), which "will boost tourism between the two countries".
    The president and his delegation also traveled to Shanghai by high-speed train to see first-hand the Chinese system, the largest in the world, and try to apply it to the project of a fast line of passengers and goods to neighboring Costa Rica, from where it could be then extended to the rest of Mesoamerica.
    Varela said he has been invited to take part in the tourism fair to be held next May in Hangzhou (east), and highlighted that Panama is going to join the multi-destination strategy with tourist countries such as Costa Rica or Cuba to attract the growing number of Chinese visitors abroad.
    Linked to tourism and the displacement of business executives is the issue of visas, and Varela recalled that very shortly before traveling to China his government approved the flexibility of formalities for Chinese citizens to obtain a visa quickly, "in 24 or 48 hours".
    He explained that Panama has already presented "an important project" of Chinese funding in those connectivity projects in the region and also of the Panamanian territory with the Asian giant, within the New Silk Routes launched by the communist regime.
    Panama thus closed its way through Beijing in the first visit of a president of this country to China after the establishment of diplomatic relations in June. Varela said that this process "is going to be a model to be followed by other countries" that still maintain relations with Taiwan.
    In this sense, Varela said that the decision is "permanent" and "is not connected" to the evolution of economic exchanges.
    In Shanghai, the Panamanian president will inaugurate the consulate, hold discussions to increase bilateral cooperation in maritime transport, participate in a business forum and hold the PanamaFest, a celebration to promote Chinese tourism in his country.
    http://www.panamatoday.com/panama/varela-proposes-panama-chinas-platform-latin-america-5794
  15. Keith Woolford
    Yesterday, when full of Christmas Eve shoppers, there was a big upset in Multiplaza, Panama's most upscale mall.

    Word got passed around on social media that the President was going to be giving away free Nike shoes there. All a body had to do was show up and ask for the shoes to be charged to the account of Juan Carlos Varela, so hundreds of people arrived for the supposed giveaway, which of course didn't happen.
    https://www.prensa.com/sociedad/Piden-Juan-Carlos-Varela-Presidencia_0_4924757492.html#.WkAq10CsnIw.twitter
  16. Keith Woolford
    Corruption is a very noticeable issue here because most of it happens secretly but becomes a big deal when exposed.  In other countries it's more routine because it's thinly disguised as lobbying, consulting, and unlimited campaign contributions.
    This is a good article as to why efforts are failing to eliminate corruption.

    Why are anti-corruption success stories still the exception?
    After decades of fighting corruption, measured by hundreds of new (or renewed) commitments, institutions and laws, as well as by millions of euros spent, success stories are still the exception, not the norm. This raises the question, what does and does not work in fighting corruption?
    In their book Transition to Good Governance (2017), authors Muniu-Pippidi and Johnston analyse ten countries that successfully reduced corruption. Their conclusions could give anti-corruption campaigners sleepless nights, because anti-corruption measures are not necessarily what explain their success.
    For example, the authors found no evidence to support the widely held belief that placing restrictions on political party finance contributes to reducing corruption. More shockingly, the authors argue that some anti-corruption instruments “might even prompt more illegal practices or measures that can be applied everywhere”. The book concludes that structural aspects, such as political agency and modernisation of the state, play a significant role in determining whether anti-corruption efforts are successful or not.
    It seems the desire to abuse entrusted power for private gain is stronger than any governance system.
    A second piece of research undermines the argument that correlates decentralisation and reduced corruption. ‘Decentralisation, Multilevel Governance and Corruption’, developed by the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) in collaboration with the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD) in Bangladesh and the Centre for Democracy and Development (CDD) in Nigeria, shows that local elections and forms of government do not necessarily imply less corruption. Not only is corruption a consequence of poor decentralisation implementation, it also shapes local forms of decentralisation.
    Two important conclusions can be drawn from these studies: corruption not only adapts to particular circumstances, but the circumstances may also adapt to established corruption dynamics; and measures that exclusively target corruption do not always make a difference.
    Is corruption an infinite game that we are playing with finite rules?
    In his latest work, Simon Sinek explains war and corporations in terms of a finite vs. infinite game, which can also apply to corruption. In a finite game there are fixed rules, an agreed objective, and winners and losers. In an infinite game, the rules may change, the objective is simply to perpetuate the game, and there are no clear winners or losers. The only thing that players can do in an infinite game is drop out — either when they run out of resources or lose the will to keep playing.
    Applying these concepts to corruption, it’s clear that corruption finds its way by changing the rules, overstepping them or taking new forms as the world evolves. Corrupt individuals do not necessarily set out to win against those opposed to them, but instead to perpetuate or to create a status quo to increase their privileges or financial gain. Corruption could be considered an infinite game.
    Anti-corruption as a finite strategy
    For mainstream anti-corruption programmes, corruption represents an enemy to defeat. The effectiveness of these programmes is usually measured by the extent to which corruption is reduced or eliminated.
    In practical terms, the dominant approach in the last few decades consists of making the cost of corruption higher than the benefits by strengthening laws, increasing the scrutiny capacity of institutions, reducing the discretion of public officials, and increasing institutional transparency and accountability. These factors are based on Klitgaard’s corruption formula: Corruption = Monopoly + Discretion — Accountability. These are indicators of a finite anti-corruption strategy with clear objectives to defeat corruption.
    Instability in the game
    Following Sinek’s approach, when a finite player plays against an infinite player, the game is unstable. In business, a finite player could represent a company driven by its desire to beat the competition. Conversely, an infinite player is a company motivated by its vision of the world and its interest in making better products or providing better services in order to achieve that vision, regardless of the competition.
    In this scenario, the infinite player cannot be defeated by a competitor because becoming better is an endless endeavour. This causes the constant frustration of competitors trying to beat them, who can only continue playing the game until they either run out of resources or lose the will to keep playing. Similar to corruption, in an infinite contest new players will always emerge.
    What can anti-corruption programmes do?
    The way to play an infinite game is to make decisions based on values — which are infinite — rather than solely based on interests — which are finite. Anti-corruption strategies that take an infinite approach not only advance concrete and necessary measures against corruption, but also focus on perpetuating the values opposite to what corruption represents. New approaches like promoting integrity and behavioural change suggest this direction. In these cases, corruption is not the root of the problem, but the consequence of having specific values and vision.
    The benefits of an infinite strategy
    An infinite strategy focuses on what we want (societies run ethically and with integrity) rather than on what we do not want (corruption). The infinite strategy is not about taking away the ‘benefits’ of corruption (for those who find benefits in it). Instead it is about giving legitimate alternatives to achieve what corrupt individuals ultimately want (a better life). In pursuing an infinite strategy and experiencing the benefits of this vision, corruption may not be defeated, but eventually it may run out of the will to keep playing the game.
    https://voices.transparency.org/why-are-anti-corruption-success-stories-still-the-exception-9a30e5f4cf39
  17. Keith Woolford
    It's my personal opinion that immigrants to a foreign country should, without losing their identity, make an effort to assimilate.
    That includes keeping up to date with current events. The value derived is, in part, a better understanding of local people, their culture and governance.
     
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