Moderators Moderator_03 Posted December 9, 2023 Author Moderators Share Posted December 9, 2023 Quote Union leaders face judicial process Saul Mendez - SUNTRAC Posted 08/12/2023 The union leaders Saúl Méndez, Jaime Caballero, as well as one of the indigenous leaders Toribio García, and the teacher Diógenes Sánchez face a judicial process for the alleged commission of a crime against freedom and the economic order. The municipal representative of the district of David, Chiriquí, Alberto Concepción, requested the appointment of public defenders to these four leaders, who participated in the demonstrations and road blockades during the protests against the mining contract. Caballero - a member of the Construction and Similar Workers Union (Suntracs) along with Méndez - said this Thursday, December 7, he went to the official's office to learn about the process. “It is a complaint that has been filed against the social fighters of this country,” he said. According to the Chirican union leader, “there are not enough elements” to accuse them of committing the aforementioned crimes. For more than 30 days, harsh demonstrations and street closures were recorded throughout the country in rejection of Law 406, which had approved the contract between the State and Minera Panamá, but on November 28 was declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. of Justice. https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/union-leaders-face-judicial-process Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Moderator_03 Posted December 10, 2023 Author Moderators Share Posted December 10, 2023 Quote Mining crisis creates racism Posted 09/12/2023 The sociologist and researcher Jesús Alemancía analyzes in “Portada” the situation in the country, and how the arguments against street closures have brought to light discrimination against indigenous people. After several consecutive days of anti-mining demonstrations have passed, tensions are growing between those who demand an end to the closures and those who continue protesting in the streets due to mistrust that the Supreme Court will rule in favor of the company Minera Panamá. The speeches against the protesters have even acquired discriminatory overtones against the indigenous population that demonstrates against mining, mainly in the provinces of Veraguas and Chiriquí. A situation that, in the opinion of sociologist and researcher Jesús Alemancía, classist and racist elements persist in Panama and become more evident in crises such as the one generated after the approval of the mining contract. He explained last Tuesday, Dec.5 to “La Portada” of La Estrella de Panamá, that this behavior has deep roots and is fed by myths repeated as truths. There is a dominance of Hispanic expressions inherited from the colony, over others, such as Afro and indigenous cultures, and it is greatly manifested in the concept of “the melting pot of races”. “I don't think there is a more hypocritical myth than that of the “melting pot of races”, because that responds to the construction of nationality under a cultural and social hierarchy, above is the pollera (Hispanic elements), and the rest of the population with its different manifestations: culture move around that. From that myth, it is said that there is no racism here, and that is a lie,” he pointed out. Within this logic there is a class component, in which the discriminatory treatment also begins to incorporate the precariousness suffered by the population, he analyzed. In the opinion of this sociologist, the incidents of violence between “large producers” and indigenous people are not explained only as a conflict between people who block streets and others who want to pass, but rather as structural relations of inequality long before the protest. “The issue of producers can be understood from the point of view of their economic interests. But we also must understand that the same people who are closing the roads are their workforce, on their farms. The main agricultural labor force in that area (western Chiriqui) is the Ngäbe Buglé people. So, every time there are tensions, that racism flourishes,” he said. Alemancía pointed out, that racism has to do with social policies that have failed in the region, an area historically excluded from the national development policies. A problem aggravated by the clientelist dynamics installed from outside, and that different political forces take advantage of this, and use it for electoral purposes. https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/mining-crisis-creates-racism Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Moderator_03 Posted December 16, 2023 Author Moderators Share Posted December 16, 2023 Quote Five deaths could have been avoided during mining protests if State had acted - Ombudsman Posted 15/12/2023 There were “multiple violations” in all aspects during citizen protests over the mining issue between October and December reports the Ombudsman, Eduardo Leblanc. “The right to work, freedom of expression, freedom of opinion, and freedom of business was violated, in addition, we are studying freedom of association, freedom of education, health, the right to consultation, among others, which occurred in the context of the demonstrations and closures that occurred in the country,” Leblanc told the media. The official also reported that there are still three road closures, between the areas of Colón and Coclé, close to the mine. This situation entails violations of human rights, he stressed. According to Leblanc, “Even if it was an organization or union that closed the streets, the State's duty was to arrive, negotiate and achieve the opening of roads.” “We believe that this happened in a sociopolitical context and lack of response from the State,” he added. Two aspects highlighted in the report are that there were no deaths at the hands of public security institutions; However, there were five deaths that could have been avoided “if the State had attended to the prompt opening of the streets through a commission or an interlocutor,” said Leblanc. The Ombudsman's Office is also waiting for a report from the University of Panama on the expired tear gas that was used in the protests, and the cases of the three people who lost their sight and it was probably because of the pellets. This is something that investigations must determine, he noted. Finally, the Ombudsman called on all citizens to continue working for peace. “2024 is a very turbulent year, it is a political year and we must continue working for Panama,” he stressed. The statements occurred in the middle of an activity where a thematic report was presented on the human rights situation of people with HIV and the populations at highest risk. https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/five-deaths-could-have-been-avoided-during-mining-protests-if-state-had-acted-ombudsman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Moderator_03 Posted February 28 Author Moderators Share Posted February 28 Quote Retired cops block highway for five hours Posted 26/02/2024 After five hours of staggered closure, the Inter-American highway, in the Divisa sector, was reopened this Monday. The road blockade was carried out by a group of retirees from the National Police, who demand payment of the seniority premium that, according to them, is from 2014 to date. In addition, they request that those who have retired in recent years, after having completed 30 years of service in the institution, also be included in the retirement list. The closure caused a huge traffic jam, affecting those traveling to and from the central provinces. At noon the protesters opened the road for about 15 minutes but then re-blocked the passage. Around 1:00 pm the road was cleared by the protesters, whose leaders met behind closed doors with the Deputy Minister of Security, Igor Pitti , and the director of the National Police, John Dorheim . At the end of the meeting, Dorheim said that by instructions from the Minister of Security, Juan Manuel Pino, individual calculations of the seniority bonus are being made, so that the amounts to be paid are included in the general state budget for 2025. The spokesperson for the retired police officers, Faustina González , said that the authorities committed that by March 15 they will have the amount that corresponds to each former police officer. However, they were informed that those who retired from April 2014 to April 2025 are expected to be added to the list. González said that the authorities' response was not entirely satisfactory, because they will have to wait until the new promotions retire. Gonzáles said that they will wait until March 15 and that depending on the achievements they will continue with the protest actions. Earlier, when the road was closed, González stated that several promotions of the institution have completed a year or more since they reached 30 years of service and have not yet been able to be included in the retirement list, which It is an unprecedented situation. She added that even more worrying is the fact that all the deductions are being applied to all these police officers, but that the representation expense to which they are entitled when they hold the rank of captain was automatically suspended. She said they have not received payment of the thirteenth salary either, despite continuing to appear on the list of active police officers. Likewise, González pointed out that the law establishes that every retiree who leaves the institution in which he worked (since 2014) has the right to have his seniority bonus processed. "We are not demanding that they give us anything, we are demanding that, as an institution that guarantees compliance with the laws, they comply with the law”. https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/retired-cops-block-highway-for-five-hours Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Moderator_03 Posted March 13 Author Moderators Share Posted March 13 Quote Social Media Stated that Kenneth Darlington was Transferred to House Arrest Posted 12/03/2024 Social Media had been spreading the rumor that 77 year old Kenneth Darlington, the Panamanian/American Lawyer and Professor who shot and killed two persons in Chame during the November protests, was taken from jail and placed under house arrest. Lawyer Eliécer Plicet vehemently denied that the precautionary measure of preventive detention was changed to house arrest, as circulated on some social networks. The Public Ministry also denied that Darlington benefited from a change in this precautionary measure. Kenneth has been imprisoned since November 7 of 2023, when he shot and killed teacher Abdiel Díaz Chávez and Mr. Iván Rodríguez Mendoza in the middle of a closure on the Inter-American highway in Chame Panama. Plicet, who serves as the plaintiff attorney in the case, assured that he will never allow, "under any circumstances, the measure to be changed." "The man remains detained" in the La Nueva Joya penitentiary center, "in such a way that in this scenario no hearing has been held to review the precautionary measure," which is the only way and/or "procedural mechanism" that could be used to "get into a discussion of this type," he said. Plicet's statement comes after some social network accounts posted information stating that Darlington, accused of aggravated double intentional homicide and possession and trafficking of weapons and explosives, had received a change of precautionary measure. https://www.newsroompanama.com/news/social-media-stated-that-kenneth-darlington-was-transferred-to-house-arrest Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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