Defense lawyers representing Desarrollo Golf Coronado, whose President and Legal Representative is I. Roberto Eisenmann, presented two injunctions against two decisions of the Department of Revenue (DGI), confirming a fiscal reach (taxes) of $3,076,000 dollars the company must pay to the treasury. The actions filed on 14 May 2012, are against the decisions of the DGI resolve the request for reconsideration presented by Desarrollo Golf Coronado, and which confirm the taxes which must be paid. Resolution 201-84 requires the payment of $2.2 million dollars in taxes for fiscal years 2008 to 2010, while the other requires the payment of $900,000 in taxes for the period 2007 to 2011. Both were issued on January 4, 2012. The appeals were issued on May 18 to be resolved by magistrate Harry Diaz, who also has two requests for habeas data (like freedom of information requests) submitted by Eisenmann asking the DGI to provide information about the audits of his company. (Prensa)   

300,000 quintals of imported rice arrived on Panamanian soil and will be unloaded this week from the ship Harapag Hooper, from Louisiana, USA. The most important grain for the Panamanian table was acquired by the Institute for Agricultural Marketing to supply the Solidarity Food program, through the Jumbo Fairs the institution has conducted nationwide.

Mr. Oscar McKay, deputy director of the IMA, who was present at the landing, said "the measure of this load of imported rice is due to the consumption by Panamanians, the domestic production is greater than what is normally recorded annually in the country."

Therefore the IMA, as guarantor of the preservation of the rice market, continues to buy rice to meet its responsibility to the Panamanian people to bring products to the basic food basket at lower cost. It is noteworthy that the first imported contingent of this type was held in January 2012, which landed 150,000 quintals of rice, or only half of the current demand. With this new batch of rice it is estimated that with consumption based on free markets, it will last about four months.

The newly imported rice is destined for mills in Chiriqui, Veraguas, Cocle and Panama City, where it will be shelled and packaged before being distributed in the IMA Jumbo Stores and Jumbo Fairs, and for marketing. (Dia a Dia)

Editor's Comment: There is a greater demand for rice in Panama, and the demand outpaces local production capability. Even though rice growers in Panama are setting new records for production every year, there is still a need to import rice from the United States in order to meet local demand.   

In good Panamanian (language), the National Authority of Land Management (Anati) took the Governor of Cocle, Fernando Núñez Fábrega, away from the table. And the fishermen of Playa La Pacora may breathe easier after the Anati determines which are national lands that cannot be granted to anyone. This was confirmed by the administrator of this entity, Franklin Oduber, during an inspection tour in conjunction with fishermen, lawyers and local authorities.

He went further to say there is no reason for him to say the fishermen are occupying private lands, so therefore it is not possible to enforce any kind of an eviction in the area, and he added that what will be done is to provide an administrative grant for use by the Association of Fishermen of La Pacora, so they can resume their fishing activities on the site. He added that the most important element in the case of La Pacora is that this example can be replicated elsewhere in the country, where there are many fishermen that are currently being evicted from their areas, and that an administrative concession may solve their problems.

Silvio Guerra, an attorney for the fishermen, said what happened has returned the peace to the fishermen of La Pacora, because in a matter of days they will be given recognition for an administrative concession for a long period to stay on the beach. "It has been established that governor Fernando Nuñez Fabrega never had the reason or legal justification or in fact to attack these poor people, accompanied by a local Justice of the Peace to act as an instrument of selfish interests," remarked the lawyer. Nuñez Fabrega is known in the political world as the "Captain."

Guerra also reported the Superior Court of the Second Judicial District of Cocle and Veraguas upheld the dismissal of the mayor of Rio Hato, Melquicidec Bernal, so he asked the mayor of Anton, Jorge Caceres, to stop congregating with the appropriate authorities, and to fire the Justice of the Peace who is usurping public functions. (Mi Diario)   

About 2,000 surgeries were cancelled as a result of work stoppages in the health sector, led by the Administrative Officers Association of the Social Security Fund (ANFACSS), which today enters its ninth day. This was confirmed by Javier Diaz, director of Medical Services of the Social Security Fund, adding that about 360 surgeries have not been scheduled. He added that they have lost 1,500 appointments of General Medicine.

New Proposal - Faced with the loss of appointments and the slow pace of dialogue between unions, the authorities of the Social Security Fund (CSS) and the Ministry of Health (MOH), the latter gave yesterday a proposal to be reviewed by union leaders. This proposal contains, among the main points, discounting the days not worked during the strike (docking of pay), and the establishment of a commission to create a program to retrieve appointments and surgeries that have been lost during downtime. Once this plan is implemented, they will pay for the time not worked during the strike.

The unions agreed to meet today to discuss this new proposal, despite having agreed to talk only on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. "We will analyze the proposal made by the authorities, so today we hope to reach an end of conflict," said Priscilla Vasquez, president of the ANFACSS.

Although the negotiations held by the guilds of health are ongoing, ANFACSS held yesterday a protest on Via Transístmica. Starting a week ago, the 37 health unions remain on strike began a work stoppage demanding mainly the evaluation of the pay scale and better medical conditions for users. They added a demand for the reinstatement of the seven officials dismissed during the strike. (Siglo)

Editor's Comment: In the Panamanian public health system, people (patients) sometimes have to wait months for a medical appointment or a simple surgery. When they say that a surgery has been "lost" due to the strike, for the patient that means they now will have to wait an additional six months for the surgery to be reprogrammed.   

Not later than December 12 this year, Panamanians must be adapted to the new measurement system, which replaces pounds with kilos and gallons with liters, based on Law 52 of 2007. The Directorate of Metrology will start as of today, Tuesday 22 May a series of lectures at the Sheraton Hotel from 8:00 am to guide citizens on the new measurement system. Javier Arias and Saul Garcia, director and deputy director respectively of Metrology, said on TVN am news that the new measures will not lead to an increase of commodity prices. They said the measure is an international standard that Panama has to abide by, and it aims to have a unique language to globalize this system.

Both officials stressed the need for Panamanians to assimilate the change, because the objective is to measure accurately to improve product quality. Arias and Garcia said the balances will be checked, because shops would have to modify the scales for manual use or buy new scales. Officials admitted in Panama there is a lack of culture to quality, evidenced by the sale of bread by weight, as many argued it would raise the price of this product. While acknowledging that perhaps in some places the price of bread has increased, regular bread has not changed, and we have a variety of breads and people pay for quality. (TVN)

Editor's Comment: So, by 12 December 2012, Panama will switch from pounds and gallons to kilos and liters.   

The National Assembly of Panama began an extraordinary session, which runs until June 8 to discuss four bills submitted by the Executive, among them one that creates a sovereign fund with domestic savings and contributions from the Panama Canal. The Assembly Speaker, Hector Aparicio, opened the meeting in a brief ceremony attended by the Minister of Economy and Finance, Frank De Lima, who introduced the bill creating the Savings Fund of Panama (FAP) or Sovereign Fund. In addition to the savings fund, they will discuss a Bill amending the Criminal Code to increase penalties for drug crimes, another to make an allowance for the disabled called the "Guardian Angel Program," and the fourth that regulates the provision of electric utility services.

In the preamble, De Lima said the government has proposed the Savings Fund as a "countercyclical tool and national savings." De Lima pointed out that the Fund will have two parallel objectives: "savings and economic stabilization", and that internationally, he said, sovereign funds encourage governments to save surplus income to achieve important goals for their countries. According to the minister, by not having this tool, Panama "will remain vulnerable to unexpected negative events such as natural disasters and economic downturns, and must resort to borrowing to cope." The Ministry of Finance explained in a statement that the sovereign fund will serve to address the damage caused by natural disasters that are greater than 1.2% ($150 million dollars) of the gross domestic product (GDP). It will also serve to implement policies or programs of public investment to revive the economy, if the economy enters into a recession, or economic growth below 2% for two consecutive quarters, he said.

The sovereign fund will be capitalized initially with one hundred percent of the assets of the Trust Fund for Development of about $1.2 billion dollars, while future contributions will come from surplus produced by the Panama Canal from 2015 when it is working with its expansion. The Trust Fund For Development, which was created during the government of Ernesto Perez Balladares (1994-1999) with funds from privatization, will cease to exist when the assets pass to the new Sovereign Fund. The four projects will be subject to a public consultation period and must be approved in three readings by the deputies for their subsequent approval by Panamanian President Ricardo Martinelli. (Telemetro)

Editor's Comment: Good plan. Right now the Trust Fund For Development has about $1.2 billion dollars, the same amount it's had basically since it was created. The interest earned by that fund is passed to the central economy to be spent, but the capital remains intact. It has not grown because there was no mechanism in place that would allow for that to occur. The new Sovereign Fund fixes that. New money from the expanded Panama Canal will be placed into the Sovereign Fund as a hedge against the possibility of future natural disasters such as floods or earthquakes. And, if the economy of Panama takes a downturn, and annual GDP growth is at 2% or less, then a future president will be able to tap into the Sovereign Fund to pay for needed government infrastructure projects, to create jobs and boost economic activity. Also, it's being set up in a way to "force" future presidents or administrations to save and be responsible.   

Panameñista party president Juan Carlos Varela and the new U.S. ambassador in Panama, Jonathan Farrar, met at the headquarters of the political collective. Varela, who is also the Vice President of Panama, Vice President was accompanied by members of the board of directors of the Panameñista party, who spoke with ambassador Farrar on national issues, human rights and international relations. Ambassador Farrar, when leaving the meeting with Varela, said he would be meeting with the leaders of other political parties and civic groups to learn more about Panama. (Critica)

Editor's Comment: Barring any unusual or unforeseen circumstances, Ambassador Farrar will likely be in his position through the next general national election in Panama in May 2014, so the sooner he can get up to speed on the local politics, the better. Most people who are not Panamanians don't fully understand or appreciate the importance and impact the US Ambassador can have on Panamanian politics. The Republic of Panama was quite literally created by the United States in 1903 so the US could build the Panama Canal. There was a strong US military presence in Panama through 1999, and of course the government of the United States ran the Panama Canal for 85 years, starting with its opening in 1914. Historically speaking the impact and influence of the United States on Panama, and the lives of every day Panamanians, has been tremendous. And as such, the US Ambassador in Panama can wield a great deal of influence if he or she so chooses, at least in the headlines.   

At least 30 families were made homeless early Tuesday morning by a fire that consumed the entire insides and belongings of those who inhabited an old condemned building number 7027, located on 9th Street between Ave. Central and Ave. Melendez in the city of Colon. Units from the Colon Fire Department were able to control the blaze an hour later, due to low water pressure. Deputy Chief Commander Nemesio Wood explained that fortunately they had the backing of a tanker from the Water and Sewerage Authority (IDAAN). Some of the families managed to salvage some of their belongings, while others could only save their lives, and watch as the huge flames engulfed the building and consumed what was once their home, so they hope to have immediate relief from local authorities. Officers from the National Police and SINAPROC arrived at the site of the tragedy to maintain order and security of the people who inhabited the building. Staff of the Ministry of Housing and Land Management came at 6:00 am to make a census of the homeless. Meanwhile the district mayor of Colon, Damaso Garcia, immediately said they would offer food for families for several days. (Estrella)

   

President Ricardo Martinelli said the government will continue to drive initiatives that promote the installation of multinationals, during the opening of new regional offices of Procter & Gamble. This is due to Law 41 of 2007 which facilitates the installation of Multinational Corporations in Panama, and President Martinelli celebrated the installation of regional offices in Panama, which after four years in the country has "generated a great economic impact." He added Panama offers many business opportunities with competitive advantages that should be utilized for making further investments that represent the generation of new jobs. "This company has been a pioneer in Panama to participate in a national project, and now more than 68 multinational companies have set up their regional headquarters in our country," said Martinelli. (Panama America)

   

The government representatives who are in the dialogue with striking health care workers will l respond tomorrow to the counter proposal presented this morning by the the leaders of the unions, said Eusebio Munoz, mediator from the Catholic Church in these talks. Muñoz said "the positions have come closer" during the talks. However, the parties must consult and analyze the discussion. The meeting will resume tomorrow Wednesday, May 23, at 9:00 am.

After the proposal submitted by the various unions in the health sector, the representatives of the Social Security Fund and the Ministry of Health will have to go to consult with their respective boards of directors tomorrow to respond, said Muñoz. Meanwhile the medical and health technicians will be working on this approach. Munoz said in the dialogue there are some "small things" that need to be fixed. (Prensa)   

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - Wow. Today Executive Order 343 of 16 May 2012 was published in the Official Gazette, "that creates within the immigration category of Permanent Resident, the sub-category of Permanent Resident in the form of foreign nationals from specific countries that maintain friendly, professional, economic, and investment relationships with the Republic of Panama."

Executive Summary - Short Answer Up Front: The government of Panama has just created an entirely new immigration sub-category to make it easier for citizens from specific countries to obtain Permanent Residency status. Within this status newly qualified permanent residents will be able to exercise professional or economic activities - such as create a business or get a job. I suspect the "hand brake" will be the Ministry of Labor, so if they ever need to in the future they can either shut down or slow down the granting of work permits. But anyway, this is it. This is the big move I have been expecting for years. This is what the government of Panama has decided to do in order to ease their shortage of qualified workers. This move will allow the economy of Panama to keep growing. The text of the Executive Order is full of references to contributing to the growth of the Panamanian economy. Read on, kind folk, because it just got a whole lot easier to move to Panama, and to live here and work here as a Permanent Resident, if you're carrying the right color of passport. (more)    Click Here To Read The Full Article (738 words)

"We can defeat this mafia that is ruling Panama in 2014, and the only way, in our opinion, is by making a strong opposition. We have said that Ricardo Martinelli is a political corpse, who has lost the strategic initiative in politics." This is how the general secretary of the PRD, Mitchell Doens, spoke about the government and president Martinelli, who said his candidacy for reelection to his seat in the National Executive Committee (CEN), has the backing of the former presidents Ernesto Perez Balladares and Martin Torrijos, so he remains firm in his aspirations. Doens was responding to recent reports about a distancing from his candidacy by former president Perez Balladares. "This exists only in the mind of Ricardo Martinelli who has an obsession for taking the party leadership in the next Congress, to throw these divisive messages to try to confuse our people," he said.

Doens said the whole origin of this campaign comes out of the presidency, and from the fifth columns and Trojan horses that are inside of the PRD party. "We remain steadfast in our goal, which is to keep the party from falling into the hands of Ricardo Martinelli, and to make an opposition that is firm, which defends the followers of Torrijos, and that cares about the project of Torrijos as have done several members of the Committee National Executive," said Doens.

He said the presidents Balladares and Torrijos have also expressed their support to the presidency of the party for Dr. Francisco Sanchez Cardenas and several members of the CEN that have maintained a firm stance and opposition to Ricardo Martinelli. (Estrella)

Editor's Comment: The internal fight for control of the PRD is pretty much gelling around two poles, with Juan Carlos Navarro on one side, and the Doens "Tocona" group on the other. The anti-Navarro guys are trying hard to paint him as having sold out to Martinelli, as a "Trojan horse" or a traitor to the party. Of course Navarro denies this, but then of course how can he prove otherwise? Everyone sees the old goats like Doens and Sanchez Cardenas as the "dinosaurs" of the PRD, while Navarro basically represents the youth faction of the PRD that wants the renew or rejuvenate the party (mostly by tossing out the dinosaurs.) This one is hard to call. I think Navarro will win more votes, but then the "dinosaurs" will probably resort to their old tricks and flat-out steal it from him - just like they did last time. Remember the PRD still has some officials who can help them running around because they had control of the government from 2004 - 2009. The Panameñistas on the other hand, well, they're just screwed.   

A total of 200 cruise ships with more than 220,000 passengers crossed the Panama Canal in the recently concluded 2011-2012 season, officials said. The cruise season ended last May 17 with the passage of the Celebrity Millennium, a ship of Celebrity Cruises, a subsidiary of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line, detailed the Panama Canal Authority (ACP) in a statement. The Celebrity Millennium, which went through the interoceanic waterway from Miami, on the U.S. East Coast, made a 15-day journey to San Diego (California) in the U.S. West Coast.

According to Jaime Castillo, Office of Research and Market Analysis of the Panama Canal, between October 1, 2011, when the season started, until 17 May, there were 200 transits with a total of 222,203 cruise passengers board. According to Castillo, the routes of these vessels are usually of short duration, covering the Caribbean islands and the east and west coasts of Central America.

This season saw the first transit of the Panama waterway Norwegian Jewel cruise ship operated by Norwegian Cruise Line, on 5 May. This ship, with capacity for 2,376 passengers, sailed from New York in late April bound for Los Angeles, California (USA). (Panama America)   

Barro Blanco, Chiriquí. - Members of the Coordinating Committee for the Protection of Natural Resources and the Rights of the Ngäbe Bugle People, and the Chief Silvia Carrera, met on Monday, May 21, to address the issue of Barro Blanco, after clashes since last Friday with officials from the National Police. Indigenous leaders called on their members to remain in their communities and maintain a calm atmosphere that allows for the continuation of the technical committee that was formed to discuss the issue of hydropower projects. For his part, Alberto Montezuma, fiscal coordinator, said they still have not done the technical examination of the project because the United Nations specialists hope to have a calm atmosphere in order to proceed. (Prensa)   

You'll have to find somewhere else to walk. The Parque Omar in Panama City will be closed from 4:00 pm on Tuesday afternoon 22 May 2012 until dawn on Wednesday 23 May, because health authorities will be fumigating the entire part, the administration announced. Apparently the administration has to ensure the safety and health in the Parque Omar, so it offers its apologies to visitors. Executive Decree 51 of January 23, 2012 says in Chapter 1, Article 2 that the Recreation and Cultural Omar park will be closed only by fumigation or other circumstances that endanger the lives of their users. (Dia a Dia)   

Of the approximately 800 independent prostitutes working in Panama City, according to statistics from Ministry of Health (MOH), only 30 have attended the program for attention to sex workers created by this entity. This program was implemented three weeks ago by the MOH, but barely 2.4% of the sex workers have come to be attended. Aurelio Nunez, director of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus Program, said the focus project is new and "that's why very few have attended the clinic." Dulce Ana Torres, of the Network of Women with Dignity and Rights of Panama (MDDP), admitted only a few have gone to the health checks.

INTERNATIONAL DAY - The June 2 marks the International Sex Workers Day, or "ladies of the night" as they are known, so more than 1,500 independent prostitutes in Panama are preparing to celebrate the date with a meeting in which address issues of prevention, sexual health and the importance of the International Network of Sex Workers in Latin America and the Caribbean (Retrasex). "Through the MDDP network we achieved that, as of three weeks ago, for the MINSA to provide sexual health care to working girls on the street," said the representative of this group. In Panama there are a total of 1,800 independent prostitutes according to the Ministry of Health.

"DEMAND RESPECT" - Torres said they are not seeking to legalize prostitution, but rather to have their work respected. "We demand respect, and that the authorities do not discriminate against us because of the work that we do. We are human beings and we ask for the same rights as the rest of the population," she said. (Siglo)

Editor's Comment: When they say "independent prostitutes" in this article, they mean girls who are working on their own, who are not in Panama on an "alternadora" (entertainer) visa, who are not attached to an established night club, strip club, massage parlor, or brothel. Literally any woman in the world can fly to Panama, rent a room, get a cell phone, put an ad in the classifieds to give "massages" or whatever, and get to work. Most of them will get picked up on the street, with the meeting coordinated via cell phone, and then take the client to a push-button. There are no controls whatsoever on these girls, and this new initiative by the Ministry of Health is designed to allow them to get basic health checkups, controls, and information for free. And since it's a new program the girls are obviously a little skiddish, because they've been abused and taken advantage of by corrupt Immigration officials for years.   

The Ministry of Education reported on Monday that on Thursday May 24 there will be regular classes in all educational regions of the country, as established by the school calendar 2012, in response to the announcement made by union leader Andrés Rodríguez for educators not to participate in classes in order to participate in a march organized by the FRENADESO at 4:00 pm on that same day. In a statement, the MEDUCA said they respect the right of all sectors to exercise their freedom, in the sense that each one chooses, however it cannot be to the detriment of students. "A school day lost represents a delay and primary education is to provide our students the education service and attention they deserve, so that the teaching-learning process is not interrupted to the detriment of the student population," said MEDUCA. The MEDUCA statement concludes by reminding educators that the interests of some sectors cannot be placed above the interests of our students who deserve to be educated to succeed. (TVN)

Editor's Comment: FRENADESO is part of the effort to organize this new FAD political party. Do you think it's a coincidence that they are organizing a march at the same time the CSS strike is still going on? Of course not. Once again, FRENADESO and Andrés Rodríguez do not represent the majority of all public school teachers in Panama. Rather, they are a minority faction that has their own political motives. All of the elements of the FAD party are extreme left. Not just "left leaning" - they are way out there, left of Stalin...   

The lawyer Rogelio Cruz on Monday questioned the validity of the audit by the Comptroller General of the Republic in the case of the "duro dollars" against his client Dalvis Xiomara Sanchez, the former administrative secretary of the President during the administration of Mireya Moscoso (1999 - 2004). Cruz said on RPC Radio he had presented an appeal to the Second Tribunal of Justice, in which it is sought to reverse the decision of the Third Criminal Court that sentenced Sanchez to six years in prison. "We hope the Second Tribunal of Justice to revoke this decision because that's the only thing that can proceed," said Cruz.

The lawyer said based on her retirement, the officer had the ability to have saved $35,000 and the audit report had errors in the amounts of money. Cruz added that "Judge Adolfo Mejia has never valued the defense evidence with regards to the incriminating evidence, he has referred only to them without valuing them." A few weeks ago Cruz filed an appeal to the sentence of six years in prison for the unjustified enrichment of $215,390.52 imposed by the judge of the Third Criminal Court, Adolfo Mejia, through a sentence. (Telemetro)

Editor's Comment: So, they found more than $215K in the freezer of an executive secretary for the former president Mireya Moscoso, and the secretary is going to prison for six years. Does anyone think the secretary was the one who misappropriated the money? I would not be at all surprised if the Martinelli guys have Mireya Moscoso literally and figuratively over a barrel. That's what they do. They develop leverage, and then they use it for their own political gain.    

A Colombian named Gilberto Brayan Cardenas, about 44 years old, was found dead, lying next to the road to Los Castillos in Parita, Herrera province. The victim had shot in the back, thigh and forehead. Locals testified that the victim was traveling in a car with his wife and children and was intercepted by the killers. The wife and children were taken out of the car and 200 meters down the lonely road the Colombian was fatally shot. The car was later located abandoned by the National Police. The Colombian and his wife ran a synthetic soccer field located in front of the Rico Cedeño stadium in the city of Chitre. (Critica)   Click Here To Read The Full Article (1 words)

Today, at 4:00 pm on Monday 21 May, the Minister of Economy, Frank De Lima, will present to the plenary of the National Assembly - at the start of the special sessions - the bill creating the Sovereign Fund, but the Panameñistas have not yet made ​​a decision on the issue. This, according to Deputy said Luis Eduardo Quiros, who said the caucus of his party has not yet determined whether or not they will support the creation of the Sovereign Fund, because they do not yet know the contents of the document to be presented by De Lima. But he added the project sounds interesting at first, because it talks about savings for the nation, which could be used in the case of a natural disaster. Moreover, about the Guardian Angel project, which will also be included in the special sessions, Quiros said the cart was put in front of the ox, indicating it was not defined where they would get the resources to pay for this project. (Estrella)   

Panama's prison director Angel Calderon reported receiving a document from the Committee of Victims of the Military Dictatorship. In the letter, the group asked for the victims of the years of the military dictatorship to be taken into account, during the decision making process in responding to the request filed by defense attorneys for the former general Manuel Antonio Noriega. Last week, the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Imelcf) conducted a medical examination of the detainee, as part of the process to resolve the request for Noriega to be held in a hospital. It is expected that the doctors at the Santo Tomas hospital will discharge Noriega, because today he has meet the four days of hospitalization that were ordered. (Panama America)

Editor's Comment: Obviously, if Noriega gets a hang nail, then it's national headline news here in Panama. His family members, defense lawyers, and personal doctors are trying to get him taken out of the El Renacer prison in Gamboa, to have him transferred to be held as a prisoner in a hospital, supposedly because of his medical condition. A team of doctors who work for the prosecution are conducting a complete medical evaluation to decide how to respond to the request. In addition Noriega's defense attorneys have also asked for him to be granted house arrest in a separate document, and that request is being treated as a separate issue from the medical issue. I expect these types of back and forth requests will dominate the rest of Noriega's existence, and it will always be in the news in Panama in one form or the other. And consider this - if the PRD were in charge, Noriega would probably already be home. This issue might play a factor in the 2014 elections. Of course Juan Carlos Navarro or whoever else the PRD candidate ends up being will say "no, it will be up to the justice system" but in reality, everyone in Panama knows the truth about how things are done in this country. As a matter of fact, if the PRD was in charge then the US and France probably would not have agreed to extradite him back to Panama in the first place.   

By DON WINNER for Panama-Guide.com - James David Zebranek, Jr., 56 (date of birth 06/02/1955), was arrested on April 26, 2012 in San Angelo, Texas for stealing $800,000 from an elderly man's estate. According to a press release from the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Florida, Zebranek was arrested in Texas on an outstanding Pinellas County arrest warrant. Zabranek is a medical doctor originally from Redington Shores, Florida. He was arrested and charged with Grand Theft ($800,000);14-counts of money laundering; and perjury.

The victim is an 87-year-old male, who is known to the suspect. The arrest stems from an investigation that was conducted by the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office Economic Crimes unit beginning in October of 2010. The Sheriff's Office Economic Crimes Unit began investigating the case on October 26, 2010 after the victim learned that the suspect, identified as 56-year-old James David Zebranek, Jr., had taken over control of his $800,000 trust account.

According to detectives, in 2008 the victim became ill and incapacitated and became temporarily unable to manage his finances. The victim did recover from the illness and regained his faculties. Detectives say, however, that the suspect used the victim's illness to gain control over his trust by presenting the trust company with a medical report that indicated the victim was incapacitated, when in fact he had already recovered. The suspect coupled this with multiple misleading phone calls to the trust company in an effort to convince or mislead them into believing that the victim was permanently incapacitated.

Once he gained access to the trust, Zebranek wired the money to multiple banks across the country and out of the country. About $650,000 of the money was sent to Panama, where the suspect ultimately fled to. There, detective say he used the money among other things, to stay in various resorts. Detectives secured a warrant for the suspect's arrest on Thursday, April 19, 2012.

A lead was developed that Zebranek had returned to the United States from Panama and had attempted to obtain a new Driver's License in Texas. The San Angelo Police Department assisted detectives in confirming the identity of the suspect to be Zebranek; and arrested him on the evening of April 26, 2012 in the 1900 block of West Avenue N, San Angelo police said. He is being held in the Tom Green County Jail. A bond of $9.8 million has been requested, according to jail officials, but no arraignment has been scheduled. Zebranek will be extradited to Pinellas County to face charges.

Copyright 2012 by Don Winner for Panama-Guide.com. Go ahead and use whatever you like as long as you credit the source. Salud.   

The secretary general of the Association of Employees of the Social Security Fund (Aeccs), Priscilla Vasquez, said on Monday, May 21, that all they are asking of state officials to end the strike, which has been ongoing since Monday 14 May, is that there are no reprisals against them and, moreover, they get paid for the days they have been protesting. "We demand measures and minimum guarantees to which we are are entitled. We are victims of repression and it is not fair that we be subjected to retaliation when the administration caused all this," Vasquez said, referring to measures taken by the authorities of the CSS with employees who insist on participating in the strike.

She added the director of the CSS, Guillermo Sáez-Llorens, declared the strike illegal, above the law and the Constitution, just to avoid paying employees for the days they have been on strike. "It is a lie that when there is a strike here (in Panama) that the employees are not paid for the days they do not work," said the spokeswoman for the Social Security employees in RCM News. Vásquez said Sáez-Llorens "pressured the officials who are on strike to leave their jobs in order to justify the deduction of those days."

She said the staff has never abandoned the provision of basic services of the CSS. "We have never abandoned the health services. That can not be done," she said. The leader said they are on strike to enforce an agreement signed in November 2011, the organic law of the CSS, and the Constitution. (Prensa)

Editor's Comment: Apparently the people who went out on strike represent just a small minority of the workers at the CSS. As such, the strike is apparently "illegal" in that unions are supposed to be representing the will and desires of the majority of workers, not just the political aspirations of a small minority. Once that was established, then it was perfectly legal for the leadership of the CSS to dock the pay of those who do not show up for work, or fire those who do not show up for work, because the strike was illegal. So now those who walked off of their jobs (illegally) are supposedly "fighting" for the pay which will not be docked, or not to be summarily fired from their positions for not showing up to work according to their contract. Listen folks, the CSS sat down with their employees last year and negotiated wage increases and other benefits. There is an implementation schedule that goes along with the agreement. And now this small group of rabble rousers are causing problems for their own political gain, and following their own political agenda. This weekend Saul Mendez came out on television to explain how the new FAD party has signed up 12,000 members. These two actions - the CSS strike and push by the FAD for new members, are related. End.   

For the government deputy Sergio Galvez, the former president Mireya Moscoso has only confirmed "what everyone already knew" about the talks by the president of the Panameñista party, Juan Carlos Varela, with managers of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD) for the realization of a possible alliance in the 2014 elections.

According to Galvez, "few know the Panamenismo as well as Mireya, not only because she was the wife of the supreme leader of the party, but because it was she who had to travel the country organizing and directing the inscriptions that gave life to that party, after the return of democracy."

He added, according to a press release distributed to the media, "Moscoso is right because for most Panameñistas an alliance with the PRD, which overthrew Arnulfo Arias Madrid, would not only be an act of treason, but it would also be a humiliation, because they would be playing second fiddle on a ticket that would be spearheaded by the the executioners of the Panameñista martyrs."

"This alliance gives us no fear because all it does is bare their true interests in the eyes of the Panamanians," he said. He emphasized "it is clear the people do not care, why unite to try to attack the projects that benefit the most humble people. To them, they are only interested in coming to power no matter what they have to do, with the people we will defeat them." (Prensa)   

By Charles Garcia for (CNN) -- Today marks the 508th anniversary of the death of Christopher Columbus. Everybody knows the story of Columbus, right? He was an Italian explorer from Genoa who set sail in 1492 to enrich the Spanish monarchs with gold and spices from the orient. Not quite. For too long, scholars have ignored Columbus's grand passion: the quest to liberate Jerusalem from the Muslims.

During Columbus's lifetime, Jews became the target of fanatical religious persecution. On March 31, 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella proclaimed that all Jews were to be expelled from Spain. The edict especially targeted the 800,000 Jews who had never converted, and gave them four months to pack up and get out.

The Jews who were forced to renounce Judaism and embrace Catholicism were known as "Conversos," or converts. There were also those who feigned conversion, practicing Catholicism outwardly while covertly practicing Judaism, the so-called "Marranos," or swine.

Tens of thousands of Marranos were tortured by the Spanish Inquisition. They were pressured to offer names of friends and family members, who were ultimately paraded in front of crowds, tied to stakes and burned alive. Their land and personal possessions were then divvied up by the church and crown.

Recently, a number of Spanish scholars, such as Jose Erugo, Celso Garcia de la Riega, Otero Sanchez and Nicholas Dias Perez, have concluded that Columbus was a Marrano, whose survival depended upon the suppression of all evidence of his Jewish background in face of the brutal, systematic ethnic cleansing.

Columbus, who was known in Spain as Cristóbal Colón and didn't speak Italian, signed his last will and testament on May 19, 1506, and made five curious -- and revealing -- provisions.

Two of his wishes -- tithe one-tenth of his income to the poor and provide an anonymous dowry for poor girls -- are part of Jewish customs. He also decreed to give money to a Jew who lived at the entrance of the Lisbon Jewish Quarter.

On those documents, Columbus used a triangular signature of dots and letters that resembled inscriptions found on gravestones of Jewish cemeteries in Spain. He ordered his heirs to use the signature in perpetuity.

According to British historian Cecil Roth's "The History of the Marranos," the anagram was a cryptic substitute for the Kaddish, a prayer recited in the synagogue by mourners after the death of a close relative. Thus, Columbus's subterfuge allowed his sons to say Kaddish for their crypto-Jewish father when he died. Finally, Columbus left money to support the crusade he hoped his successors would take up to liberate the Holy Land.

Estelle Irizarry, a linguistics professor at Georgetown University, has analyzed the language and syntax of hundreds of handwritten letters, diaries and documents of Columbus and concluded that the explorer's primary written and spoken language was Castilian Spanish. Irizarry explains that 15th-century Castilian Spanish was the "Yiddish" of Spanish Jewry, known as "Ladino." At the top left-hand corner of all but one of the 13 letters written by Columbus to his son Diego contained the handwritten Hebrew letters bet-hei, meaning b'ezrat Hashem (with God's help).

Observant Jews have for centuries customarily added this blessing to their letters. No letters to outsiders bear this mark, and the one letter to Diego in which this was omitted was one meant for King Ferdinand.

In Simon Weisenthal's book, "Sails of Hope," he argues that Columbus's voyage was motivated by a desire to find a safe haven for the Jews in light of their expulsion from Spain. Likewise, Carol Delaney, a cultural anthropologist at Stanford University, concludes that Columbus was a deeply religious man whose purpose was to sail to Asia to obtain gold in order to finance a crusade to take back Jerusalem and rebuild the Jews' holy Temple.

In Columbus's day, Jews widely believed that Jerusalem had to be liberated and the Temple rebuilt for the Messiah to return.

Scholars point to the date on which Columbus set sail as further evidence of his true motives. He was originally going to sail on August 2, 1492, a day that happened to coincide with the Jewish holiday of Tisha B'Av, marking the destruction of the First and Second Holy Temples of Jerusalem. Columbus postponed this original sail date by one day to avoid embarking on the holiday, which would have been considered by Jews to be an unlucky day to set sail. (Coincidentally or significantly, the day he set forth was the very day that Jews were, by law, given the choice of converting, leaving Spain, or being killed.)

Columbus's voyage was not, as is commonly believed, funded by the deep pockets of Queen Isabella, but rather by two Jewish Conversos and another prominent Jew. Louis de Santangel and Gabriel Sanchez advanced an interest free loan of 17,000 ducats from their own pockets to help pay for the voyage, as did Don Isaac Abrabanel, rabbi and Jewish statesman.

Indeed, the first two letters Columbus sent back from his journey were not to Ferdinand and Isabella, but to Santangel and Sanchez, thanking them for their support and telling them what he had found.

The evidence seem to bear out a far more complicated picture of the man for whom our nation now celebrates a national holiday and has named its capital.

As we witness bloodshed the world over in the name of religious freedom, it is valuable to take another look at the man who sailed the seas in search of such freedoms -- landing in a place that would eventually come to hold such an ideal at its very core.   

Two killed, two wounded was the result of a collision with a fixed object that occurred at 12:30 am last night on the Pan American Highway, near the old control two, in Arraiján. The sedan vehicle with registration number 714422, driven by Ricardo Núñez Coba, 32, was headed from Arraiján toward Panama, collided head-on into the railing, which embedded itself in the middle of the car. Apparently, excessive speed and wet road caused the driver to lose control of the vehicle. The railing broke the skull of Ricardo Núñez Moreno, 53, who died at the scene. He was riding in the back seat with an unidentified woman who was seriously wounded in the face and neck, so she was taken to the Santo Tomas hospital in Panama City, where she later died of her injuries. Also were taken to the hospital the driver, Ricardo Núñez Coba and Lucy Vega.

Thrown To The Side Of The Road - In another incident, the Public Ministry of Bocas del Toro, as well as the National Police and the Land Transit and Transportation Authority began an investigation to determine what had killed Aristides Villagra Villagra, 40 years old, who was found dead on the road between Changuinola and Almiratne, between kilometer 15 and 16, in the district of Changuinola. The deceased had bruises on different parts of the body. It was learned he was seen at 3:30 am sitting on the edge of the road, so presumably he could have been the victim of a hit and run. It was also learned that a resident of the area attended to the injured man, but he died of his injuries. (Mi Diario)   

A man who tried to bribe police officers in the sector of Tortí in Chepo, was arrested in the early hours of Saturday. The individual, after being arrested, was found to have 46 packages of cocaine in his possession, according to a statement from the National Police. The capture of the subject came after blue Hyundai Accent passed a police patrol car at high speed. Immediately the police gave chase from El Higueronal de Tortí to the premises of a school located in that community. According to the statement, the driver of the car tried to bribe the agents when they asked him to accompany them to the headquarters of that institution in Chepo, offering the sum of $10,000 in cash and he confessed that he was carrying cocaine. The police refused the offer and immediately arrested the man. Personnel from the office of the Anti Drug Prosecutor arrived at the scene and found the drugs in the car. The cocaine was found inside two suitcases, one black and one blue with gray. The detainee, along with the evidence, was placed at the disposal of the competent authority for investigation, police said. (Siglo)

Editor's Comment: So, you've got 46 kilos of cocaine in your car, so you're going to speed and pass a police car? Good plan...   

Government Minister, Jorge Ricardo Fabrega said a minority group of indigenous Ngäbe Bugle Indians want to damage the peace that was achieved following the agreement signed with the government. Fabrega made these statements after several Indians, who are opposed to mining, yesterday invaded for a second day, the grounds of the Barro Blanco Hydroelectric Project in the province of Chiriqui, so that the authorities had to intervene.

The Indians when cornered by the National Police (PN), who fired tear gas, responded with stones.

Fabrega made his statements during a ground breaking ceremony for a new home for the elderly that will be constructed in Rio Abajo. (TVN)   

The union leader in the banana sector in the province of Bocas del Toro, Aristides Villagra Villagra, was found dead beside the road leading to Almirante. Villagra was beaten on various parts of the body, however it is unknown whether he was hit by a car or attacked by someone. It is expected the conclusion of the autopsy to determine cause of death. The union leader worked in Finca 41 and was a leader of the Union of Banana Industry and Agriculture and Business Associations (Sitraibana). (Telemetro)