Supreme Court Sanctions Director of Immigration
FINE. The Supreme Court of Panama imposed a fine of $200 to the Director of the National Immigration Service, María Cristina González, for having engaged in misconduct to due process by ordering the arrest and deportation of a Colombian citizen Henrique Howard Holguín, who was arrested in 2009 and then deported to his home country. According to the Court, Hurtado's human rights were violated, and the law says that all government officials are obliged to respect these rights. (La Prensa)
Editor's Comment: Holy Crap! Remember when Immigration Director María Cristina González was running around scooping up dozens of Colombian women who are here in the country legally, arresting them, holding them for weeks in the jail cells in immigration, and squeezing them for bribes of $1,500 each a few months ago? Her "weapon" against these women was a threat of deportation. After publishing that story, I started to receive even more information about abuses being committed in Immigration - always against relatively defenseless foreigners. I kept up the pressure and what happened? All of a sudden they announced the "immigration fair" at ATLAPA as a PR clean sweep for María Cristina González and Immigration as an institution. Why is this woman still in her position? It makes no sense whatsoever... Anyway, I'm "gobsmacked" that the Supreme Court actually fined a sitting official.
