Two years into the mandate of President Juan Carlos Varela, a general consensus has emerged about the political persecution that has characterized his government.
The Panamanian president has been widely accused of leading a campaign of political persecution against political opponents and broader critics of his administration.
To that end, a multitude of judicial processes has seen the light of day, allegedly at the behest of the current director of the Security Council, Rolando “Picuiro” Lopez. Primary victims of the government’s judicial persecution have been former members of the administration of Ricardo Martinelli.
Yesterday, for example, the Supreme Court (CSJ) requested that a red alert be issued for the capture of the former president, in spite of the fact that the legal case against him does not support such order.
Ms. Alma Cortes, a lawyer and former minister of Mr. Martinelli, denounced the fact as clear evidence of yet another violation of the former president's legal rights. Ms. Cortes believes that the CSJ should first convene the former president's defense team and hold a preliminary hearing on the matter.
According to lawyer Carlos Carrillo, Interpol should refrain from publishing the red alert requested by court magistrate Jeronimo Mejia, who is in charge of the illegal wire-tapping case against former president.
According to article 3 of Interpol statutes approved in a resolution of Interpol general assembly in 1984, in relation to the conduct of public officials during that public mandate, “Interpol is strictly prohibited from intervening in any matter of political, military, religious or racial nature”.
Additionally, another resolution of 1953 recommends that the heads of national Interpol offices refrain from disseminating requests for information and, above all, apprehension and preventive detention, in relation to misdemeanors of political, racial or religious nature, “even when such acts constitute a violation of the common law of the country in question”.
The rationale behind the magistrate's action easily envisioned, though. It happens to coincide with the publication of the latest polls by Dichter & Neira, which show the popularity of President Juan Carlos Varela plummeting to an all-time low of 39%, only two years into his mandate. This represents a 50% fall in the rating since the president took power in 2014.
Other cases
The case against former President Martinelli is not the only one in which damning evidence is notably absent. As a result, the judicial authorities have been compelled to change the precautionary measures of some 20 former officials from the past administration.
These include former finance and economics minister Frank De Lima, as well as former security minister Jose Raul Mulino. According to CD party representative Williams, "the justice system is clearly polarized against members of an opposition political party".
Ms. Williams went on to add that her party was "not opposed to any judicial investigation, but against a thirst for political vengeance camouflaging as justice". She asked rhetorically: "why is bail not been granted to so many detainees when there is no danger of flight?"
The plight of family members of detained former officials has clearly not diminished the executive thirst for vengeance. Such is the case of Gerta de la Ossa de Perez, mother of former National
Police director Gustavo Perez, who has been unjustly detained since January 12, 2015.
In a published letter, Ms. de la Ossa de Perez denounces that " the authorities carried out at dawn raid at the residence [of her son], and apprehended him without any proof of his supposed involvement in the allegedly illegal wire-tapping case."
Political veteran Jorge Gamboa Arosemena went on record asking rhetorically "what kind of country do we live in when the law of the jungle substitutes the rule of law?"
There difference between the treatment of past administration officials and those that currently occupy power is indeed stark.
Political reaction
The judicial campaign against former officials also has a political dimension. According to PRD assembly member Ivan Picota, the current detention of former minister Guillermo Ferrufino would be motivated by his refusal to join the presidential ticket of President Juan Carlos Varela.
“Do you know what Ferrufino's crime is? Refusing Varela's advances not once but thrice: he is now paying the price in jail", Mr. Picota declared.
The acting president of the Cambio Democratico party, Alma Cortes, is now in the sights of the executive persecution machine. She is being investigated for alleged illicit enrichment. Her case is seen as a ruse in response to the complaint she made against comptroller general Federico Humbert which aimed to open an investigation against him.
