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### Viewing cable 09PANAMA196, PANAMA: PLANS FOR NORMALIZATION FOR COLOMBIANS

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Reference ID | Created | Released | Classification | Origin
--- | --- | --- | --- | ---
09PANAMA196 | 2009-03-10 15:52 | 2011-05-31 00:00 | CONFIDENTIAL | Embassy Panama

`

    R 101552Z MAR 09
    FM AMEMBASSY PANAMA
    TO SECSTATE WASHDC 3115
    INFO AMEMBASSY BOGOTA
    HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHINGTON DC
    CDR USSOUTHCOM MIAMI FL
    CIA WASHDC
    DIA WASHDC
    JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC
    NSC WASHDC
    SECDEF WASHDC

` `

    C O N F I D E N T I A L PANAMA 000196

    E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/09/2019
    TAGS: PGOV PREL PREF PHUM PTBS SOCI PM
    SUBJECT: PANAMA: PLANS FOR NORMALIZATION FOR COLOMBIANS
    UNDER PROTECTED STATUS

    REF: PANAMA 33

    Classified By: Ambassador Barbara Stephenson for reasons 1.4 (b) and (d)

    -------
    SUMMARY
    -------

    ¶1.  (C) The GOP planned to offer legal immigrant status to
    individuals living in the Darien region under Temporary
    Humanitarian Protection (THP) status, said MFA DG of Exterior
    Policy Javier Bonagas told POLOFF on February 20.  The
    official census of THP persons taken in 2004 counted 542
    Colombians under THP, along with 284 Panamanian family
    members.  According to Bonagas, the numbers of persons living
    under the THP regime had fallen dramatically.  The draft
    legislation should be considered in the National Assembly in
    late March or April.  There were no plans to extend permanent
    status to any other groups.  The indigenous families living
    in Alta Playona who were recently denied refugee status for
    the second time would not be part of this group and would not
    be affected by the proposed legislation.

    ¶2.  (C) The status and conditions of the persons living under
    THP and their families has been a major preoccupation for
    NGOs and the international community for some time.  Plans to
    normalize their status will be welcome news in the
    international community if Bonagas' plans come to fruition.
    In a wide-ranging series of interviews with representatives
    of the United Nations High Commission on Refugees (UNHCR),
    the Norwegian Refugee Council, the International Organization
    for Migration, the National Office for the Attention of
    Refugees (ONPAR), the Jesuit Service for Refugees, the
    American Red Cross and the People's Legal Assistance Center's
    Program for Refugees, POLOFF heard echoed from each group
    shared concerns about the precarious legal and security
    situation of the persons living under THP in the remote
    Darien region of Panama.

    ---------------------------
    Temporary Protection Regime
    ---------------------------

    ¶3.  (U) The "Temporary Humanitarian Protection" (THP) regime
    was created in 1998 by Executive Decree 23 to address
    influxes of persons who had crossed the border from Colombia
    seeking refuge from the internal conflicts in that country.
    The same decree also created the National Office for the
    Attention of Refugees (ONPAR), the government agency with the
    responsibility for carrying out government policy related to
    refugees as well as persons under THP.  Under the THP regime,
    groups of individuals are given temporary humanitarian leave
    to live in Panama for a period of two months without
    permission to work or attend school.  In practice, the
    two-month limit has never been enforced, as many persons
    under THP have lived in the Darien for nearly 10 years.

    ¶4.  (C) Panamanian law clearly states that beneficiaries of
    THP status do not/not have "the same rights and benefits
    given to refugees under international conventions."
    Furthermore, the THP law does not specifically authorize
    protected individuals to legally work, attend school, or
    travel without the express permission of a GOP
    representative.  The primary concern of NGOs is the lack of
    mobility for individuals under THP, according to Osiris
    Abrego of the Jesuit Service for Refuges.  As they cannot
    legally work, most persons under THP work illegally as
    fishermen or seasonal agriculture workers.  Some women work
    as artisans, creating indigenous handicrafts.  To fill in the
    gaps, they receive food aid from UNHCR, IOM and other
    organizations what also run projects providing safe drinking
    water, gas stoves and medical supplies as well as
    constructing emergency shelters and providing transportation
    to Panama City to process THP paperwork.

    --------------
    Who and Where?
    --------------

    ¶5.  (C) According to an official census taken under the
    auspices of ONPAR and Colombian officials in June of 2004,
    542 Colombians live under the THP regime in the Darien with
    their 284 Panamanian family members, for a total of 826
    individuals and 198 families.  These families live in the
    communities of La Palma (7 families), Yaviza (20 families),
    Puerto Obaldia (27 families), El Real (4 families), Yape (15
    families), Boca de Cupe (47 families) and Jaque (78
    families).  The ethnic background of the individuals is
    primarily indigenous and Afro-Colombian (concentrated in
    Central Darien near Yaviza and Boca de Cupe).  A new census
    was undertaken in November and December of 2008 by ONPAR.
    Although the results of the census have not yet been
    released, Plutarco Pedreschi, interim Director of ONPAR
    reported to POLOFF on January 15 that the numbers of persons
    under THP had gone down significantly in all parts of the
    Darien.  The Colombians under THP in Puerto Obaldia are now
    32 (81 in 2004); in Jaque now there are 121 Colombians
    registered under THP (214 in 2004), and in the Yaviza/El
    Real/Yape/Boca de Cupe region, where there were once 238
    Colombians, there are now 202.

    ¶6.  (C) Jean-Philippe Antolin of IOM expressed skepticism of
    these numbers, claiming that ONPAR "would not open its eyes"
    to more recently-arrived Colombians needing international
    protection, and probably "did not look too hard" to find all
    of the Colombians listed in the 2004 census.  IOM, along with
    others such as Merete Hanson of the Norweigan Refugee
    Council, also expected that some Colombians had returned home
    to Colombia, or left their town of registration to seek
    employment opportunities elsewhere in Panama. "There are at
    least 200 more recently arrived Colombians scattered
    throughout these settlements," said Jose Euceda of UNHCR.
    Euceda concurred with the opinion that the GOP was not making
    much effort to locate illegal Colombians in the Darien,
    whether needing protection or not.

    ¶7.  (C) All persons under THP living in the Darien now have
    Panamanian identification cards, according to Pedreshi of
    ONPAR. Until recently, persons under THP were not given
    identification by the GOP, leading to harassment by local
    police, said Antolin of IOM.  ONPAR had maintained for years
    that persons under THP should carry their Colombian
    identification cards and had no right to or need for
    Panamanian identification.  However, during the 2008 census,
    efforts were made to provide identification cards to all
    persons under THP.  Further, NGOs have long reported that
    many Panamanian children born to THP persons were not given
    birth certificates by local officials.  This has also been
    corrected, according to Pedreschi of ONPAR, as part of the
    November-December 2008 census.  All NGOs and international
    organizations interviewed greeted this news, of the ID cards
    and birth certificates, with some skepticism.

    --------------------------------------
    Immigrant Status for persons under THP
    --------------------------------------

    ¶8.  (C) A draft law is currently being circulated among
    government agencies by Javier Bonagas, Director General of
    Exterior Policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, that
    would change the status of the Colombians from Temporary
    Humanitarian Protection (THP) to legal immigrants.  The
    administration and oversight of the individual cases would be
    transferred from the National Office for the Attention of
    Refugees (ONPAR) to the Migration Directorate, which is part
    of the Ministry of Government and Justice (MOGJ) said Bonagas
    in a February 20 interview.  Bonagas noted that many of the
    persons under THP could be admitted as permanent residents as
    spouses or children of Panamanian citizens, and said that the
    others could be admitted under "a humanitarian provision."
    The Migration Law (Law 3 of February 22, 2008) and the
    implementing regulations (Executive Decree 320 of August 8,
    2008) do not currently allow persons, other than those
    accepted as refugees, to apply for permanent residency for
    humanitarian reasons.  Under the regime proposed by Bonagas,
    the individuals would be given the same rights to work, move
    within the country and attend school as legal immigrants.
    ¶9.  (C) Bonagas did not foresee any problems securing
    National Assembly support for the draft legislation in late
    March or early April.  Bongagas claimed also to be the author
    of Law 25, which was approved by the National Assembly in May
    2008, created a one-time process through which individuals
    who had been in refugee status for more than ten years could
    apply for permanent residency.  This legislation will benefit
    an estimated 733 persons, according to Pedreshi of ONPAR,
    most of whom are from Ecuador, Nicaragua, El Salvador and
    Guatemala, as well as some African nations.

    ¶10.  (C) COMMENT:  The MFA and the MOGJ are the primary
    players in the debate over the status of persons under THP.
    Although POLOFF first learned of Bonagas' draft legislation
    from Plutarco Pedreshi of ONPAR, Pedreshi acknowledged that
    his office was an implementer only and would receive its
    marching orders from the Foreign Ministry (MFA).  Euceda of
    UNHCR has also said that any changes to the status of these
    individuals would need to come from the MFA, with the
    concurrence of MOGJ.  END COMMENT.

    ----------------------------------
    Life in the Darien - Tough for THP
    ----------------------------------

    ¶11.  (C) All NGOs and international organizations interviewed
    expressed great concern for the safety and well-being of
    individuals living under THP in the Darien.  The general
    dearth of GOP presence for all Darien residents is evident in
    the poor quality of health and education facilities and lack
    of safety and security provided.  This situation negatively
    affects those living under THP even more than Panamanian
    citizens as THPs require government permission to travel
    outside of their village of registration, asserted
    Jean-Philippe Antolin of IOM and echoed by every other NGO
    and international organization providing services in the
    Darien.  To receive permission to travel, most persons must
    petition one of the three ONPAR regional offices, located in
    El Real, Boca de Cupe and Jaque.  Jose Euceda of UNHCR noted
    that he has encouraged ONPAR to open a regional office in
    Puerto Obaldia, a major transit area located on the Caribbean
    coast directly on the border with Colombia, to no avail.
    Although persons under THP living near Puerto Obaldia (120
    total, according to the 2004 census) are supposed to travel
    overland El Real to receive permission to travel, they can
    also receive it by visiting the local police station.

    ¶12.  (C) Local health centers can be found in Yaviza, El
    Real, Jaque, Boca de Cupe and Obaldia.  Persons under THP
    have no right to GOP-funded health services, but often
    receive them if local health officials are willing to provide
    them.  For advanced treatment, persons under THP must receive
    permission to travel from local officials, but NGOs report
    that they often cannot afford the gasoline needed to
    transport them to locations where treatment is available.
    Further, Antolin of IOM reported that public health services
    were repeatedly shut down in Jaque in 2007 and 2008 due to
    threats from the FARC.

    ¶13.  (C) All Darien residents, including those under THP,
    suffer from the general lack of public secondary education.
    Education beyond sixth grade can only be found in the larger
    towns, such as Jaque, Yaviza and Puerto Obaldia.  In order to
    attend, children must board - at their parents' expense - in
    the larger cities.

    --------------------------
    Safety - a central concern
    --------------------------

    ¶14.  (C) A Colombian citizen living under THP in the town of
    Boca de Cupe was murdered by guerillas from the FARC's 57th
    Front on February 18, according to Claudio Delfabro of UNHCR
    and press reports.  Three guerillas reportedly killed
    Aureliano Sepulveda, who had been living in Boca de Cupe
    since 1996 and was described by Delfabro of UNHCR as a
    prominent community leader of the THP population in that
    village.

    ¶15.  (C) The quality and quantity of police presence was
    generally considered by the NGOs to be negligible to
    non-existent, a matter of significant concern not only for
    THP beneficiaries but for Panamanians in general in the
    region.  The persons living under THP, like other Darien
    residents, have no expectation that the National Police will
    protect them from the FARC, according to Antolin of IOM.
    Most interaction with the police comes in the form of
    harassment, according to Roberto Briton of the American Red
    Cross, because most persons living under THP, until recently,
    did not have Panamian-produced identification cards and the
    police officers, most of whom come from the interior of the
    country, have prejudice against Colombians.  "They hate the
    FARC, but what are they going to do?" asked Briton.  "They
    have to get along somehow."

    ¶16.  (C) IOM, in conjunction with NRC, has established a "web
    of community monitors" in three different Darien communities
    who are in contact with IOM staff member Eduardo Silgado
    approximately every 10 days in order to keep tabs on large
    influxes of individuals and internal displacement events.
    This network has also reported the movement of armed elements
    that caused the international displacement of 200-400
    indigenous Panamanians (Reftel A).  This pilot poject is
    currently operating with only Silgado of IOM as the point of
    contact.

    -----------------------------------
    No help planned for Embera families
    -----------------------------------

    ¶17.  (C) Sixty-two individuals (10 families), of the
    Embera-Wounaan indigenous group who have been living in Alta
    Playona since 2005 were denied refugee status for the second
    time in October 2008 by Panama's National Eligibility
    Commission, an inter-agency Committee which formally extends
    refugee status on the recommendation of ONPAR.  According to
    Jean-Philippe Antolin of IOM, the leader of these indigenous
    families had come into conflict with a FARC leader in the
    Choco district of Colombia.  As a result, their leader was
    murdered and several group members were locked in a church
    and burned to death.  The remaining members fled via the
    Bohaya river and found their way to Alta Playona.
    Originally, twelve families arrived in Alta Playona, but two
    families have since returned to Colombia or disappeared into
    Panama, according to UNHCR's Euceda.  The results have not
    yet been publicly disclosed.

    ¶18.  (C) The GOP has no plans to offer refugee or other
    special status to this group, according to Bonagas.  "They
    are not refugees, but economic migrants," said Bonagas, who
    noted that these indigenous groups with representation in
    Panama and Colombia have always traveled freely between the
    two countries with little regard for international borders.
    He continued by noting "Some international groups do not
    think we take enough refugees and went out looking" for a
    group to represent their cause.  He continued by stating
    "They are not refugees and will not get refugee status."
    (COMMENT:  Bonagas did not name UNHCR but clearly implied
    that he thought that UNHCR had sought out this sympathetic
    group in an effort to put on a face on Panama's perceived
    hostility to refugees, and convinced the 10 families to apply
    for refugee status.  In prior interviews, UNHCR
    representatives Euceda and Delfabro have told POLOFF that
    they were the first to tell the Embera of Alta Playona of
    their potential status as refugees fleeing political
    violence.  END COMMENT)

    -------------------------------------
    Ongoing Concerns with Refugee Process
    -------------------------------------

    ¶19.  (C) Even if the Colombians living under THP do receive
    permanent status in Panama, concerns about the refugee
    recognition process in Panama will remain.  ONPAR is
    universally described as slow, bureaucratic and opaque by
    international organizations and NGOs that work with refugee
    candidates.  Individuals seeking refugee status must first
    undergo an "administrative review" process in which an ONPAR
    employee reviews their application.  Between 50%-90% of the
    applications are refused at this time, according to NGOs
    working with refugee applicants.  All organizations
    interviewed agree that a substantial number of applications
    are rejected during this initial administrative review,
    although they concede that it is impossible to know the exact
    number.  ONPAR claims not to keep data on the number of
    applications rejected during this review process, and
    Pedreshi of ONPAR claims that the process weeds out "clearly
    ineligible" applicants that "do not meet the definition of
    refugee" under Panamanian law.  There is no requirement that
    a reason be given for this refusal, and rejected applicants
    had only the option to appeal to the same staff who had heard
    their initial request.

    ¶20.  (U) Applicants who pass the initial screening have their
    applications reviewed by the National Commission for the
    Protection of Refugees, or National Eligibility Commission
    (NEC) which votes on official recognition of an applicant's
    claim.  The Committee, whose membership includes the below
    listed individuals, approves or denies applications upon
    recommendations of ONPAR staff.

    Voting Members:
    Vice Minister, Ministry of Government and Justice
    Vice Minister, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
    Vice Minister for Work, Ministry of Labor
    Director of Migration, Ministry of Government and Justice
    Director General of External Policy, Ministry of Foreign
    Affairs
    Director General of Employment, Ministry of Labor
    Executive Director of the Panamanian Red Cross
    Representative of the National Police

    Observing Members with speaking rights:
    Regional Representative of UNHCR
    Director of ONPAR
    Director General of International Organizations, Ministry of
    Foreign Affairs

    ¶21.  (U) If denied by the Commission, applicants have 5 days
    to appeal back to the Commission.  Further appeals can be
    made to the Minister of Government and Justice and finally to
    the courts, although post is not aware of any denied case
    ever using the final two options.  The Commission, by law,
    must meet every three months, but in practice meets less
    often, having met only twice in 2008.  The deliberations of
    the Commission are not open to the public.

    ¶22.  (C) UNHCR criticizes the extremely small number of
    refugees admitted by ONPAR.  Currently, approximately 1000
    people have official refugee status in Panama.  Pedreshi of
    ONPAR reported to POLOFF that ONPAR accepts (after the
    initial screening process) 200-300 individual applications
    per year.  According to UNHCR, an observing member of the
    NEC, the final tally for 2008 was as follows:

    March NEC Meeting
    Cases considered -  20 (99 people)
    Recognized - 2 cases (11 people)
    Denied - 16 cases (79 people)
    More information requested - 2 cases (9 people)

    October NEC Meeting
    Cases considered - 20 (94 people)
    Recognized - 5 cases (23 people)
    Denied - 13 cases (65 people)
    More information requested - 2 cases (6 people)

    -------
    COMMENT
    -------

    ¶23.  (C) The involvement of Bonagas indicates that the GOP is
    taking seriously efforts to normalize the status of the
    Colombians living under THP in the Darien.  Bonagas seemed
    confident that the National Assembly would easily pass his
    plan, despite the upcoming May 3 elections and election-year
    sensitivities about "criminal Colombians."  Indeed, Law 25,
    which was drafted by Bonagas and gave permanent resident
    status to more than 700 persons who have held the status of
    refugee for more than 10 years, was passed into law with
    little public comment.  However, the results of ONPAR's
    census of November-December 2008 have yet to be released, and
    it remains to be seen whether the drop in numbers of
    Colombians living under THP is a result of individuals
    choosing to return to Colombia or because ONPAR is willfully
    not seeking them out to be counted.  Any normalization
    efforts that go forward will account only for individuals
    listed in the official ONPAR census of 2008.  NGOs and
    international organizations involved in this issue seem to
    agree that any action the GOP might take would be in the
    interest of removing an irritating thorn from their side and
    turning unwanted international attention away from refugees
    and the Darien.

    STEPHENSON

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