News
Tuesday 30th July 2024.
July 29, 2024
The Government of Panama announced on Monday, July 29, 2024, the withdrawal of diplomatic personnel from Venezuela. At the same time, it suspended diplomatic relations with the South American country.
This was announced by the Panamanian president, José Raúl Mulino , at a conference held at the Presidential Amphitheater in Panama City.
Mulino said that the “fragile relationship” with Venezuela has deteriorated “significantly” in recent days. First, due to the “unilateral closure” of airspace by the Venezuelan government to flights by the Panamanian airline Copa Airlines – an event that occurred last Friday, July 26 – and second, due to the results of the presidential elections held yesterday, Sunday, in that South American country.
Regarding the latter, the Panamanian leader said that there was a “trampling on the democratic, free, open and transparent system,” referring to the fact that the Venezuelan National Electoral Council proclaimed Nicolás Maduro as the winner of the presidential elections. According to the data released on Sunday, Maduro won with 51.2% of the votes.
“We cannot look the other way in the face of an attempted institutional coup against the sovereign decision of the Venezuelan people,” he said. “The millions of Venezuelans deserve respect for the genuine will of the people. Democratic principles and values are not negotiable,” he stressed.
Similarly, Mulino explained that diplomatic relations with Venezuela were suspended until a complete review of the minutes and the computer system for counting the votes is carried out, which “allows us to know the genuine popular will” in the electoral process of July 28.
Regarding the withdrawal of the Venezuelan diplomatic mission, Mulino said that it is usually estimated to take 72 hours. “That is decided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as appropriate,” he said.
The Panamanian president added that there are no perfect decisions and that “this decision will cause some setbacks, I have no doubt about it.” He also told Venezuelans in Panama that “there was no other option” than the one announced on Monday.
Panamanian Foreign Minister Javier Martínez Acha said that the decision communicated “is a matter of diplomacy,” since the intention is to maintain consular relations.
The president also took the opportunity to refer to Panama’s political relations with Venezuela, which “were not the best nor the highest level.” “Venezuela does not have an ambassador in Panama. Panama does not have an ambassador in Caracas and will not have an ambassador in Caracas,” emphasized Mulino, who assumed power on July 1.
Mulino also announced that the Panamanian government will request a meeting of the Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) to convene a consultation meeting of foreign ministers to discuss the situation in Venezuela.
Quibián Panay , who served as Director General of Administration and Finance of the National Assembly , resigned from his position, according to legislative sources.
This decision by Panay is striking, following his appointment by the deputy and president of the National Assembly , Dana Castañeda, of the Realizing Goals (RM) party.
An attempt was made to obtain the version of the former deputy and former representative of the district, but there was no response.
Panay, a member of the Democratic Revolutionary Party (PRD), was secretary general of the National Assembly during the 2019-2024 period. In that position, he earned a total of $7,000. The base salary was $1,800 and, additionally, he was entitled to $3,200 in representation expenses, $1,000 for fuel and another $1,000 in per diem.
According to legislative sources, he had a similar income in the National Assembly ‘s Administration and Finance Department .
Data from the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic and the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (ANTAI) indicate that the Director of Administration and Finance of the Legislature between 2019 and 2024 had a salary of $5,000 and received $2,000 in representation expenses.
Panay is the husband of former deputy for the Cambio Democrático (CD) party, Yanibel Ábrego . The couple acquired a luxurious residence and land in 2021 without reporting bank loans in the deeds of sale that are on file with the Public Registry.
He is also the father of former Vice Minister of Women, María Alejandra Panay, who received two financial grants from the Institute for the Training and Utilization of Human Resources (IFARHU). The grants totaled $81,730.
The first was for $59,230, endorsed by the Comptroller General of the Republic in October 2021. The second reached $22,500 and was approved by Comptroller Gerardo Solís in February 2022.
On the afternoon of Friday, July 26, residents of Carenero Island, Bocas del Toro , reported the discovery of a body floating on the seashore. It was in an advanced state of decomposition. They notified the National Aeronaval Service, a security body that in turn alerted the Public Prosecutor’s Office, the National Police, among others, and began the investigation.
According to initial reports, judicial authorities are seeking to confirm whether the body is that of Eneritz Argintxona Fraile , a 30-year-old woman born in Erandio (Vizcaya), an autonomous community in the Basque Country, Spain, who supposedly worked in the isthmus in cooperation issues. According to Spanish media, including El Mundo , her relatives had reported her missing.
The Ertzaintza (Basque autonomous police) asked Panama for support to clarify the case.
At the local level, the investigation is in the hands of the Homicide and Femicide Section of Bocas del Toro, and according to prosecutor Marissa Caballero, after the removal of the body, “the extraction of samples for genetic profiling was ordered” to identify the body.
“Likewise, we are awaiting the results of the autopsy carried out by the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences to establish the cause of death in this investigation, as well as the probable date of death,” reads a statement from the Public Prosecutor’s Office.
In 2016, former US military officer Brian Karl Brimager pleaded guilty to murdering, dismembering and burying his girlfriend Yvonne Lee Baldelli on Carenero Island. Yvonne’s crime had been committed in November 2011.
The Superior Prosecutor’s Office of Chiriquí and Bocas del Toro filed homicide charges against Brimager, after he left the country for Costa Rica and there used the victim’s credit cards for various purchases.
Following Brimager’s escape, the Panamanian prosecutor’s office alerted the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), which proceeded to arrest him.
Nicaraguan Sheynnis Palacios , current Miss Universe, will arrive in our country today, Monday, July 29. She will stay in Panama for eight days. Her hosts on this visit will be former Panamanian beauty queens Sheldry Sáez and Keity Drennan , confirmed the Miss Panama Organization (OSP).
Sheldry, Miss Panama 2011 and Top 10 of Miss Universe; and Keity, Miss Panama 2016 and Top 16 of Miss Universe, will be “Host Ambassadors of the Miss Universe Panama brand,” said the OSP.
Sheldry and Keity will be in charge of “showing the cultural and touristic beauties of Panama to the queen [Sheynnis Palacios] and to the millions of people who will see the content on social media and during the Miss Universe broadcast in Mexico,” the organization reported.
During her visit, the Nicaraguan will visit sites such as the Panama Canal and is expected to be dressed in the pollera. In addition, she will participate in the final gala of Miss Universe Panama , which will be on Saturday, August 3 at the Amador Convention Center.
Sheynnis Palacios arrives in Panama from Jamaica where she was present at the coronation ceremony of the representative of that country to Miss Universe, a contest that will be held in November in Cancun, Mexico. Also arriving in Panama will be the renowned trainer of beauty contestants and new president advisor of the Miss Universe organization , Osmel Sousa .
Sheynniss will arrive today at 5:00 pm, at Terminal 2 of Tocumen International Airport. The OSP invited the public in Panama to welcome the queen at the airport.