Panama denies human rights violation allegations: Security ministry

• The security ministry of Panama has denied allegations about the human rights of migrants.
• The document newspaper cited was a “letter of allegations”.
• Panama has asked neighboring Latin American nations for assistance.

According to the country’s security ministry, the administration of Panama has denied allegations that it has infringed the human rights of migrants headed for the United States who enter the country erratically through the perilous Darien Gap jungle.

The Panamanian administration was accused of sexually abusing migrants as they crossed the Darien a United Nations document, according to a local Spanish newspaper.

It said that the paper contained allegations of forced labor and the deprivation of liberty at immigration checkpoints.

The charges, according to a statement from Panama’s security ministry, were intended to “undermine” the humanitarian work being done by local and international organizations to assist migrants entering Central America from Colombia.

The government would “carry out the pertinent investigations,” the ministry stated.

In recent years, Panama has asked neighboring Latin American nations for assistance to combat organized crime and people smugglers who are taking advantage of the rising number of migrants coming from South America.

A record 248,000 migrants, mostly Venezuelans, crossed the Darien Gap last year. Many have been sent back to Panama as a result of new, tighter US immigration laws, but they frequently cannot afford to travel back to Venezuela from Panama.

The United Nations clarified that the document newspaper cited was a “letter of allegations” from multiple sources. It claimed that it frequently submits similar allegations to the pertinent states, requesting clarity.

“Competent authorities may be sought to take measures to prevent or put an end to the alleged violations,” the UN statement added.

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