Source of Varela smear story could face jail time

ANOTHER of Panama’s institutions is under fire following a smear story aimed at presidential candidate Juan Carlos Varela published in a Miami based newspaper.

Th Financial Analysis Unit is required by law to keep its reports secret, and failure to comply with this provision is punishable by a three- to five-year prison sentence says La Prensa.

The unit, which was created under the government of Ernesto Pérez Balladares in 1995, can only provide information to the Attorney General as part of criminal investigations or the Superintendency of Banking in money-laundering investigations.
Article 6 of Executive Decree 136 of 1995 states that the Executive Branch will begin criminal proceedings against any current or former unit official who reveals information obtained in the performance of his or her work to unauthorized persons.
The penalty includes dismissal and the filing of a criminal complaint.
"The unit is a security entity with absolute confidentiality," said former Director Victoria Figge. "Nobody can be nosing around into what we do. Anyone who reads or deliver documents is exposed to very serious sanctions."
Questions about the agency have arisen due to a report that appeared in the Miami-based Diario de las Américas which discussed an alleged investigation of Varela.
"How did the information come to this medium? This is a violation of the law," Figge said.
Figge noted that the International Monetary Fund recently issued a report that cited concerns about government institutions.
"This case shows the institutional weakness that exists in this country," she said.