Torture watchdog and jail conditions bill
A BILL to create a watchdog against torture and regulate conditions in Panama’s prisons will head to the National Assembly this week.
It will be presented by Vice President Isabel de Saint Malo de Alvarado.
The bill calls for the creation of a department within the Office of the Ombudsman to prevent torture.
It has 46 articles and has already been approved by the Cabinet Council.
It states that torture “is one of the most serious acts that affects human rights.”
The bill would create a mechanism for the investigation of abuses carried out during criminal investigations, among other scenarios.
If approved, the initiative will put Panama in compliance with the Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture of the Organization of American States.
