Tough Panama bill for violence against women

OVER 300 women were murdered in Panama from 2008 to 2013, a statistic that has helped formulate a bill now before the National Assembly bill that imposes penalties of up to 30 years in prison for “femicide.”

The bill was presented Wednesday, September 18 at the plenary session of the Assembly, by  Attorney General Ana Belfon.

The proposal seeks to amend the Criminal Code to "punish violence against women and establish measures to prevent such conduct."
Also punishable by six months in prison for those who breach the protective measures ordered in favor of a woman, as part of a criminal prosecution.
According to the head of the Public Ministry (MP), the document is the result of a series of studies showing that "millions of women are victims of torture, starvation, humiliation, sexual slavery, mutilation and murder for the simple fact of being women …
"The law seeks to guarantee the right of women to live free of violence,” Belfon said.