PANAMA'S NEW SUPREME COURT CHIEF JUSTICE PEREIRA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 PANAMA 000200 SIPDIS DEPT. FOR WHA/CEN/BRIGHAM DEPARTMENT PLEASE PASS TO USAID AA/LAC AND LAC/CEN E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/26/2014 TAGS: PGOV PHUM KJUS PINR PM POLITICS FOREIGN POLICY SUBJECT: PANAMA'S NEW SUPREME COURT CHIEF JUSTICE PEREIRA -- AN UNKNOWN QUANTITY REF: A. 03 PANAMA 1796 ¶B. 03 PANAMA 2451 ¶C. 03 PANAMA 3294 Classified By: Ambassador Linda E. Watt for Reasons 1.5 (b) & (d). (SBU) Summary: Probing the unknown -------------- ¶1. (C) Elected by his colleagues for a two-year term as President (Chief Justice) of Panama's nine-member Supreme Court on October 23, 2003, Cesar Antonio Pereira Burgos (DOB: 29 SEP 1929) has not yet shown strong interest in continuing the drive to reform Panama's judiciary that his predecessor, Adan Arnulfo Arjona, began two years ago. Upon assuming the court's top spot on January 5, Pereira Burgos took a tough line with the press, limiting court access to one accredited representative of each media company, supposedly to stop "abusive" and false reporting on internal court deliberations. Pereira told AID Director that he admires the U.S. Supreme Court's method of accrediting media (which gives the press greater continuity on complex legal issues) and wishes to mirror it in Panama's Supreme Court. Legal insiders doubt Pereira acted to protect the integrity of the deliberative process and suggest instead that he wanted to shield the judiciary from public scrutiny. ¶2. (C) Justice Pereira has expressed interest recently in learning more about USAID's Administration of Justice Program in Panama, but his dedication to judicial reform remains untested. Pereira paints his management style as inclusive, and he claims that he will base his decisions on the will of his peers, which represents an opportunity to generate "buy-in" for reform from other Justices. Arjona's unflinching dedication to reform at all costs contributed to his peers' unwillingness to collaborate with him. At the same time, Panama's Supreme Court, and other subordinate elements of the judiciary, continue to be subject to executive branch interference via patronage appointees and political manipulation. If our long-term collaboration with the Supreme Court under Pereira turns out to be fruitless, Embassy is studying ways to increase its support to demand-based civil society initiatives that press for judicial reform from the outside in. END SUMMARY (SBU) Anti-Arjona alliance -------------- ¶3. (C) A bipartisan alliance of Justices linked to both the Arnulfista Party (PA) and its perennial opponent, the Revolutionary Democratic Party (PRD) united to elect Pereira Burgos. Embassy interprets this unusual alliance as a backlash against Justice Arjona, who often operated on his own, without consulting the other Justices. Resistance among the other Supreme Court Justices to Arjona's reform efforts often was rife (based as much on personal animosity towards Arjona's style as on opposition to the reforms themselves.) Arjona's colleagues actively politicked against him before the October internal elections. (See Reftel A.) On October 23, six of the nine Justices voted for Pereira, two voted for Arjona, and one abstained. (SBU) Pereira's political colors -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Cesar Pereira Burgos, one of five original "Special Advisors" to President Moscoso until his January 2000 appointment to the Supreme Court, openly acknowledged his political inclination in a January 5 speech. In addition to Moscoso's 1999 campaign, he participated in former President Guillermo Endara's 1989 campaign and served as Endara's Ambassador to the UN (1990-92) and Agriculture Minister (1992-94). Pereira Burgos claims "an old friendship" with hardline Arnulfista and Legislative Assembly President Jacobo Salas, and was an opposition legislator from 1980-84, representing Herrera province, in the Azuero Peninsula. Several Supreme Court observers have also suggested that Pereira has ties to ill-reputed businessman and Moscoso confidant Augusto "Onassis" Garcia, part of the network described in Reftel B. ¶5. (C) Before taking charge of the Court in January 2004, Pereira attempted to have the controversial PECC corruption case (Reftel C) transferred to his jurisdiction from that of another Justice, an unprecedented move that his colleagues vetoed. That case may be an anomaly, indicative of Pereira's personal animosity toward the defendant, Comptroller General Alvin Weeden. Observers suggest that Pereira was transmitting a message from President Moscoso who did not want to be next in line if Weeden were left unchecked to investigate her predecessor, Ernesto Perez Balladares (1994-99) for corruption. Nevertheless, the fact that Pereira didn't insist on the transfer over the protests of his colleagues is a positive sign. (U) Comment: Getting to know you -------------- ¶6. (C) Prior to his election as Supreme Court President, Cesar Pereira Burgos was known primarily as a grumpy old man with a tendency to speak out of school, and for his indolence and conspicuous consumption. Pereira is certainly not a model reformer, but he's the most direct avenue to influence the Panama's hierarchical judiciary. A recent Embassy interaction might point to a more positive relationship with the Court. The Court's chief statistician asked Embassy to request formally that Pereira release statistics which should be available publicly, just to see whether he would approve. Pereira promptly released the statistics. While structural reform in the judiciary requires greater conviction than releasing statistics, Embassy hopes that Pereira's goodwill thus far is indicative of a greater commitment. However, we are preparing to pursue other (civil society-based) initiatives that would advance our judicial reform goals in the event that Pereira turns out to be obstructionist in his leadership of the Court. WATT