Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
05PANAMA2294
2005-11-23 22:01:00
UNCLASSIFIED//FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Embassy Panama
Cable title:  

SUPREME COURT JUSTICES FACE CRIMINAL COMPLAINT IF

Tags:  PGOV PREL PINR SNAR PM POL SPECIALIST 
pdf how-to read a cable
This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PANAMA 002294 

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CEN, AND INL
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958:N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR SNAR PM POL SPECIALIST
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT JUSTICES FACE CRIMINAL COMPLAINT IF
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY AGREES

REF: PANAMA 02232

Summary
-------

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 PANAMA 002294

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CEN, AND INL
SOUTHCOM FOR POLAD

E.O. 12958:N/A
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR SNAR PM POL SPECIALIST
SUBJECT: SUPREME COURT JUSTICES FACE CRIMINAL COMPLAINT IF
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY AGREES

REF: PANAMA 02232

Summary
--------------


1. (SBU) In the wake of a March 2005 scandal that featured
mutual allegations of wrongdoing between four Supreme Court
Justices, on November 14 Alianza Pro Justicia (Pro-Justice
Alliance) dramatically submitted to the National Assembly a
criminal complaint against eight Supreme Court Justices.
The complaint was based on the results of a legal audit
conducted by Alianza that severely questioned six Court
rulings. The National Assembly has the constitutional power
to investigate and impeach Justices. Many observers doubt
that the PRD-dominated National Assembly will take any
action against the Justices. In Panama, it is a foregone
conclusion that without Executive backing, nothing will
happen in the legislature. End summary.


Background
--------------

2. (U) In a March 2005 scandal Supreme Court Justices
Arturo Hoyos, Winston Spadafora and Anibal Salas denounced
Justice Adan Arjona for hiring staffers on the Executive
branch payroll (instead of the Judicial payroll). Arjona
retaliated by holding a press conference questioning the
three Justices' decisions in six cases involving narco-
trafficking. Arjona's accusations struck a chord with the
Panamanian public. President Torrijos responded by
organizing a "Pacto para la Justicia" and forming a
Commission to make legal recommendations on how to improve
administration of justice (AOJ),including the appointment
of new Justices (see reftel).

The audit
--------------

3. (SBU) Alianza Pro Justicia (the "Alianza" comprises 15
civil society organizations,) on November 14 announced the
findings of its September audit of the six cases cited by
Justice Arjona. The findings included a criminal complaint
against eight Supreme Court justices -- practically the
entire Court minus Arjona and Justice Lee (Note: Justice
Lee was not involved in any of the six cases. Justice
Spadafora and his alternate Justice Cardenas were involved
in some of the six cases and therefore the criminal
complaint included both of them, making a total of eight
Justices.) Volunteer litigation lawyers studied the rulings

in each of the cases for Alianza's audit. These lawyers and
a Drug Prosecutor who also contributed to the audit
requested that Alianza did not disclose their names to avoid
retaliation against them in their legal practices.


4. (SBU) Alianza's audit showed "serious concerns" about
the rulings in two of the six cases. The audit found
"issues" with the other four cases, Castillo explained, but
they were more open to interpretation. The two cases were
those involving Colombian citizen Lorena Henao Montoya and
Belize national Fernando Requena Duval. Henao Montoya had
been charged with crimes against public health and the
national economy and forgery of documents (all related to
drug trafficking). Henao's brother, her late husband, and
her current common-law husband all were members of the Cali
Cartel. With Justice Arjona dissenting, eight Justices
declared that Lorena Henao's detention in Panama was illegal
and set her free. Fernando Requena was detained for
narcotrafficking. Julio Cesar Espinosa was detained while
he was trying to help Requena escape from jail. Espinosa
confessed that he was paid $40,000 by Requena to free him.
With Arjona dissenting, the other Justices declared
Espinosa's detention illegal. On January 19, 2004, Requena
escaped with the help of several armed individuals who broke
into a public hospital where Requena was undergoing a
medical checkup, shooting their weapons in the air.
Requena's whereabouts remain unknown.


5. (SBU) Alianza strongly believes that the plaintiffs
should have not been released from jail as the Justices had
"much information and evidence" linking them to crimes.
Ironically, Colombian authorities arrested Lorena Henao
Montoya at the instant that she set foot in the Bogota
airport following her deportation from Panama some months
ago. A Colombian court later found Henao Montoya guilty
based on the file provided by the Panamanian Public
Ministry. (Note: Henao is currently serving sentence in
Colombia for narcotrafficking and money laundering. End
note).


6. (SBU) After the audit was completed in September,
Castillo met with the Panamanian Executives Association's
(APEDE) legal group (about 20 lawyers) in a closed-door
meeting to ask their opinion. Castillo claimed that the
group strongly agreed that an immediate formal complaint be
submitted. Castillo then met, also in a closed-door
meeting, with representatives of Panama's Council for the
Private Enterprise (CoNEP),the Chamber of Commerce, Civic
Clubs, and the National Bar Association. Except for the
National Bar Association President Mercedes de Grimaldo, all
of the others also agreed to take immediate action.


7. (SBU) Castillo admitted that deciding to move forward
and submitting the complaint before the National Assembly
was not an easy one. "I was scared. I am still sometimes
concerned," she claimed. "These two cases directly involve
the Cali Cartel. We have been very careful in not
mentioning them, but you never know which interests we are
hitting," Castillo exclaimed.


8. (SBU) Castillo said that Alianza was very careful not to
charge the Justices with corruption. Alianza does not have
any "smoking gun" evidence to prove corruption, though it is
implied. The charges filed were for abuse of authority and
infringement of duties by public servants and were based on
the Penal Code, the Judicial Code and the Constitution. On
November 17, media reported that the National Assembly
President Elias Castillo and Commissioner Freidi Torres (a
former Majority Leader) have asked Alianza for evidence to
justify their criminal complaint. Magaly Castillo claimed
that Alianza submitted to the Assembly a tape from Justice
Adan Arjona's press conference implicating his colleagues in
wrongdoing, authenticated copies of all the sentences,
authenticated copies of the Colombian prosecutor's legal
opinion, authenticated copies of the Colombian court ruling
against Henao, and a copy of Alianza's legal audit. "We
should not need to submit anything else. All the
legislators need to do is read the cases. It is so obvious,
it is disgusting," Castillo said.

Their expectations
--------------

9. (SBU) Castillo said that she doubts the National
Assembly will take any action against the Justices. She
also explained that National Bar Association President
Mercedes de Grimaldo had opposed submitting criminal
complaint, considering it "a waste of time," although she
agreed that the sentences were highly questionable. (Note:
According to media reports, Grimaldo supports the criminal
complaint alleging that there is enough evidence to prove
wrongdoing by the Justices. End note).


10. (SBU) According to Castillo, Alianza proceeded with the
criminal complaint because it was "the right thing to do"
and because it received strong backing from a heterogeneous
group of business people, blue collar workers, the Catholic
Church and several other Christian Churches. "How much more
representative can we get?" Castillo asked.

Comments:
--------------

11. Like Castillo many Panamanians such as those who had
participated in live radio talk shows in the past few days
doubt that the National Assembly will take steps against the
Justices. President Torrijos, whose Democratic
Revolutionary Party (PRD) controls the assembly, could take
this opportunity to shake up the Court and possibly impeach
one or more justices. But allegations that several cases
before the Court (the CEMIS case, above all) may involve him
and other high-ranking government officers, lead many to
believe that he is not eager to pick a fight with the Court.

Eaton #