BRIEFS. immigration

Better treatment of migrants requested

LA PRENSA

Homeward Bound: Not all those who migrate to Panama are treated fairly or allowed to stay here.965283

With the granting of extraordinary powers to President Martín Torrijos and the proposed immigration reforms, a wave of concern has swept over hundreds of recent migrants to Panama.

Bishop Pedro Hernández Cantarero of the Darién has said that the Conferencia Episcopal, or Bishops' Conference, is planning to issue a statement complaining about the unfair treatment of migrants in the country., who deserve more humanitarian aid.

"Governments are implementing more drastic laws and controls, and that concerns us because it hampers us in providing the assistance migrants need," Cantarero said.

The Conferencia Episcopal plans to meet next Monday, Jan. 7. Cantarero is planning to meet with migration authorities before that date.

According to Renault Escudero, a Panamanian lawyer from the Asociación Legal Alternativa de Panamá, the recent immigration reforms were created to tighten controls on displaced persons and migrants in Panama.

"We are going to urge authorities to take into account the International Convention on Migrant Workers of 1975 and 2005, [according to which] migrants are granted permission to work with dignity and without being a burden for the State," Escudero said.