UPDATE: Insurance company selected to provide medical insurance to tourists.

Central America is reeling under the devastation of Tropical Storm Amelia this week. This was not a hurricane. It was "just" a tropical storm with winds under 75 km/hr.

New air and sea bases open to help fight drug smuggling

Panama’s Security Ministry will inaugurate its fourth air and sea base in Bahia Piña, Darien province on 23 April 2010. Panama will also open another base in late April at Rambala, Bocas del Toro. Panamanian authorities have opened five naval-air stations in the past four months to help improve drug interdiction, four on the Pacific and one on the Atlantic.

The following article is from the Panama Realtor newsletter:

Tax reforms concluded
After a quick debate and approval in the National Assembly, President Ricardo Martinelli signed Law 8 on 15 March, the tax reform package that modernizes the tax code and abolishes more than 30 taxes. The most notable change is an increase in the value-added transfer and property tax on goods and services (ITBMS or sales tax) from 5% to 7%.

The reforms also include a measure to drop taxes on corporations, dropping the corporate tax rate from 30% to 25%. This corporate cut is meant to lower tax burden on companies and thus ensure fiscal sustainability, improving Panama’s international competitiveness. The bill however does introduce higher license fees on banks in Panama, a move that was criticized by the sector.

Tax will be introduced on land-bound telephones and prepaid mobile phones. Establishments that do not serve alcohol will be granted an exemption from paying sales tax under the bill. Childcare items have been made exempt. The exemption ceiling for the agricultural sector will increase from $150,000 to $250,000

In a modernist move, the bill also contains provisions for the creation of an administrative court which will hear tax appeals. The bill will enter into force on July 1, 2010.

To read more, or see their listings, go to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Panama names firms that can bid on subway project

UPDATE 2-Panama economy grew 2.4 percent in 2009

(Adds fourth-quarter reading)

PANAMA CITY, March 2 (Reuters) - Panama's economy grew 2.4 percent in 2009 after expanding 3.5 percent in annual terms during the fourth quarter, the government said on Tuesday.

Panama's economy weathered the global economic crisis better than most other Latin American countries because of its relatively strong financial sector and increased construction activity.

"Panama had one of (Latin America's) most stable banking sectors, which was relatively isolated from the crisis," said independent Panamanian economist Horacio Estribi.

Increased activity in telecommunications and the ongoing $5.25-billion expansion of the Panama Canal also propped up growth, the government said.

However, traffic through the Panama Canal -- a major economic driver -- fell in 2009, and overall economic expansion was down sharply from 2008's 10.7 percent growth rate.

But at the same time, higher toll fees led the canal to generate more revenue last year, which helped government coffers and aided public spending.

The government expects growth this year of 5 percent. (Reporting by Sean Mattson; Editing byAndrea Ricci)

Panama’s Department of Statistics reported 773 homicides in 2009, an average of 68 homicides per month, and the most dangerous provinces were reported as Colón and Panama with 37 and 29 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants, respectively. The most common motives behind the homicides in order of occurrence were quarrels or feuds, gang wars, and drug-related killings. The Department predicts around 80 homicides per month in 2010. (January, 2010)

(Reprinted from Southern Pulse/ Networked Intelligence)

Murder Rates in Belize highest in world: Economist Pocketbook fact labeled Belize as the 2009 per capita murder capital of the world.

 BELOW ARE COMPRABLE CANADIAN CRIME RATE STATICTICS.

SEE ALSO, JULY 29 ARTICLE: MURDER RATES IN PANAMA JULY 2009

Statistics Canada data

Violent crime rates in Canada.

There were 2,452,787 crimes reported in 2006; 48% were property related crimes and 12.6% were violent crimes. At a rate of 7,518 reported incidents per 100,000 people, the crime rate in 2006, the latest year for which there is statistics, was the lowest crime rate in twenty-five years.^[1] The crime rate has been in general decline since 1991.

The province with the lowest crime rate in 2006 was for the third straight year Ontario with 5,689 per 100,000, followed by Quebec with 5,909 per 100,000. The province with the highest crime rate for the 9th straight year was Saskatchewan with 13,711 per 100,000. Saskatoon is the city with the highest crime rate following by its provincial counterpartRegina. Quebec City, Trois-Rivières, and Saguenay have the lowest crime rates of any city and are all located in Quebec.^[2] The three northern territories have higher crime rates per capita than any province.

The number of murders dropped to 594 in 2007, 12 fewer than the previous year. One-third of the 2007 murders were stabbings and another third were by firearm. In 2007, there were 190 stabbings and 188 shootings. Handguns were used in two-thirds of all firearm murders. Seventy-four youths were accused of murder, down 11 from the previous year. About eighty-four percent of murders were done by someone known to the victim. Male victims of homicide were most likely to be killed by an acquaintance, someone known to them through a criminal relationship, or a stranger. Female victims of homicide were most frequently killed by a current or former intimate partner, or another family member. The province with the highest crime rate was Manitoba while the lowest crime rates occurred in Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador. Saskatoon has the highest murder rate at 3.6 per 100,000 people^[3].

Police reported crime rate is thought to be an under count of actual violence rates. To rectify this, approximately every five years statistics Canada conducts a survey of victimization in Canada. The last survey reported was conducted in 2004 and it found that the violent crime rate in Canada was 106 per 1,000 which is slightly lower than in 1999 when it was 111 per 1,000 ^[4]. .

[edit]

 

Monkey conservation program in Panama

                                                                     A white faced capuchin  

                                                                   A mantled howler monkey

Red backed squirrel monkey - less than 2,000 red-backs remain in the world today

A monkey conservation program is underway in Punta Burica (South of Puerto Armuelles, near the southern most border with Costa Rica) through the Tigre Salvaje Eco-Lodge.

For more info, see their website: http://www.tigresalvaje.com

or contact: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

 A kinkajous

Yolanda Van Der Kolk has designed a t-shirt to help raise money for monkey conservation -  watch this site for more details, coming soon!

 This is an article by Daivid Young, former Editor of The Panama Star, now Publisher of wwwNewsroomPanama.com

Hiding the truth is soft larceny

DAVID YOUNG OUR MAN IN PANAMA

On line hustlers setting traps for fools conveniently forget the warts on beautiful Lady Panama

Panama Star Yesterday I wrote about some of the scam artists that populate Panama, preying on new arrivals, ideally their fellow countrymen, believing that national bonds are some form of guarantee of trustworthiness. Today, we turn to another kind of scam, that of hard sell promoters of real estate and Panama living who, by exaggeration, omission of unpleasant facts and misrepresenting essentials like the cost of living are practicing soft soap robbery.

These are the people who offer expensive seminars, for the gullible, unable to do their own research and will guide you to the cheapest places in the world to retire, but put on their blinkers when it comes to issues like corruption and crime. They run web sites and (for a healthy fee) offer the “latest” report on Panama living like a projected GDP growth of over 3 percent. (The latest projections indicate maybe one percent).

BUDGETING. Some even give you a sample budget. Try this for example, Condo fees (maintenance) in Panama City “$100 a month.” Is that one room with no running water in the middle of Chorillo, or a bathroom in Punta Pacifica? A quick check with friends came up with the average of $200-$250 for moderate sized apartments. A less than 100 square meter apartment near (not on) Avenida Balboa $175. Couldn’t track anyone paying $100.

MAID IN HEAVEN. Then there was the cost of a maid. $150 a month. No mention of paying Social Security, or how many hours a week the maid would be working for such a magnificent stipend. The writer, with a couple of years of Panama living as a qualification, says she and her husband pay her maid $300 (again no mention of Social Security) because she does laundry and ironing.

CULTURE. But then there is a wonderful cultural life, the Ballet, the National Orchestra. How many performances a year? When is the Ballet season? And outside of the city?

CRIME WAVE. There is a convenient silence on escalating crime, the worry of Panamanians and expats alike. Why mention an American killed in his garden by intruders a couple of weeks back? express taxi-robberies starting at major shopping malls; car jacking; tourists being robbed within shouting distance of the presidential palace; a public official gunned down by robbers in front of the Controleria. Wrong place, wrong time. An American woman murdered, chopped into pieces and carried away in a suitcase.

Not quite the blissful life that the promoters present.

HEALTH CARE. When it comes to health care the statements (similar to those selling medical tourism) go overboard. They took a hit recently when a young woman from Texas died after liposuction surgery in Chiriqui. And the cost? Imagine a site aimed at Canadians saying that the the cost of hospital care is cheaper in Panama. Cheaper than nothing?

ALTERNATIVES. For those who don’t get suckered into one of the rose tinted scenarios , there are fortunately a few alternate sources. Sam Taliaferro , a developer of renown in Chiriqui, is not afraid to speak the truth on the economy, the Canal expansion, crime and corruption, and for this has been excoriated by the denizens of tourism and real estate.

More recently on the scene is Robert Brown , known affectionately by his Panamanian staff and neighbors as Roberto Chocolate. Robert is a Canadian who parleyed a career in marketing to becoming one of the most successful fund raisers for the arts in North America.

He was an early victim of over sell by one of the expat hustling companies, whose owners have been moving around the world, looking for fresh fruit to pick.

During his time in Panama, his home has been invaded three times. Once he confronted intruders with a paint gun loaded with frozen paint balls. That created a splash and a little pain to remember his visit by. That aside, he is a lover of his new country, actively engaged in the local community and already working on a major fund raising activity to focus attention on endangered Panamanian wild life.

In the meantime he devotes a lot of energy to telling it as it is on his web site, giving praise where it is due, listing scammers and those wearing blinkers. He gets some 10,000 hits a week.

He recently got into hot water at a presentation in Toronto where he dared to mention some of the Panamanian facts of life that every one should be aware of before making the big move. For people like Sam and Rob, let’s be thankful. In the meantime lest you think Panama is a hell hole, it’s not. But like all beauty, it has its flaws.