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C O N F I D E N T I A L PANAMA 001497 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR PRM AND WHA/CEN 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 01/11/2017 
TAGS: PREL PGOV ECON ETRD PM
SUBJECT: TORRIJOS TALKS SECURITY 
 
Classified By: AMBASSADOR WILLIAM EATON FOR REASONS 1.4 B AND D 
 
¶1. (C) Summary:  In a September 6 office call by SouthCom 
Commander, ADM Stavridis, and Ambassador Eaton, an unusually 
talkative Panamanian President Torrijos talked about a broad 
range of security issues, but studiously avoided mentioning 
the elephant in the room:  his ongoing political crisis over 
the election of Pedro Miguel Gonzales as President of the 
Panamanian National Assembly.  Torrijos previewed an 
intensified campaign against drug lords, no change in 
Panama's restrictive refugee policies, a commitment to 
fulfill requirements necessary to re-start CNIES, pre-emptive 
actions against violence planned by the SUNTRACS labor union, 
improved wiretapping capabilities, frustration with the 
Attorney General, changes in the Panamanian Police Force 
leadership and structure, creation of a Coast Guard, and 
comments on Colombia and Nicaragua.  End summary. 
 
 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
Torrijos goes after Colombian capos; gets armored limo 
--------------------------------------------- --------- 
 
¶2. (C) Torrijos announced that Panamanian Security forces had 
identified 200 "capos" of the Colombian drug cartels that 
were living and operating freely in Panama.  He said that the 
GOP was going after them and they expected the capos to 
strike back.  As a result of threats, Torrijos confided that 
he is planning to buy an armored vehicle for himself.  He 
added that Drug Prosecutor Jose Abel Almengor (a close DEA 
contact) had been whisked to a safe house with his family in 
response to recent death threats. (DEA,s assessment was that 
these threats were not credible).  Nevertheless, Torrijos 
asserted that his government would continue to fight 
aggressively against drug trafficking in Panama before drug 
cartels gained a permanent foothold here. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
We are not going to be pressured into taking more refugees 
--------------------------------------------- ------------- 
 
¶3. (C) Part of the problem, Torrijos said, is that there are 
large numbers of Colombian "refugees" in Panama.  Costa Rica, 
he said, had 50,000 Colombian refugees and 90 percent of 
which are associated with drug trafficking and other criminal 
activity.  Torrijos said that Panama would not bow to UN 
pressure to accept more so-called refugees from Colombia 
since Panama didn't want to throw out the welcome mat for 
criminals as Costa Rica had done. 
 
------------------------- 
Torrijos focuses on CNIES 
------------------------- 
 
¶4. (C) Ambassador pointed out that the Cooperating Nations 
Information Exchange System (CNIES) is a tool that can help 
both Panama and the United States in the fight against 
illegal drug traffic.  One of the remaining key steps before 
that flow of information can resume is the issuance of a 
Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) by Panamanian Civil Aviation 
authorities.  Torrijos seemed surprised that the NOTAM had 
not been issued and promised to intervene personally to 
ensure that it gets done quickly.  Torrijos added that Panama 
needs that flow of information and the cooperation it 
represents in the fight against drug trafficking. 
 
------------------------------------- 
Troublesome labor union in GOP sights 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶5. (C) Torrijos praised the abilities of his newly appointed 
Minister of Government and Justice (MOGJ), Daniel Delgado 
Diamante (DDD), saying he had an excellent understanding of 
security issues.  Torrijos added that he now has a much 
better flow of information from MOGJ since DDD calls him 
every morning at 7 a.m. with a security briefing on 
developments in the country.  DDD, he said, was proactive. 
He has great sources inside the restive trade union SUNTRACS 
and finds out when they are planning demonstrations or 
road-blocks and preempts the demonstrations by being on site 
before the demonstrators.  The demonstrators can demonstrate, 
but they can no longer block the roads or incite violence. 
 
¶6. (C) Torrijos said that SUNTRACS wants nothing less than to 
overthrow the current political and democratic system by 
violence, if necessary.  "We cannot permit that," he said. 
"Our national security is at stake," he added.  Torrijos said 
that SUNTRACS leaders had given one demonstrator a gun with 
instructions to fire it into the air during a planned 
demonstration to provoke a violent police response.  This 
worker, who was out of prison on parole, expressed to his 
family his uneasiness about his role in inciting violence. 
The family encouraged him to go to Panamanian authorities 
with this information.  He did and offered the GOP a list of 
cell phone numbers of SUNTRACS leadership so that they could 
tap them and hear for themselves the plotting of the union,s 
leaders. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
Wiretapping criminals is maddening even for the President 
--------------------------------------------- ------------ 
 
¶7. (C) Torrijos said that he personally spent a day 
negotiating with Attorney General Ana Matilde Gomez to gain 
authorization to tap these phones.  Gomez, now in hot water 
with the Supreme Court for allegedly tapping phones without 
proper prior authorization, balked at Torrijos' request. 
Torrijos, undeterred, went to the Supreme Court, where he 
debated for another half day before getting permission to tap 
two phones.  The Public Ministry then released the two phone 
numbers to SUNTRACS attorneys, as required by Panamanian law. 
 Torrijos expressed his exasperation with his inability, as 
the nation's chief executive, to initiate these sorts of 
wiretaps when national security is at stake.  He said he 
wanted to tap the phones of not just these 20 SUNTRACS 
leaders but any other SUNTRAC telephone number he could find. 
 He said that he didn't want to waste time getting judicial 
approval for it either.  He then quickly added that he, of 
course, would never tap phones for political ends. 
 
¶8. (C) Torrijos said that these anecdotes show how the Public 
Ministry now "is a mess."  He criticized the Attorney General 
for firing her most experienced prosecutors, leaving in their 
place a well-meaning but unprepared second or third string 
team.  (We share Torrijos, concern). 
 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
Torrijos committed to reform security apparatus 
--------------------------------------------- -- 
 
¶9. (C) Part of the solution, Torrijos, will be merging the 
Technical Judicial Police (PTJ) into the National Police 
(PNP).  Although the Attorney General opposes this, Torrijos 
said he'd push this through the National Assembly before the 
end of December.  "That will give us a year to make 
adjustments so that we can institutionalize these changes 
before I leave office," he said.  He acknowledged that the 
Attorney General and others believe he is "trying to recreate 
a dictatorship," but added that he just needed a single and 
clear chain of command in the police. 
 
¶10. (C) Torrijos said that he planned to announce shortly a 
change in National Police leadership.  Although he praised 
the leadership of current Police Chief Rolando Mirones, he 
said that the uniformed police wanted and deserved to have 
one of their own lead their institution.  He did not say when 
or by whom Mirones would be replaced.  (Note:  Rumors have 
long circulated of a fierce antipathy between Mirones and new 
MOGJ Minister DDD.) 
 
¶11. (C) Torrijos said that he would also shortly break the 
frontier division out of the National Police and create a 
separate entity with the specialized training and equipment 
they need.  "You can't expect someone to protect the frontier 
in the jungles of Darien one day and be a beat cop in Panama 
City the next."  Torrijos anticipated that creation of this 
new entity would resuscitate allegations that he's trying to 
"remilitarize" Panama. 
 
--------------------------------- 
Panama to establish a Coast Guard 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶12. (C) Torrijos reaffirmed his commitment to create a Coast 
Guard, merging the Maritime and Air Services.  Acknowledging 
that this merger would create heartburn initially among 
members of both services, he proposed naming a Coast Guard 
chief who would then oversee the two separate services and 
gradually work towards full integration.  Torrijos gave no 
indication of potential nominees or the timing of this merger. 
 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
Uribe visit could lead to more border cooperation 
--------------------------------------------- ---- 
 
¶13. (C) During Colombian President Uribe's brief visit to 
Panama to participate in the September 3, formal ceremony 
launching the canal expansion and commemorating the 30th 
anniversary of the canal treaty, Uribe crowed to Torrijos 
about the recent killing of FARC drug lord Tomas Medina aka 
&El Negro.8  Torrijos said that Uribe thought this was a 
significant accomplishment and the panic heard in subsequent 
FARC radio transmissions demonstrated its significance. 
Torrijos further reported that Uribe had felt compelled to 
accept Venezuelan President Chavez's offer of support in 
negotiating hostage releases from the FARC.  However, Uribe 
said that he had carefully circumscribed the limits of 
Chavez's authority, and Chavez had accepted those 
limitations.  Torrijos said that Uribe felt that Chavez, who 
some have charged with aiding FARC and being a destabilizing 
element in the region, was now on the hook to produce results. 
 
--------------------------------------------- - 
Nicaragua not ripe for change yet; wait a year 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶14. (C) Torrijos praised the quick and generous assistance 
the USG has provided Nicaraguans in the face of the 
devastation of Hurricane Felix.  "It's not just the right 
thing to do for humanitarian purposes, but also for US 
political purposes."  He said that Nicaraguan President 
Ortega and the Nicaraguan people understand and appreciate 
the value of this much-needed assistance.  Torrijos said that 
we all have a stake in moderating Ortega's politics.  "He 
still sees the world through the eyes of the 1980s," Torrijos 
said.  "It will take him a year to understand the world has 
changed."  Torrijos said that Panama can and should play a 
role in that conversion.  That's why, he said, he 
participated in the anniversary celebration for the 
Sandinista revolution.  "I had a role in that (revolution)," 
he added sheepishly.  Torrijos said that the INCAE Director 
recently told him that his staff believed that Martin 
Torrijos was uniquely positioned to influence Ortega.  "I 
want to do what I can," Torrijos said.  He then announced, 
seemingly to Sam Lewis' surprise, that he planned to conclude 
a free trade agreement within 30 days with Nicaragua. 
"Ortega doesn't like free trade, but he can call this 
whatever he wants."  He told Lewis that he planned to give in 
to the last Nicaraguan demand:  free importation of 
Nicaraguan meat into Panama.  Meat costs are rising in 
Panama, he said, and this will help lower our costs. 
 
----------- 
Comment 
----------- 
 
¶15. (C) Torrijos seemed to pick up steam as he began talking, 
perhaps because he could finally talk about subjects he 
enjoyed rather than the current political crisis created by 
the election of accused assassin Pedro Miguel Gonzalez as the 
new President of the National Assembly. 
EATON