Juan Arias, president of the Chamber of Commerce, Industries and Agriculture of Panama (CCIAP), called for strengthened citizen cooperation with the police to combat violence. "We have to help the National Police and make sure they do their job properly," Arias told the media. "Indeed, violence worries me not only as a businessman, but as a Panamanian in general… it affects us all," he stated. Arias noted that while statistics show a decrease in violence compared to last year, "one death, one murder is a lot for all Panamanians." He emphasized that insecurity harms the country's tourism sector. During a meeting with the National Police director and the head of the National Aqueducts and Sewers Institute, Arias discussed security and drinking water distribution. The leader suggested that Panamanians should not leave the problem solely to the police. "As good citizens, we need to know how to make calls for help and alert the National Police so they arrive on time, because it’s useless to report a dead body on the sidewalk," Arias said. As an example, he mentioned cases where citizens do not report illicit gatherings where conflicts occur.
