Panama's President Vetoes Child Protection Bill

Panamanian President Laurentino Cortizo has vetoed and returned to the National Assembly Bill 111, the only item from a package of laws to protect children that passed all three debates. The bill, presented by Deputies Cheng and Janine Prado on September 5, 2024, aims to create a system for the temporary placement of children without family care in a suitable environment, preferably within families. The initiative, proposed by Deputy Manuel Cheng, seeks to create and regulate a system for the foster care and protection of children and adolescents without family care in a safe environment. The bill repeals Article 367 of the Family Code, which also included the elderly or sick in a state of abandonment to be placed in substitute homes. The Executive branch warned that this would leave these people without protection, which it deemed infeasible as it contravenes Article 56 of the Constitution. The document states that Senniaf will be in charge of drawing up the National Foster Care Plan. Bill 111 was the only one from a package of laws to protect children at risk that did not pass in the previous Assembly session, following a scandal of abuse in shelters that was denounced by a group of deputies in early 2021. The Legislature accepted the objection in the first debate on August 3, 2021, but it was later forgotten by the deputies. President José Raúl Mulino objected in part to Bill No. 111, which regulates foster care as a temporary protection measure.