The Great National Alliance for Panama (GANA) sent a note to Archbishop José Domingo Ulloa, in which they expressed the need to establish a methodology and specific conditions for the development of the dialogue.
They highlighted that in the meeting held on Wednesday, September 28 of the present, where the Church summons
various representatives of the productive business sector and generator of jobs, reiterated that the business sector considers it important to develop a formal, participatory and structured dialogue that fosters the construction of
consensus and reach agreements on the main problems that afflict citizens.
They consider that in order for this dialogue to be successful and to include the participation of the employer sector, the following points must be met:
Mediator Qualification:
The mediator will be initially defined by the Government, but it must be approved by all the
parts. He must:
o Be suitable: To exercise mediation and/or conciliation in Panama, it is required to have a suitability.
(Article 59 of Decree Law 5 of 1999 and Article 2 of Executive Decree 777 of December 21
of 2007). You must have a Registry from the Ministry of Government and Justice.
o Manage Communication and Negotiation Techniques: the art of communicating both verbally and not
verbal.
o Be neutral: a conciliator or mediator does not issue opinions.
o Be clear about your role. He is not a judge. He doesn’t decide. It does not issue solutions. He just drives the
process.
Definition of clear rules by the Mediator:
The following rules must be agreed from the first session, and all parties must commit to
fulfill them:
o Numerical equality in the representation of all the actors.
o Act with a desire for proactive dialogue, approaching issues in a constructive manner and seeking to find solutions.
o Define the dynamics of the meetings between the mediator and the parties.
o Define the time of the interventions on an equal footing.
o Speak in order and ask to speak.
o No interruptions during the intervention or use of the word by the actors.
o The parties and the Mediator must use neutral language, avoid qualifying, derogatory,
insults, nicknames and disrespect (do not use profanity).
o Focus on agenda items.
o Define the time of the sessions or meetings.
o Determine the rules regarding agreements.
o Define the communication methodology regarding the progress of the dialogue.
o There should be no threat, nor should there be a violation of social peace during the dialogue process.
Regarding the methodology, it is proposed that the dialogue take place within the framework of the National Coordination for Development, as the legally constituted space for dialogue and consultation, through Law 20 of 2008, where the different sectors, in a participatory and concerted manner, They will work in the search for agreements and consensus on agreed issues.
