Issues concerning notifications of the approval or cessation of refugee status, evaluation of pending cases and holding days to update documents were addressed by the National Commission for the Protection of Refuges (Conare), chaired by the Vice Minister of Government, Juana Lopez.
“Forced human displacement continues to be a global concern and Panama, our country, does not escape that reality. As a country we must give it a comprehensive approach, we are a pillar and we must continue to strengthen international cooperation for people with international protection needs,” López said.
Hussein Pitty, technical secretary of the Commission and director of the National Office for Refugee Care (ONPAR), explained that throughout this year a variety of cases have been evaluated; among them, family reunifications, approval of the refugee statute, as well as revocations and cessations of the statute.
In this sense, during the ordinary meeting in November, five files were evaluated, approving two revocations and three cessations of refugee status for Colombian citizens who failed to comply with the protection regulations of Panama.
As for the days to update documents, Pitty specified that more than 600 people have benefited from them in areas of difficult access in the province of Darién and the Guna Yala region, and reported that they will resume in the first quarter 2023.
Philippa Candler, representative of the Multi-Country Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (Acnur), and the new Vice Minister of Labor, Fernando Castillero, participated in this session.
