When the Board of the Panama Chamber of Commerce met recently with the Minister of Security, Juan Manuel Pino, and the director of the National Police, John Dornheim, seeking mechanisms for joint work on citizen security they were told that it was a matter of public perception due to the impact that the issue has on social networks, rather than reality.

On Sunday, September 19 the Chamber fired back.

“The truth is that both, reality and perception, are important and must be addressed. In cities, which are often the most affected by crime and violence, measures must be taken with a more proactive and comprehensive approach to combat crime at all levels. Citizen security can improve with the coordinated and comprehensive effort of national and local governments, organized civil society, academia and the citizens themselves ”, says the business association.

The Chamber says it applauds initiatives such as Vigilant Neighbors and Vigilant Restaurants, which in the past have helped communities feel safer.

Similarly, the sector says that it is important that all citizens have access to official figures of the main crimes that affect the country.

"In addition, taking into account that these cannot by themselves lead to a sufficiently reliable and exhaustive analysis of the crime, it would be appropriate to also have the aforementioned victimization and social perception surveys of citizen security."

The Chamber of Commerce recalled that through its Citizen Security Observatory, it worked on updating crime figures and that between 2010 and 2018, this task was complemented with victimization surveys and the perception of citizen security.

“The Observatory concluded that, to the extent that individuals do not feel safe, they will seek shelter, which has a direct impact on a society already highly affected by confinement and the adverse effects on socioeconomic matters, as a result of mobility restrictions. In addition to this, there is a gradual deterioration in the image of Panama as a safe country ”.