04/27/2004

This woman is one of a handful of officially recognized refugees in Panama.  Four months after this woman arrived in Panama, her husband was murdered by paramilitaries who crossed over into Panamanian territory.  Her husband was a health care worker and accused of providing medical assistance to the guerillas.  In order to gain refugee status in Panama, asylum seekers must prove that they were individually persecuted, as is the case in Ecuador and Venezuela. Because most Colombian asylum seekers are fleeing generalized violence and threats of violence, they  are granted temporary humanitarian status in Panama—a status that theoretically expires after three months and denies people the right to move freely or to work. Most asylum seekers have been in Panama between two and seven years and have not been able to move from their place of residence. They survive by depending on the generosity of the locals.