Panama president on warpath against independent media, opposition claims

He is a prosperous businessman who made his fortune through a chain of supermarkets, proving himself to be ruthless with his competitors. Now President Ricardo Martinelli is showing the same cut-throat pattern with the press in Panama.

Media owners and opposition politicians last week accused Martinelli of trying to curtail press freedoms in the isthmus nation by threatening to impose fines and taxes on radio stations and newspapers that have been reporting on a string of political scandals affecting his administration.

Martinelli "has a bad dermatology problem - he has thin skin when it comes to tolerating criticism and dissent," says Guillermo Adames, owner of Radio Omega Stereo in Panama City. "They sent the taxman to come see me after I questioned the government in a radio commentary and in the newspaper La Prensa . I think this was part of a campaign of intimidation so that there would be no such criticism from journalists or media owners."

Panamanian Popular Party lawmaker Milton Henríquez accused the government of trying to "silence the voices of dissent." "This is what a typical fascist would do to gain absolute power," said the opposition lawmaker.

Roberto Eisenmann, founder and owner of La Prensa , the most important daily in Panama, said tax inspectors from the Economy Ministry also came visiting recently and told him that he had a $1.5-million debt in unpaid taxes. "Like a good autocrat businessman, everything to him is a commercial transaction. That is the pattern he follows, buying businesses and lawmakers. We go from scandal to scandal in this country."

In response to Eisenmann's allegations, President Martinelli wrote on his Twitter account: "It seems the best recipe to avoid paying taxes is criticizing the government, and when they catch you, then they cry that you are attacking political liberties."

The government's press secretary has demanded that media owners and the opposition present proof that tax laws are being used to attack freedom of expression, and threatened to sue Eisenmann. The press secretary did not respond to repeated requests by EL PAÍS for a reaction to the opposition's claims.

The 59-year-old Martinelli, a conservative, was elected to a five-year term in 2009. His opponents claim that the president continues to win more control of the unicameral assembly through political pressure and financial favors to lawmakers. Since the election, Martinelli's ruling party went from having 13 deputies to its current tally of 36 in the 71-seat assembly, says Henríquez.

The president also has a "sufficient majority" of the Supreme Court justices behind him to avoid judicial conflicts, the lawmaker said. Martinelli asked the assembly to appoint one of his former chief auditors at the Super99 chain, Gioconda de Bianchini, as comptroller general of Panama.

"With this noticeable concentration of power and authoritarianism, he has begun to go after reporters and media outlets that say things he doesn't want them to say. In short, this is typical of authoritarian governments run by presidents who immediately seek reelection so they can stay in power forever," Henríquez said.