The Government is committed to children's rights and welfare. Education is compulsory through the 9th grade and the Constitution establishes free public education through high school. Children did not always attend school due to traditional attitudes, financial and economic constraints, lack of transportation or secondary schools, and insufficient government resources. The problem was most extreme in Darien Province and among indigenous groups. According to the 2000 Census, 65 percent of children nationally between the ages of 15 and 19 had some schooling beyond sixth grade, but only 18 percent of children ages 15-19 had schooling beyond sixth grade in the Embera and Ngobe-Bugle comarcas.

The Government furnished basic health care for boys and girls on an equal basis through local clinics run by the Ministry of Health, but clinics were difficult to reach from rural areas and often lacked medicine. A central children's hospital in Panama City operated with government funds as well as private donations. In November and December, the Government held health fairs to provide children with vaccinations and medical checkups. According to the Government, from September to December, the Ministry of Health also provided 75,000 persons with medical, dental, and optometric care through health caravans that reached rural and indigenous areas.

By October, the PTJ registered 364 cases of child abuse and neglect. Sexual abuse, including incest, accounted for 135 of these cases. Lack of reporting remained a problem, often because of parental involvement or complicity. Sexual abuse of children was reported in both urban and rural areas, as well as within indigenous communities. Neglect of children also was a problem. Malnutrition and inadequate medical care were generalized problems, most severe among rural indigenous groups.

Inadequate resources and training available to the family courts continued to result in controversial decisions, including the return of children to abusive situations. By July, the 5 juvenile penal courts in Panama and Colon provinces reported 1,241 new cases against juveniles. Gang recruitment of minors by young adults was an increasing problem. Police arrested and detained children for minor infractions during neighborhood sweeps.

Trafficking in children and child labor were problems (see Sections 5, Trafficking and 6.d.).

The law prohibits trafficking in women and children; however, there were reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country. The magnitude of the problem was difficult to determine because the country was a transit point for illegal economic migrants who were not forced into prostitution or debt bondage but used similar smuggling routes. Both the Ministry of Government and Justice and the autonomous Attorney General's office had key roles in combating trafficking. The Ministry of Youth had a strong role in the prevention and the protection of victims.

On March 31, the Government enacted a law that included stronger penalties, better legal definitions of trafficking and pornography, and proscriptions against Internet predation and the promotion of sex tourism. The law also enhanced investigation capability by eliminating the need to initiate a complaint for an investigation, delaying the running of the statute of limitations in cases involving minors, and permitting undercover operations and the monitoring of suspects' computers in sex crime cases. Unfortunately, the autonomous Attorney General failed to convene CONAPREDES, the institution under the law that would have provided additional funding to combat trafficking and to provide victim's assistance. However, during the year the PTJ created a specialized section for child sexual exploitation and the PTJ and Public Ministry extended anti-trafficking efforts to the provincial level.

At year's end, the PTJ's specialized section had begun 24 formal investigations and transferred 7 cases to the Prosecutor's office for prosecution. The Prosecutor's office also initiated its own investigations, including a case involving suspected trafficking to Europe. Information sharing between the Government and neighboring and other countries increased, with the PTJ receiving three leads from Interpol and six leads directly from other countries.

The country was a destination point for trafficked women. There was some evidence that rural children were trafficked internally to work as domestic servants in urban areas. Colombia was the primary country of origin for trafficked women, followed by the Dominican Republic. Although many Colombians and Dominicans came willingly to the country apparently intending to become prostitutes, anecdotal evidence suggested that some were forced to continue as prostitutes.

The country was a transit point for Colombian sex workers to other Central American countries and the United States. Some of these women were assumed to be trafficking victims, but evidence of total numbers was lacking. Alien smuggling was a more prevalent problem. Most aliens transiting the country using smuggling networks were Ecuadorian, Peruvian, Colombian, Chinese, and Indian nationals who arrived from Ecuador, Peru, or Colombia in route to the United States. There was limited anecdotal evidence that some were trafficked for debt bondage, including Chinese debt bondage within Panama.

The PNP and the Immigration Department conducted raids every 2 to 3 months on bars and brothels. By mid-November, the Immigration Department under the Torrijos Administration had conducted raids on two nightclubs and initiated deportation proceedings for 30 Colombians working illegally as prostitutes. For the first time, the Immigration Department also fined the noncompliant clubs. Immigration officials and the PNP also conducted ad-hoc investigations and raids based on tips and other leads but did not generally work cooperatively with the PTJ Sex Crimes Unit. The Immigration Department also suspended issuance of the "alternadora" visa, believed linked to the prostitution of Colombian sex workers.

Commercial sexual exploitation of minors was a problem. ILO studies indicated there were at least 100 minors who were victims of commercial sexual exploitation. Commercial sexual exploitation was primarily an internal issue except that perpetrators included foreigners, and there was limited evidence of international trafficking networks of minors to or through Panama. NGO and government efforts in prevention and education were limited by lack of resources and coordination problems. During the year, the Government prosecuted and convicted several persons for prostituting children.

The March 31 law includes provisions to increase protection of trafficking victims from traffickers and specifies that victims will not be criminally responsible for prostitution or immigration crimes. The law also provides for indemnification of victims of trafficking, even if they return to their native country for costs of medical and psychological treatment, temporary housing, legal fees, and emotional suffering.

In November, the Ministry of Youth, the Ministry of Government, and the First Lady's Office launched a campaign to combat child sexual tourism. In November, the Ministry of Youth held a workshop with 40 local officials in the Darien province and a forum with 124 participants in Panama City on child commercial sexual exploitation. In December, the Ministry of Youth also trained 16 officials in Veraguas province in combating child commercial sexual exploitation. The Ministry of Youth provided shelter and other services to victims of commercial sexual exploitation, using substitute families, its own shelter, and the shelter of a nongovernmental organization it subsidized.

There was substantial discrimination against persons with disabilities in employment, education, access to health care, and in the provision of other state services, but the Torrijos administration took steps to decrease discrimination. The law mandates access to new or remodeled public buildings for persons with disabilities; however, the Government generally failed to enforce these provisions in practice.

While the 2000 Census counted 52,197 persons with disabilities, the new National Secretariat for Social Integration of the Disabled found estimates by international organizations of 280,000 disabled persons probable. The Secretariat coordinated and provided technical assistance to government and civil society efforts to decrease discrimination against and increase inclusion of the disabled. In October, the Government installed a Council for the Social Integration of the Disabled to support the Secretariat. The Council involved civil society and more ministries (such as the Ministry of Public Works) and worked to include the needs of the disabled in ministerial budgets. The Ministry of Education was responsible for educating and training minors over the age of four with disabilities, while the Ministry of Women, Youth, Family, and Childhood provided training to children under four and protected the rights of the disabled. Children with disabilities generally were separated from the general population; however, the law requires schools to integrate children with special needs into the student body.

The Ministry of Labor was responsible for placing workers with disabilities in suitable jobs, but placement remained difficult despite a 1999 law requiring mandatory employment of at least two percent disabled personnel. Persons with disabilities also tended to be paid less than employees without disabilities for performing the same job.

Panama City's building code requires that all new construction projects meant to serve the public be accessible to persons with disabilities, with fines for the public sector from $100 to $500 for noncompliance. A national law with similar requirements for new construction projects generally was not enforced, but the Secretariat began a campaign to increase voluntary compliance. Awareness of disability issues increased under the Torrijos administration, and commercial establishments increasingly provided and enforced handicapped parking spaces. However, basic services such as handicapped-accessible sidewalks and bathrooms were largely unavailable.

The country is racially diverse, with the majority of the population mestizo, Afro-Panamanian, or indigenous. Minority groups generally have been integrated into mainstream society with overall success; however, discrimination against the country's newer immigrants, especially Chinese, sometimes was overt. There were an estimated 150,000 to 200,000 persons of Chinese descent or admixture. Cultural differences and language difficulties hindered and possibly prevented many Chinese immigrants from fully integrating into mainstream society. In addition, Panamanians often resented Chinese immigrants. Racial slurs directed at Asians were used openly among the general population, and substantial numbers of first generation resident Chinese frequently were treated as second-class citizens. However, second and third generation Chinese were seen as distinct from recent immigrants and generally were accepted in society if they assimilated.

Middle Eastern and Indian residents, like the Chinese, also suffered from racially motivated discriminatory treatment. All three groups often worked in the country's retail trade, particularly in urban areas. Legal and illegal immigrants, especially Chinese, were accorded fewer legal protections than citizens for their trade activities. A constitutional provision reserving retail trade for Panamanian citizens was not enforced in practice; however, immigrants legally could not own their businesses as sole proprietorships and sometimes encountered bureaucratic difficulties in practicing their professions.

Racism against blacks occurred, although it generally was expressed in subtle terms. Afro-Panamanians comprised at least 14 percent of the population; however, blacks were underrepresented in the highest positions of political and economic power. Many Afro-Panamanians remained clustered in the economically depressed province of Colon and poorer neighborhoods of Panama City.

Mainstream political elites generally were unconcerned by the economic and social problems of black populations and a concomitant rise in drug use, crime, and gang violence. The country's white elite discriminated against citizens with darker skin through preferential hiring practices in the private sector and manipulation of government resources in the public sector. The predominantly Afro-Panamanian city of Colon, the country's second largest city, suffered from a conspicuous lack of government services.