At a packed press conference in Panama City, more than 60 scientific, social, and environmental organizations publicly denounced the advance of a legal and media intimidation strategy aimed at hindering and punishing environmental defenders in the country.

The signatory organizations demanded that the Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Judiciary dismiss the lawsuits filed by Ocean Pacific Financial, the company behind the Puerto Barú port project, against the organizations Adopta Bosque Panamá and the Centro de Incidencia Ambiental (CIAM). Both lawsuits have already been accepted by the Public Prosecutor’s Office, raising alarms within civil society.

Defending the environment cannot become a legal risk.

In their joint statement, the organizations recalled that Panama is a signatory to the Escazú Agreement, which obligates states to guarantee a safe environment for those who defend human and environmental rights.

However, they pointed out that actions like these—which seek to punish public opinion, discredit environmental organizations, and undermine their advocacy capacity, constitute abusive SLAPPs: strategic lawsuits against public participation, widely recognized internationally for their use as tools of censorship, intimidation, and emotional, legal, and economic attrition.

A pattern of intimidation that is expanding

The organizations explained that these lawsuits are not isolated incidents. The criminal complaints against Adopta Bosque and CIAM are part of a wave of coordinated attacks on social media, including smear campaigns based on false or manipulated information, designed to weaken the credibility of those who speak out against the impacts of the Puerto Barú project.

“In these cases, the judicial system is being used to intimidate and wear down organizations that question projects with serious environmental impacts,” one of the spokespeople stated during the conference.

Puerto Barú and the Risks to Protected Mangroves

During the conference, the organizations reiterated that they have been warning the country for over a year about the risks the Puerto Barú project poses to the David mangroves, an ecosystem that is part of a territory encompassing 25% of the country’s wetlands.

The David mangroves are recognized for their role in coastal protection, climate regulation, artisanal fishing, marine biodiversity, and the livelihoods of local communities.

The project’s proponents insist on its viability, but independent studies—including environmental analyses such as the Lynker report—have pointed out numerous inconsistencies, severe impacts, and more sustainable alternatives in the region.

SLAPPs: A Threat to the Rule of Law and a Healthy Environment

The organizations warned that the use of criminal or media law as a mechanism of intimidation constitutes a direct threat to the rule of law and violates the human right to a healthy environment, recognized by both the Panamanian Constitution and international agreements.

These tactics, they explained, seek to stifle public participation, silence legitimate criticism, and discourage citizen involvement in decisions that affect collective natural resources.

Urgent call to the authorities

The coalition demanded that the lawsuits be dismissed and that the Panamanian State fully comply with its obligation to protect those who defend nature, especially in a context where the region faces an increase in attacks, threats, and criminalization against environmental defenders.

They also reiterated that the country needs more transparency, more participation, and more science instead of legal pressures that attempt to stifle public debate.