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P
a n a m a 22. LEGISLATIVE BILLS THAT WOULD AFFECT
THE PRESS The draft bill of the criminal code contains several measures
worthy of comment because they impact the publication of news. Above all, it should be emphasized that crimes against honor
have not been included in the bill. This means that criminal libel
and slander are not part of the code. It is unclear if this omission
was intentional. Some of the bill?s articles set forth criminal consequences
in connection with news publication that are quite questionable.
Art. 185, for example, refers to false information provided in product
advertising that may mislead or confuse the consumer regarding the
quality of a product. Art. 186 would punish persons who disseminate
false or misleading information designed to raise the cost of products.
Art. 195 would impose sanctions for those who disseminate false
information about the competition or who try to mislead the customers
fraudulently. Art. 198 would provide punishment for whoever disseminates
news that is false, exaggerated or malicious that endangers the
national economy or public credit. This is not a novel provision,
for it already exists in the current code. However, sanctions proposed
in Art. 199 for the dissemination of false news or rumors regarding
illnesses of persons or animals cannot be explained and threaten
news coverage in general. The current code establishes a penalty
for publishing the illness, but not news about the illness. At least,
that is a liberal interpretation of Art. 376 of the code now in
force.
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