Bill 157.

Summary.

The bill establishes a public policy against bullying and harassment of minors in schools and social settings in the Republic of Panama. It tasks the Ministry of Education with creating and directing programs and protocols involving students, school staff, families, institutions, and community leaders. It assigns the Ministry responsibility for training, campaigns, coordinating interventions, evaluating results through data, and preparing accessible guidance, with consultation of parents and approaches tailored to the characteristics of the groups served. It defines bullying and harassment and their physical, verbal, social, property-related, psychological, and cyber forms, as well as reporting channels, victims, specialists, and areas requiring special monitoring.

Each public or private educational institution would have a specialist to address, assess, and monitor cases. The bill sets assignment criteria where a school has a psychoeducational team or psychologist. The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health (Ministerio de Salud) would create free mental health programs for victims; the Social Security Fund (Caja de Seguro Social) would implement them under standards set by those authorities. Schools would have at least 1 in-person reporting channel and 2 digital channels, submit monthly reports to the Ministry of Education, and allow anonymous reports. The identities of complainants and victims would be protected during investigations.

The bill recognizes minors’ rights to specialized care, protection of their persons and property, dignified treatment, anonymous reporting, and accessible education about bullying and harassment. It requires them to report situations affecting other minors, follow rules of conduct, and tell their parents or guardians about bullying or harassment they experience. It requires parents to respond to summonses, recommendations, and sanctions and to take part in training. Educational institutions must prevent, investigate, and address cases occurring on their premises or while minors are in the care of their staff, and involve families. It also provides for annual staff training, a bulletin for parents at the start of the school year, and the possibility of certifying spaces as free from bullying and harassment.

The Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Health would develop comprehensive care protocols. Schools would provide psychological support to victims; both ministries could establish guidance programs for young people with behavioral problems and their parents. School administrators would inform the relevant families when investigations begin and when sanctions are imposed. Parents, caregivers, and teachers would help correct the conduct, and acts constituting crimes would be reported to the competent authorities. The Ombudsman’s Office (Defensoría del Pueblo) would oversee compliance and study the incidence of bullying and harassment. Each school would maintain a confidential register and document case files; parents could request authenticated copies and certificates. The parents of perpetrators would be personally and jointly liable under civil law for harm to victims.

The bill recognizes May 2 as a day against bullying and harassment, requires the collection of anonymized information, and provides for publication of results on Panama’s open data platform with the Government Innovation Authority (Autoridad para la Innovación Gubernamental) and the National Authority for Transparency and Access to Information (Autoridad Nacional de Transparencia y Acceso a la Información). It sets a budget for the program of no less than 2% (0.5%) of the Ministry of Education’s investment budget. It regulates violations and sanctions involving educational institutions and staff, including the closure of private schools after 3 serious or very serious sanctions, with the count restarting every 4 years. Justices of the peace would hear community cases. The bill amends Law 210 of 2021 to require immediate assistance for people with albinism facing discrimination or harassment; it also provides for the addition of an article to Law 16 of 2016 and the repeal of Law 289 of May 24, 2022. The Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo) would issue implementing regulations within the first 90 days after the law takes effect, which is scheduled for 2 months after its promulgation. Its provisions concern the public institutions named, educational institutions, health services, families, and communities.