Summary.
The bill declares Plaza Belisario Porras an immovable tangible cultural heritage site of the Panamanian nation. It identifies the site as the setting of the Universal Exposition between 1912 and 1916. According to the article, products representing technological advances and the international transport of commercial goods associated with the operation of the Interoceanic Canal of Panama would be exhibited there. It locates the plaza on block 102, between Avenida República del Perú, Avenida Cuba, El Pausilipo Street, and La Concordia Street, in the corregimiento (district) of Calidonia, within the district of Panama.
The designation would encompass Plaza Belisario Porras as a public space and its constituent features. The bill expressly includes the busts and commemorative features that form part of the plaza, its green areas, its spatial layout, and its landscaping. It also covers the plaza’s setting within the city’s urban landscape. The subject of the designation therefore extends to the features located in the plaza and to the spatial and landscape arrangement described in the article.
The bill directs the Ministry of Culture (Ministerio de Cultura), acting through the National Directorate of Cultural Heritage (Dirección Nacional de Patrimonio Cultural) and in coordination with the Municipality of Panama (Municipio de Panamá), to adopt the measures necessary to protect, conserve, rehabilitate, and enhance the heritage value of the site. It requires these actions to conform to Municipal Agreement 61 of March 30, 2021 (Acuerdo Municipal 61 de 30 de marzo de 2021) and Law 175 of 2020 (Ley 175 de 2020). The proposed coordination brings together the national cultural heritage authority and the municipal government in actions concerning the plaza.
The National Directorate of Cultural Heritage within the Ministry of Culture would also be required to enter Plaza Belisario Porras in the State’s official registers of immovable cultural heritage assets, in accordance with the rules in force. The bill assigns the Municipality of Panama responsibility for the plan governing management, maintenance, and use of this public space, in keeping with the heritage values already recognized in Law 175 of 2020. It thus identifies separate responsibilities for registration in State records and for municipal planning of the plaza’s management, maintenance, and use. The text provides that the law would take effect upon promulgation.
The public bodies concerned are the Ministry of Culture, the National Directorate of Cultural Heritage, and the Municipality of Panama. Because the bill concerns a heritage public space, it could be of interest to or affect people who use the plaza, cultural and commemorative activities associated with it, and activities involving the maintenance, rehabilitation, and use of public space in the corregimiento (district) of Calidonia and the district of Panama.
What it proposes.
- Designation of an immovable tangible cultural heritage site.
- Protection, conservation, rehabilitation, and enhancement of a public plaza.
- Heritage registration and municipal management of the space.
Who it would affect.
- Ministry of Culture and National Directorate of Cultural Heritage.
- Municipality of Panama.
- Users of Plaza Belisario Porras.
Key points.
- Declares Plaza Belisario Porras an immovable tangible cultural heritage site and specifies its location.Art. 1
- Includes the busts, commemorative features, green areas, layout, landscaping, and urban setting in the designated site.Art. 2
- Directs the Ministry of Culture, through the National Directorate of Cultural Heritage and in coordination with the Municipality of Panama, to take measures for protection, conservation, rehabilitation, and enhancement.Art. 3
- Requires the plaza to be entered in the State’s official registers of immovable cultural heritage assets.Art. 4
- Assigns the Municipality of Panama the plan for management, maintenance, and use of the public space.Art. 5
- Provides for entry into force upon promulgation.Art. 6