Draft bill 54.

Summary.

The draft bill proposes to update the rules on synthetic drugs, new psychoactive substances, derivatives, and precursors used in illegal or clandestine laboratories. It would make its provisions the basis for a state policy and defines, among other terms, adulterants, mixtures, analogous substances, precursors, and digital drug trafficking. Its definitions refer to the 1971 Convention, the 1988 Vienna Convention, and Law 19 of 2005. The Chemical Control Unit (Unidad de Control de Químicos) of the National Commission for the Study and Prevention of Drug Related Crimes (Comisión Nacional para el Estudio y la Prevención de los Delitos Relacionados con Drogas), supported by the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences (Instituto de Medicina Legal y Ciencias Forenses), would maintain a statistical record to track unlisted or illegal substances and mixtures and their chemical changes. Seizure, custody, and destruction would follow the protocol of the Judicial Investigation Directorate (Dirección de Investigación Judicial), with administrative adjustments where open air destruction is hazardous.

The bill describes the synthetic drugs, new psychoactive substances, and chemical precursors within its scope. It would prohibit the listed activities involving substances made in illegal or clandestine laboratories throughout Panama, including its internal waters: production, manufacture, movement, storage, transport, digital trafficking, and transactions, regardless of physical form. It lists substances and chemical groups, including stimulants, opioids, and synthetic cannabinoids and cathinones. Certain new compositions would be added to the statistical monitoring mechanism. The Ministry of Health (Ministerio de Salud), together with the Commission, the Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences, and the Gorgas Memorial Institute for Health Studies (Instituto Conmemorativo Gorgas de Estudios de la Salud), would develop a prevention policy covering early detection, treatment, acute poisoning care, and public information directed especially at young people.

The Institute of Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences would receive resources to serve as the national scientific reference center for detecting components of drugs and precursors. The state would establish legal, budgetary, and administrative mechanisms within no more than one year to secure its chemical components. The Institute would notify the Ministry of Economy and Finance (Ministerio de Economía y Finanzas) and the Office of the Comptroller General of the Republic (Contraloría General de la República) at least two months before its supplies run out; purchasing could take no more than three months after notification. The bill also addresses donated or loaned materials and specialized equipment. For cooperation, it provides for sharing chemical information and submitting a confidential report to the Chemical Control Unit. The Ministry of Security (Ministerio de Seguridad) would prepare strategies covering borders, internal waters, and air logistics. With the Ministry of Commerce and Industries (Ministerio de Comercio e Industrias) and the National Customs Authority (Autoridad Nacional de Aduanas), it would develop a plan addressing alerts, digital platforms, parcel lockers, suspicious packages, custody, and investigations. The Ministry of Public Security (Ministerio de Seguridad Pública) would coordinate territorial and environmental measures with housing, land, environmental, and aquatic resource authorities, hold interagency meetings, attend international events, and request cooperation through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores).

The bill would amend Articles 314, 315, 316, and 319 of the Criminal Code (Código Penal) to address conduct involving synthetic drugs and precursors, prescribe prison terms according to the conduct, and increase penalties in specified cases. Article 314 would retain an exception for authorized medical, therapeutic, or scientific cannabis activities. The bill would also amend Article 8 of Law 19 of 2005 to establish the membership of the Chemical Control Unit and its oversight duties. It directs the Executive Branch (Órgano Ejecutivo) and the Public Prosecutor’s Office (Ministerio Público) to review the law every five years or as needed, and urges the latter to prepare a consolidated Criminal Code. It provides for commencement on the day after promulgation and rules for interpretation alongside Law 23 of 1986, Law 10 of 2010, Law 419 of 2024, and the current Criminal Code. Article 32 again declares amendments to the Criminal Code and names Article 216, while the amendment set out in Article 25 concerns Article 316. The proposed measures could concern health, security, justice, and customs bodies, as well as the pharmaceutical, chemical, commercial, logistics, and delivery sectors.