Should Expats Be Concerned About Safety In Panama?
(costaricapages.com) In the past few months there have been a handful of incidents of foreigners being victims of violent crime. Though certainly Panama is much, much safer than most Latin American countries, should foreigners be concerned about their safety in Panama?
A few days ago I was discussing personal safety in Panama with a female friend of mine from the US. Her restaurant had just be broken in to the day before. Though the break-in occurred when the business was closed for the night, she told me believes she is being lax with her own safety. This friend has been living in Panama for about 3 years. She told me when she first moved to Panama she was very vigilant about looking over her shoulder, never walking places at night, etc. She said she then became complacent and dropped her guard quite a bit. Since the break-in, and recent crime against expats, she is increasingly worried.
A number of other expats I know have echoed the same concerns. Express kidnappings happen from time to time in Panama City. That is when you are approached at an ATM and forced to hand over your money and possessions. At that point the victim is usually driven to a secluded area and then released unharmed. Home invasions are being reported more frequently now too. During home invasions in Panama it is not uncommon for the homeowners to be assaulted. In a few recent cases, expats have been killed during these home invasions.
I still feel quite safe in Panama, but for the first time in my more than 3 years in the country, it seems like an expat becomes the victim of a crime every couple of weeks. There was a recent case of a Canadian being shot in a small town near Chitre. After speaking with local residents, I was told this expat was extremely disrespectful to the locals in the town and was keeping himself as isolated as possible from Panamanians. If the allegations are true, that kind of behaviour can get you in trouble in any country (not that shooting someone is an appropriate response).
Though nothing can guarantee that you will never become the victim of a crime, if you use common sense like you would anywhere else in the world, you lessen your chances of becoming a victim of crime in Panama.
If you live in Panama, do you ever worry about your safety here?
