Panama Deputy Decries Natives´ Exclusion
The Panamanian indigenous people suffer serious social, economic, and political inequalities, which lead them to poverty and cause numerous problems, Deputy Patricio Montezuma asserted on Thursday.

The National Assembly Indigenous Affairs Commission president said the autochthonous people have been marginalized and excluded from public policies.

Around ten percent of the Panamanian population is indigenous, but it has been traditionally discriminated against and forgotten, the legislator said.

Montezuma called upon the State to consider these people and end exclusion policies.

We are asking for respect for our human rights, for egalitarian treatment, as any and all citizens, and a better distribution of the country s resources, he stressed.

According to the UN Development Program 95.4 percent of the indigenous people on the Isthmus live in poverty.

Also per UNDP statistics, half of Panamanian indigenous children suffer malnutrition and delayed growth.