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Nearly 50 years after disappearance, Rita Irene Wald's family seeks truth and justice in Panama
🇵🇦 Panama /Crime & Justice

Nearly 50 years after disappearance, Rita Irene Wald's family seeks truth and justice in Panama

From TVN Panamá · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

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  • Rita Irene Wald's family is seeking truth and justice nearly 50 years after her disappearance during Panama's military dictatorship.
  • The family hopes an extradited individual linked to the investigation will help clarify what happened to Wald and locate her remains.
  • They are awaiting fulfillment of commitments made under an Inter-American Commission on Human Rights process, including a school named in Wald's honor.

Nearly 50 years after Rita Irene Wald vanished during Panama's military dictatorship, her family continues to demand answers and justice. In Chiriquí province, her sister Tania Wald Jaramillo expressed hope that the Public Ministry will thoroughly investigate an individual recently extradited in connection with the case.

"This is an opportunity for the Public Ministry to conduct an investigation into the person who was extradited, because they did not come of their own free will," Wald Jaramillo stated. She noted the extradition request was made over a year ago and acknowledged the Public Ministry's efforts. The family also awaits the fulfillment of commitments made under an agreement with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

This is an opportunity for the Public Ministry to conduct an investigation into the person who was extradited, because they did not come of their own free will.

— Tania Wald JaramilloRita Irene Wald's sister, commenting on the extradition of an individual linked to the case.

One outstanding commitment involves the educational center named after Rita Irene Wald, which currently only offers basic education. The family's primary goal is to uncover the truth about her fate. "We want to find her remains; it has been almost 50 years. We don't want revenge, we want truth and justice," Wald Jaramillo said. She added that her parents died without knowing what happened to Rita, and her siblings still seek answers.

Minister of Women, Niurka Palacios, called the suspect's capture a step forward in the pursuit of justice. The ministry will support the family during the upcoming court hearing. Palacios recalled that Rita Irene Wald was a student leader from Chiriquí who disappeared in 1977. The family previously provided information about possible remains to the Public Ministry, but the case had been closed at the time. It was later reopened following further efforts with the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights.

We want to find her remains; it has been almost 50 years. We don't want revenge, we want truth and justice.

— Tania Wald JaramilloRita Irene Wald's sister, expressing the family's long-standing desire for resolution.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by TVN Panamá in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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