Guido Berguido, a Panamanian biologist, never imagined he could face prison time for questioning the environmental impacts of a proposed port. In 2024, a conservation group Berguido directs, Adopta Bosque, filed suit with five other organizations to challenge the Puerto Barú Project, a large, multipurpose Pacific port planned near the western city of David. Contending the project threatens mangroves and marine life, they asked Panama’s Supreme Court of Justice to revoke the approval of its environmental impact study. But on Aug. 7, 2025, the project’s developer, Ocean Pacific Financial Services Corp., filed a criminal complaint against Adopta Bosque and the environmental law group Centro de Incidencia Ambiental (CIAM), accusing them of defamation and crimes against the national economy. The charges together carry potential prison sentences of up to six years. For Berguido, the lawsuit came as a surprise. “As an environmentalist and biologist, I never thought defending nature could have... [Log in to read more]