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MANUEL NORIEGA'S RULE IN PANAMA

Noriega was a corrupt dictator heading an efficient narco-militaristic regime in Panama. He was involved in drug trafficking, arms smuggling, money laundering, and the ruthless oppression of his people. He also systematically violated the AmericanPanamanian Canal treaties and harassed U.S. forces and institutions in Panama. (Sosa, 16)

The 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama was the first American use of force since 1945 that was unrelated to the cold war. It was also the first largescale use of American troops abroad since Vietnam and the most violent event in Panamanian history. It ended with the unusual capture of Manuel Antonio Noriega, Panama's head of state, who was then brought to the United States and tried for criminal drug operations. (Sosa, 18)

Manuel Antonio Noriega Morena, born in 1934 in a poor area of Panama City, was able to gain a scholarship to a military school in Lima, Peru. He returned to Panama and was commissioned a sub-lieutenant in the Panamanian National Guard. In October 1968, he participated in a coup that overthrew the Arias government and ushered in an era of military rule under Omar Torrijos. Noriega loyally supported Torrijos and became his right hand man. Promoted to lieutenant colonel, he became head of Panama's dreaded G2 intelligence service, where he was responsible for dealing with the country's dissidents. (Sosa, 25) By the end of the 1970s, Noriega had earned a reputation as the most feared man in the country, having established a record of harassing, arresting, imprisoning or exiling critics of the Torrijos regime. Torrijos' death in a plane crash in 1981 set off a power struggle between civilian and military leaders that resulted in General Dario Paredes emerging as the new leader. Noriega succeeded Paredes as the strongman when he took command of the Panama Defense Forces in 1983; he promoted Nicolas Barletta as candidate for president in the 1984 elections. Once Barletta was elected, ...

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MANUEL NORIEGA'S RULE IN PANAMA. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 12:02, March 29, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1695138.html