More fun stuff from Wikipedia on Panama:


The elections of May 1989 were surrounded by controversy. Most of the other political parties banded behind a unified ticket of Guillermo Endara Galimany, along with vice presidential candidates Ricardo Arias-Calderon and Guillermo "Billy" Ford. An American, Kurt Muse, was apprehended by the Panamanian authorities, after he had set up a sophisticated radio and computer installation, designed to jam Panamanian radio and broadcast phony election returns. The Panamanian government decided to proceed with the election; Noriega's candidate lost by a large margin, too great for Noriega's intended rigging mechanism to sway the vote. Even Noriega's own troops, often bussed around all day to vote repeatedly, often voted against him. Noriega cancelled the election rather than let its result out. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, there as an observer, denounced Noriega, saying the election had been "stolen". Bishop Marcos McGrath did as well. Amid the outcry, Noriega unleashed his Dignity Battalions to suppress demonstrations. In an image caught on video and played out in news sources around the world, Endara's car was attacked by them and his bodyguard shot and killed. Covered in blood (from the bodyguard), Billy Ford attempted to flee as one of the Dignity Battalions pummelled him repeatedly with a metal pipe. This image brought worldwide attention to Noriega's regime.

The U.S. had imposed harsh economic sanctions, and in the months that followed, a tense standoff went on between the U.S. military forces (stationed in the canal area) and Noriega's PDF: The US forces conducted regular maneuvers and operations, which Noriega claimed were provocative and a violation of the Panama Canal Treaty. On the other hand, Noriega's forces engaged in routine harassment of US troops and civillians, including at least one case of sexual abuse. On December 15, 1989, the U.S. press reported that Noriega had declared a state of war with the U.S. government. Noriega strongly disputes this characterization, claiming that his statement referred to U.S. actions against Panama, and did not represent a declaration of hostilities by Noriega. The matter came to a head in December of 1989: A U.S. Marine, returning from a restaurant in Panama City was stopped by the PDF and harassed to the point where he panicked and attempted to flee, and was shot and killed.

In response, US President George H. W. Bush launched Operation Just Cause. With a few noticeable exceptions the invasion was over relatively quickly. Losses on the U.S. side were 23 troops, plus three civilian casualties. The U.S. claimed Panamanian losses were "several hundred", though exact statistics remain disputed, and some Latin American and international sources have estimated the civilian death toll may have been as high as 3,000. The conflict also caused caused some considerable domestic problems, with 20,000 to 30,000 having been rendered homeless. Probably the majority of those resulted from a fire that devastated much of a poor area of Panama City that surrounded the Commandancia, a fortified headquarters that was shelled.

Noriega fled during the attack and a manhunt ensued. He finally turned up in the Nunciature of the Vatican embassy in Panama, where he had taken refuge. U.S. troops set up a perimeter outside this building, which as an embassy was considered sovereign soil of the Vatican and could not be taken directly. The troops guarding it used psychological warfare, attempting to force him out by playing hard rock music outside the residence. [1] (PDF file) The Vatican complained to President Bush because of this and U.S. troops stopped the noise. After a demonstration a few days later by thousands of Panamanians demanding he stand trial for human rights violations, Noriega surrendered on January 3, 1990.

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Fnny how Noriega ended up in the Vatican. I thought he was into Voodoo at the time. Now, since he's been in jail, he's born again christian.

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-livin' in the terminally flippant zone