Former Panama Dictator Manuel Noriega Dies at 83

 

Former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega died in a Panama City hospital on Monday. He was 83 years old.

Noriega had been in a coma¹ since March. He had been recovering from several operations related to removing cancer from his brain earlier this year.

Noriega ruled Panama from 1983 to 1989. His time in power is remembered as a time of corruption² and violence in the Central American country.

Before and during his rule, Noriega received millions of dollars in payments from the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). In exchange, he provided intelligence to the U.S. government. He reported on events in Panama and the rest of Latin America.

At the time, a number of rebel groups operated in the area. Noriega informed the CIA about guerilla and terrorist activities.

The United States used his information to seize illegal drugs at sea and follow the secret movement of money in and out of Panama’s banks.

But his relations with the U.S. government worsened after a political opponent was killed in 1985. In addition, Noriega appeared to begin working with the drug traffickers.

Members of Panama’s military attempted to overthrow³ him but failed. The leaders of the attempted rebellion were arrested and executed without being tried.

In 1989, President George H.W. Bush ordered 28,000 U.S. troops to invade Panama, oust⁴ Noriega from power and capture him.

During the operation, 23 American troops were killed. More than 300 others were wounded. The U.S. military estimates 200 Panamanian civilians⁵ died and 314 soldiers were killed.

After Noriega’s capture, he was brought to the United States to face legal action. He was tried and jailed for 17 years after being found guilty on drug trafficking charges. In 2007, Noriega was sent to France, where he was jailed on money-laundering charges. He was returned to Panama in 2011 and imprisoned⁷.

After Noriega was ousted⁸, economic conditions in Panama seemed to improve. The United States gave the Panamanian government control of the Panama Canal in 1999. Panama expanded the waterway. The number of foreigners visiting the country has increased and property values have risen.

But the country of 3.9 million people still suffers from the corruption that worsened during Noriega’s rule. And drug traffickers and money launderers still operate there.

Panama’s President Juan Carlos Varela said on the social networking website Twitter that Noriega’s death “closes a chapter in our history.”

Varela said Noreiga’s wife and three daughters have a right to bury him in peace.

Words in This Story

coma – n. a state in which a sick or injured person is unconscious for a long time

traffic – v. to buy or sell something especially illegally

launder⁶ – v. to put (money that you got by doing something illegal) into a business or bank account in order to hide where it really came from

1 coma   

n.昏迷，昏迷状态

参考例句：

• The patient rallied from the coma.病人从昏迷中苏醒过来。
• She went into a coma after swallowing a whole bottle of sleeping pills.她吃了一整瓶安眠药后就昏迷过去了。

2 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

3 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

4 oust   

vt.剥夺，取代，驱逐

参考例句：

• The committee wanted to oust him from the union.委员会想把他从工会中驱逐出去。
• The leaders have been ousted from power by nationalists.这些领导人被民族主义者赶下了台。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 launder   

v.洗涤；洗黑钱（把来路可疑的钱弄得似乎合法）

参考例句：

• She wore a freshly laundered and starched white shirt.她穿一件刚刚浆洗熨烫过的白色衬衣。
• The gang launders the steal money through their chain of restaurants.这帮匪徒通过他们的连锁饭店洗赃款。

7 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

8 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。