Editing Manuel Noriega (section)

==Image and legacy==
Noriega's authoritarian rule of Panama has been described as a [[dictatorship]],{{sfn|Gilboa|1995|p=539}}{{sfn|Galván|2012|pp=184–188}}{{sfn|Kempe|1990|pp=9–11}}{{sfn|Koster|Sánchez|1990|p=20}} while Noriega himself has been referred to as a "[[Strongman (politics)|strongman]]".<ref>{{cite news|title=Manuel Noriega, Panama ex-strongman, dies at 83|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-40090143|access-date=May 30, 2017|work=BBC|date=May 30, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Obituary: Manuel Noriega died on May 29th |url=https://www.economist.com/obituary/2017/06/01/obituary-manuel-noriega-died-on-may-29th |access-date=May 6, 2020 |newspaper=The Economist |date=June 1, 2017}}</ref> A 2017 obituary from the [[BBC]] stated that Noriega "was an opportunist who used his close relationship with the United States to boost his own power in Panama and to cover up the illegal activities for which he was eventually convicted".<ref name="BBC1" /> A 2010 article in ''[[The Guardian]]'' referred to him as the best known dictator of his time, and as "Panama's answer to [[Libya]]n leader Colonel [[Muammar Gaddafi]]".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Tisdall|first1=Simon|title=Why Manuel Noriega became America's most wanted|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/cifamerica/2010/apr/28/noriega-panama-france-america|access-date=September 30, 2017|work=The Guardian|date=April 28, 2010}}</ref> Dinges writes that though Noriega's regime saw a number of murders and crimes, they were similar in scale to those that occurred at the same time under the authoritarian governments of [[Guatemala]], [[Chile]], [[Argentina]], and [[El Salvador]]; these governments never saw the level of condemnation from the U.S. that Noriega's did.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=310–312}}

After Noriega's death, an article in ''[[The Atlantic]]'' compared him to Castro and [[Augusto Pinochet]], stating that while Castro had been the nemesis of the U.S., and Pinochet had been its ally, Noriega had managed to be both.<ref name="Graham"/> It called Noriega the archetype of U.S. intervention in Latin America: "The lawless, vicious leader whom the U.S. cultivated and propped up despite clear and serious flaws."<ref name="Graham"/> The author stated that although Panama was a freer democracy after Noriega's removal, it was still plagued by corruption and drug trafficking, while [[Daniel Ortega]], whom the U.S. tried to fight with Noriega's help, remained firmly in power in Nicaragua, and argued that this demonstrated the failure of the U.S.'s approach to Latin American interventions.<ref name="Graham" />

Noriega took great care to shape perceptions of him. He permitted and encouraged rumors that as Panama's chief of intelligence, he was in possession of negative information about everybody in the country. Dinges suggests that the impression among some officials that Noriega made money off of every transaction in the country may have been cultivated by Noriega himself.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=310–312}} Among opposition leaders in Panama, he was seen variously as a sexual pervert, a sadist, and a rapist. Within U.S. government circles, contradictory images abounded; Noriega was seen as a CIA spy, a drug trafficker, a nationalist supporting Torrijos, an ally of Cuba, and an ally of Oliver North and the Contras. He was perceived as a trusted collaborator in the war against drugs, even as the DEA was investigating him for involvement in smuggling. By the time of his removal, he had come to be hated in the U.S., and the invasion was portrayed as an attempt to remove an evil man.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=310–312}} Dinges writes that these contradictory images played a large role in shaping the U.S. government's self-contradictory policy towards Noriega.{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=310–312}}

Noriega used the moniker "El Man" to refer to himself, but he was also derogatorily known as ''cara de piña'', or "pineapple face" in Spanish, as a result of pockmarked features left by acne in his youth.{{sfn|Metz|1991|p=8}}<ref>{{cite news |last1=Caistor |first1=Nick |title=Manuel Noriega Obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/may/30/manuel-noriega-obituary |access-date=June 3, 2020 |work=The Guardian |date=May 30, 2017}}</ref> He detested the name, and it would later be the subject of a lawsuit.<ref name="nytimesobit" />{{sfn|Dinges|1990|p=29}} When finally arrested and taken to detention by the Americans, the ‘pineapple’ moniker resurfaced in the form of an oft heard chant “the Pineapple’s in the can”. He lived a lavish lifestyle during his time as the ''de facto'' ruler of Panama, described in an obituary as a "libertine life off drug-trade riches, complete with luxurious mansions, cocaine-fueled parties and voluminous collections of antique guns".<ref name="nytimesobit" /> His bravado during public speeches was remarked upon by commentators; for instance, after his indictment in the U.S., he made a public speech while brandishing a [[machete]], and declaimed "Not one step back!"<ref name="nytimesobit" /> The attitude of machismo that Noriega adopted has been described as a reaction to the persecution which his half-brother Luis faced as an openly [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] man in Panama and [[Peru]].{{sfn|Dinges|1990|pp=32–35}} This image of strength contrasted sharply with the impact of a [[mug shot]] which was taken of him after his capture, and the photo became a symbol of his fall from power.<ref name="nytimesobit" /> He was described as a deeply superstitious man, who placed trust in a number of [[talisman]]s which he carried with him.{{sfn|Kempe|1990|pp=13–17}}