Editing Omar Torrijos (section)

=== Political transition ===
With pressure from the Carter administration as well as from economic depression, Torrijos sought to appease public distress and defuse opposition from labor unions as well as influential oligarchs. He reintroduced the traditional parties by modifying the 1972 constitution and set elections for 1984. During this time, in 1979, Torrijos organized the [[Democratic Revolutionary Party]] (PRD) which loosely linked to [[Socialist International]] ideals and represented a melange of social classes, namely the internationally affiliated bourgeoisie. Due to the incoherent nature of this organization, Torrijos was the pivotal figure in maintaining a stable vision between the left and right tendencies within it. His death in 1981, before the transition could be completed, caused a political crisis in the country which led to [[Manuel Noriega]] coming to power as military ruler.<ref name="Tyrants">{{cite book |title=In the Time of the Tyrants: Panama, 1968-1990. |last=Koster |first=R.M. |author2=Guillermo Sánchez |year=1990 |publisher=Norton |location=New York City |isbn=978-0-393-02696-2 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/intimeoftyrantsp00kost }}</ref><ref name="Regime">{{cite book |title= Military Government and Popular Participation in Panama |last=Priestley |first=George |year=1986 |publisher=Westview Press, Inc. |location=Boulder, Colorado |isbn=0-8133-7045-0}}</ref>