Documentation for Dignity Battalions
Aug. 7, 1987
United Press International
Opposition leaders claim that Panamian military forces are arming pro-government supporters and encouraging them to spread fear as vigilante units. But Lopez denied the allegations.
May 4, 1988
The Associated Press
The Dignity Battalion was established last month as the government began to whip up nationalistic sentiment against the U.S. government. The volunteers have been training two to three hours a day for five weeks. […] During Wednesday's ceremony, the battalion members carried old M-2 carbines and M-16 rifles. They wore red-and-white caps with tiny Panamanian flags and white T-shirts with "Dignity Battalion" stamped on them.
May 12, 1989
The Boston Globe
The opposition presidential candidate, Guillermo Endara, and another running mate, Guillermo (Billy) Ford, were under hospital observation yesterday for injuries they received in Wednesday's attack by pipe-swinging vigilantes apparently linked to the military.
May 14, 1989
The Boston Globe
Soldiers from the Panamanian Defense Forces are on high alert. They patrol the streets in battle dress, joined by about 200 vigilantes who have been given M-16 rifles to defend the government.
Aug. 23, 1989
IPS - Inter Press Service
"The deterioration of human rights is also a result of the so-called 'dignity battalions,' which now have 18,000 members," he said. The battalions are vigilante-type squads of Noriega supporters who have intimidated opposition leaders and supporters since the elections.
Dec. 22, 1989
Los Angeles Times
They are young, unemployed and violent, prone to prowl the streets looking for trouble. After creating them last year, Gen. Manuel A. Noriega touted the Batallon Dignidad , or Dignity Battalion, as a youth group of patriotic Panamanians. Other observers contend that they are armed thugs embraced by Noriega because they, unlike his military forces, can be counted on to kill civilians without reservation. Today, they stand as a leading obstacle to U.S. efforts to crush the last vestiges of Noriega's power. […] U.S. military officials have said that the paramilitary groups are composed mostly of street-smart men from poor and working-class neighborhoods, ranging in age from early teens to late 20s.
http://articles.latimes.com/1989-12-22/news/mn-705_1_paramilitary-groups
Jan. 13, 1990
El País
Los Batallones de la Dignidad, creados por Noriega en marzo de 1988, estaban integrados por unos 5.000 milicianos y han sido acusados por EE UU y por el nuevo régimen panameño de participar en los saqueos que sufrieron la capital y otras ciudades del país después de la invasión.
http://elpais.com/diario/1990/01/13/internacional/632185221_850215.html
April 19, 1998
IPS-Inter Press Service
Some 300 members of one of the so-called "Battalions of Dignity" militias burnt effigies of U.S. President Ronald Reagan, former Panamanian President Eric Arturo Delvalle and dissident Gabriel Lewis here today. Unarmed, but in flawless military formation, the members marched to the tune of military marches while shouting slogans against U.S. intervention in Panama.
April 27, 2010
The Daily News
In 1989, Noriega thugs threw out the results of national elections. The U.S. invaded in December, and 24 U.S. troops were killed as Noriega's "Dignity Battalions" put up a brief resistance.
