Omar Torrijos

In 1954, the military dictator got married to Raquel Pauzner, and the couple had three children. He also had a son, Martin, from an illegitimate affair, who later went on to become the President of Panama.

At the age of 52, on July 31, 1981, Omar died in a plane crash close to Penonomé, in Panama. According to reports, the 'DeHavilland Twin Otter' ('DHC-6') aeroplane had lost its way during a storm, but the incident was announced only a day later. After a few more days, the body and the crashed aircraft was found by a 'Special Forces' team.

Though a seemingly natural accident, there have been speculations that the plane had been tampered with either by CIA official of U.S.A. or by future dictator Manuel Noriega, as an assassination attempt.

Omar Efraín Torrijos Herrera was born to José Maria, a teacher, and his wife, on February 13, 1929, in the city of Santiago de Veraguas, Republic of Panama, and had ten siblings.

On completion of his secondary education from the 'Juan Demóstenes Arosemena School' in Santiago, he joined the military academy of San Salvador, after earning a scholarship.

In 1952, he was employed as a second lieutenant by the army of Panama, known as the 'Guardia Nacional' ('National Guard'). Four years later, he became a captain, and by the beginning of the next decade, he was serving as a major in the army.

Omar underwent military training in 1965, from 'US Army School of the Americas', now known as 'Western Hemisphere Institute for Security Cooperation' ('WHINSEC'), in Georgia. The following year he was made the Executive Secretary of 'Guardia Nacional', eventually got promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

In 1968, Torrijos was sent to El Salvador to serve in the embassy as a military attaché, after he allegedly got involved in rigging of elections. The same year, his comrades Coronel Jose Humberto Ramos and Major Boris Martínez planned a coup d'etat against President Arnulfo Arias. Arias had been elected as President for only eleven days.

After the coup saw the successful ousting of Arias, Omar and his colleague Demetrio Lakas decided to replace the exiled President with his deputy Raul Arango. Eventually José María Pinilla Fábrega was made the provisional President of Panama, though it was Torrijos and Martínez who dictated the newly established junta.

Soon, Omar was appointed as the commandment of 'Guardia Nacional', and in this capacity he took control of the press, including famous newspaper 'La Estrella de Panama', the legislature, and all political parties, thus establishing a rigid military rule.

A dictator who thought about the well-being of his citizens, Omar is famous for having initiated talks with U.S. President Jimmy Carter, about transfer of control of the Canal Zone from U.S. authorities to the Panamanian government. It is because of this negotiation, known as the 'Torrijos–Carter Treaties’ that the control was handed over completely to Panama by the beginning of 2000.