Remembering victims of U.S. invasion of Panama

Relatives of people killed during the 1989 U.S. invasion of Panama placed flowers and Panamanian flags on tombstones of loved one in the Jardin de Paz on Monday, December 20.

Over 50 relatives arrived to commemorate the event at the cemetery in the capital, where they the victims – military and civilian, are buried. The total loss of civilian lives may never be known as there are conflicting views on the number killed by helicopter fire and tanks.

The date is considered a National Day of Reflection.but relatives of the dead are still calling for it to be declared a day of mourning. A proposal to declare December 22 as a national mourning day was approved by the previous legislature in 2007, but was vetoed by then-President Martín Torrijos.