The Memoirs of Manuel Noriega: America's Prisoner.

• Author: Pastor, Robert A.

Gen. Colin Powell, the Mr. Clean of American politics, once described Panamanian Gen. Manuel Antonio Noriega as pure "evil" To reach the pinnacle of power in Panama, Noriega surmounted many obstacles, but none compare to the challenge of his memoir -- to defend a reputation that seems indefensible.

Noriega was a brutal, corrupt dictator with a dossier overflowing with actual and alleged crimes that include pushing a priest out of a helicopter, beheading a political rival, forcing two of Panama's presidents to resign, and trafficking in drugs. December 20, 1989, after two American soldiers were shot for running a roadblock next to Noriega's headquarters, President George Bush ordered a massive attack against Panama. Noriega was captured and brought to Miami where, in 1992, he was convicted of drug smuggling and sentenced to 40 years in prison.

Now, in an unusual memoir, Noriega comes to his own defense, finally telling all that he had previously threatened to tell. With the help of Peter Eisner, a talented journalist who has covered Latin America for 15 years, Noriega's story is readable and, at times, credible.

In the book's introduction, Eisner calls the invasion of Panama "completely unjustified" and an "abominable abuse of power." In his view, Noriega was unfairly demonized because "the Bush administration wanted to invade." Why? Eisner and Noriega offer numerous answers to this question, all of which can be summarized in three arguments.

The first is that Bush wanted to retake control of the Canal. But this argument was not persuasive at the time and is even less so today. Just a month after the invasion, Panamanians assumed predominant control over Canal operation, and that control will become complete in 2000. No one in either the Bush or Clinton administrations has suggested that the United States should take back the Canal. Indeed, despite opinion polls showing that 75 percent of Panamanians want U.S. forces to remain in Panama, both governments have shown little interest in completing the talks to extend a small U.S. presence beyond the year 2000.

The second reason is that Panama's "civilian elites" convinced Bush to help them get rid of the lower-class Noriega. Although its true that the upper class hated Noriega, the invasion can hardly be classified as an elitist plot. Panamanian polls showed that 92 percent of the population supported the invasion -- not because they liked Americans, but because they despised Noriega.

The third explanation is that the United States hated Noriega because he said "no" to the American colossus. He repeatedly rejected efforts by the Reagan and Bush administrations to enlist him in the war against the Sandinistas, and he resisted U.S. efforts to drive him from power. Noriega's defiance made Bush seem so weak that Bush felt compelled to act.

But the fact is...