Atlapa Convention Centre (Spanish: Centro de Convenciones de Atlapa) is located in Panama City, Panama. The convention centre was opened in June 1980. [1] Run by the Panamanian tourist authority, it contains 19 meeting rooms, some of which are capable of hosting up to 600 people. [2]
Since 1980, Panama's national craft fair has been held in Atlapa. [3] The centre has also hosted trade fairs, tourism and business expos, [4] concerts by international artists such as Ricky Martin, [5] Yanni and Laura Pausini, [6] and Beauty pageants such as Señorita Panamá. [7] and Miss Universe 1986. [8]
Atlapa has also functioned as a sports venue, hosting international boxing [9] and the 2006 Men's Central American and Caribbean Basketball Championship. [10]
It hosted news conferences by Panama's military dictator Manuel Noriega. [11] Following the disputed 1989 Panamanian election, opposition candidates were blocked from addressing crowds at Atlapa and protestors attempted to disrupt the wedding of Noriega's daughter in the venue. [12]
In September 2004, Martín Torrijos was invested as the 35th President of Panama in Atlapa's Anayansi theatre. [13]
In July 2019, Laurentino Cortizo was invested as the 38th President of Panama in Atlapa's Anayansi theatre.
In March 2018, Atlapa hosted the Harvard World Model United Nations Conference, in collaboration with Universidad Santa Maria De Antigua which hosted over 1,600 students from all around the globe.
In 2008, following concerns that the centre lacked the necessary capacity and infrastructure, the Panamanian government decided to auction off the centre at the end of that year to fund the construction of a replacement convention centre. [14] At this time, the centre was hosting events 360 days a year but still made annual losses of US$1 million. [2] The auction was delayed by the Ministry of Housing. [15] After initially requesting US$150 million, [16] the government reduced the price to US$124.6 million, including the nearby land. [17] When this failed to attract offers, the centre was offered for sale at US$62.3 million, under the terms of a 2006 Panamanian law. This price proved controversial with business groups, who believed the centre should remain state-owned. [18] In April 2015, the government halted the sale. The lack of offers and the investment of US$3.2 million in preparation for the Summit of the Americas were cited as reasons. [19]
In April 2015, the centre hosted the 7th Summit of the Americas during which President of the United States Barack Obama and President of Cuba Raúl Castro met and shook hands, a move that was described as "historic" by the international press. [20] [21]
Panama, officially the Republic of Panama, is a transcontinental country in Central America and South America, bordered by Costa Rica to the west, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean Sea to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the south. The capital and largest city is Panama City, whose metropolitan area is home to nearly half the country's 4 million people.
Manuel Antonio Noriega Moreno was a Panamanian politician and military officer who was the de facto ruler of Panama from 1983 to 1989. An authoritarian ruler who amassed a personal fortune through drug trafficking operations, he had longstanding ties to United States intelligence agencies before the U.S. invasion of Panama removed him from power.
Omar Efraín Torrijos Herrera was the Commander of the Panamanian National Guard and the de facto head of Panama from 1968 to his death in 1981. Torrijos was never officially the president of Panama, but instead held titles including "Maximum Leader of the Panamanian Revolution". Torrijos took power in a coup d'état and instituted a number of social reforms.
Guillermo David Endara Galimany was President of Panama from 1989 to 1994. Raised in a family allied to Panameñista Party founder Arnulfo Arias, Endara attended school in exile in the United States and Argentina following Arias's removal from power. Endara later received a law degree in Panama. He subsequently served as a member of Panama's National Assembly, and briefly as a government minister before heading into exile again following Arias' third overthrow.
Dignity Battalions were paramilitary militia units created by Panama's de facto ruler Manuel Noriega in April 1988 to augment the Panamanian Defense Forces in defending Panama against possible invasion by the United States and to suppress domestic political opposition to Noriega's regime. They were dissolved on February 10, 1990 following the United States invasion of Panama which toppled Noreiga from power.
Ernesto Pérez Balladares González-Revilla, nicknamed El Toro, was the President of Panama between 1994 and 1999.
Manuel Solís Palma was the acting president of Panama from 26 February 1988 to 1 September 1989, under the military rule of Manuel Noriega. He served as education minister in several administrations, and worked on the 1968 presidential campaign of Arnulfo Arias Madrid.
Ricardo de la Espriella Toral is a Panamanian politician who was the President of Panama from 31 July 1982 to 13 February 1984.
Aristides Royo Sánchez was President of Panama from 11 October 1978 to 31 July 1982, when he was pressured to resign by the military.
The International Maritime University of Panama is a maritime college in Panama City, Panama. It trains cadets to become merchant marine ships' officers. It is located in the Albrook area of Panama City, on the site of the former Albrook Air Force Base.
Presidential and parliamentary elections were held in Panama on May 3, 2009.
Señorita Panamá 1998, the 16th Señorita Panamá pageant and 33rd celebration of the Miss Panamá contest, was held in Teatro Anayansi Centro de Convenciones Atlapa, Panama City, Panama, on Saturday, September 5, 1998, after weeks of events. The winner of the pageant was Yamani Saied.
Señorita Panamá 1991, the ninth Señorita Panamá pageant, was held in Teatro Anayansi Centro de Convenciones Atlapa, Panama city, Panama, in September 1991, after weeks of events. The winner of the pageant was Ana Orillac.
Señorita Panamá 1992, the tenth Señorita Panamá pageant, was held at the Teatro Anayansi of Atlapa Convention Centre in Panama City, Panama, on August 15, 1992, celebrating the foundation of the Old Panama City. The pageant was broadcast on August 24 through RPC Panamá. 15 contestants from all over the country competed for the prestigious crown. At the conclusion of the final gala, outgoing titleholder Ana Cecilia Orillac Arias crowned Giselle Amelia González Aranda as the new Señorita Panamá.
Señorita Panamá 1996, the 14th Señorita Panamá pageant and 31st celebration of the Miss Panamá contest, was held in Teatro Anayansi Centro de Convenciones Atlapa, Panama City, Panama, September 1996, after weeks of events. The winner of the pageant was Lía Borrero.
Señorita Panamá 1993, the 11th Señorita Panamá pageant, was held in Teatro Anayansi Centro de Convenciones Atlapa, Panama city, Panama, September 1993, after weeks of events. The winner of the pageant was María Sofía Velásquez.
Señorita Panamá 1990 the 8th Señorita Panamá pageant and 25th celebration of the Miss Panamá contest, also this year marked the debut of the Miss Universe License in the hands of RPC Channel 4, and unify the event which created the slogan "Three Crowns for Three Beauties". Señorita Panamá used to send the winner to Miss World, but starting in 1990 the winners would go to Miss Universe, Miss World and Miss Hispanidad respectively. It was also the first edition held after the Panama Invasion, when the economic and political situation in the country had a positive shift.
The 1989 Panamanian coup d'état attempt was a failed coup d'état which occurred in Panama City on 3 October. The attempt was led by Major Moisés Giroldi, supported by a group of officers who had returned from a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Namibia. Although the plotters succeeded in capturing Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega, the coup was quickly suppressed. Giroldi, together with nine other members of the Panamanian Defense Forces, was executed on 3 and 4 October 1989. An eleventh participant died in prison after being tortured. These events became known as the "Albrook massacre".
Señorita Panamá 2017 the 51st Señorita Panamá pageant selected to the Miss Universe & Miss World. The pageant has been split into two contests this year Señorita Panamá Mundo and Señorita Panamá. This will be held the 2nd edition of the renewed Señorita Panama pageant, after Justine Pasek, Miss Universe 2002, and César Anel Rodríguez be named the new directors of the pageant in Panamá. 20 preliminary contestants have been selected from all over Panama and competed for the prestigious crown.
Frank Alexis Abrego Mendoza is the founder of the Republic of Panama 's border patrol agency, SENAFRONT. He was succeeded by director general Cristian Hayer in 2016.
8°59′23″N79°30′00″W / 8.989637499456245°N 79.5000187161862°W Coordinates: 8°59′23″N79°30′00″W / 8.989637499456245°N 79.5000187161862°W
