José Ramón Guizado

José Ramón Guizado
José Ramón Guizado
17th President of Panama
	In office; 2 January 1955 – 29 March 1955
Vice President	Ricardo Arias
Preceded by	José Antonio Remón Cantera
Succeeded by	Ricardo Arias
Personal details
Born	José Ramón Guizado Valdés; 13 August 1899; Panama Department, Colombia (now Panama)
Died	2 November 1964 (aged 65); United States
Political party	National Patriotic Coalition
Alma mater	Vanderbilt University
Profession	Politician

José Ramón Guizado Valdés (13 August 1899 – 2 November 1964)^[1] was the 17th President of Panama. He belonged to the National Patriotic Coalition (CNP).

Education

Guizado is an alumnus of Vanderbilt University, having earned a Bachelor of Engineering from the university in 1920.^[2] Prior to his political career, Guizado made a fortune as a construction engineer.^[2]

Career

He served as Arnulfo Arias' Second Vice President from 1949 to 1951 and Alcibíades Arosemena's First Vice President from 1951 to 1952, as well as Minister of Foreign Affairs, a title under which he participated in treaty negotiations directly with the United States.^[2] These negotiations covered the United States' use of the Panama Canal.^[3]

José became the president after his predecessor, José Antonio Remón Cantera, was assassinated.^[4]

Remón Cantera affair

In 1955, during a trial from the National Assembly of Panama, Guizado was charged with the second degree murder of his presidential predecessor, José Antonio Remón Cantera. Cantera was assassinated on January 2, 1955 by machine gun fire at the Juan Franco Racetrack in Panama.^[2] The suspected assassin, Ruben Miro, confessed to the murder and implicated Guizado, asserting that he had known about the plot.^[2] Guizado, his son, and his business partners Radolfo Saint Malo and Tomas Nieves Perez were sentenced to house arrest and brought to jail the following day.^[5] Guizado was declared guilty as an accomplice and sentenced to six years and eight months in prison.^[2] Two years later, Ruben Miro was acquitted of the murder charge for the assassination, and Guizado was exonerated and released from prison, reclaiming the rights and privileges of a former Panamanian president.^[2]

Personal life

Guizado married his wife, Maria Paredes Guizado, in 1924.^[3] They had a son and a daughter.^[3] Guizado enjoyed playing golf and watching baseball.^[3] He died of a heart attack in bed at the Di Lido Hotel in Miami Beach at the age of 66.^[2]

References

^ "Biografía de José Ramón Guizado" (in Spanish). Biblioteca Nacional de Panamá. Archived from the original (Microsoft Word) on 3 November 2020. Retrieved 12 October 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h "JOSE GUIZADO, 65, EX-PANAMA HEAD; President in '55—Jailed in Murder, Then Exonerated". The New York Times. 3 November 1964. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "GUIZADO AN ENGINEER; Panamanian Executive Helped Negotiate Canal Treaty". The New York Times. 15 January 1955. Retrieved 25 September 2020.
^ "New president". Critica. Retrieved 14 July 2020.
^ "The President of Panama Betrayed". El Nuevo Mexicano. 19 January 1955. Retrieved 14 January 2020 – via Newspapers.com.

Political offices
Preceded by Alcibíades Arosemena	First Vice President of Panama 1952–1955	Succeeded by Ricardo Arias
Preceded by José Antonio Remón Cantera	President of Panama January 1955 – March 1955	Succeeded by Ricardo Arias