By Rod Hughes
Now, we’re not ones to say, “I told ya so,” but didn’t we say that the Guadelupe national soccer team is “impressive?”
Well, they dumped Honduras Sunday, 2-1, to make it through to the semi-finals and have their sights set on Mexico in next Thursday’s game. Honduras was one of the strongest teams in the tourney, but the blindingly fast team from the tiny Caribbean island nation (which has only the population of a medium-sized city) led much of the game 2-0.
We will hope that the Guadelupe-Mexico match does not have the same wretched officiating that plagued the Mexico-Costa Rica contest. On the other hand, Mexico needs all the help it can get, even from the referee, judging from its lack-luster performance so far.
Meanwhile, a strong Canadian side had no trouble polishing off Guatemala, 3-0, and will meet the United States Thursday. The U.S. All-Stars made it to the semi-finals by virtue of its 2-1 victory over a surprisingly stubborn Panamanian team.

by Rod Hughes
Costa Rica is out of the Gold Cup tourney after a 1-0 defeat by Mexico yesterday afternoon in Houston’s Reliant Stadium. But the Tico All-Star team ran the greenies ragged, despite being reduced to, first, 10 players, then nine, then eight.
Eight against 12. (We’re counting U.S. referee Terry Vaughn as playing on the Mexican side, with just reason.)
Of the three red cards Vaughn waved in the Costa Ricans’ faces, only the last one was warranted, against Mario Camacho. Granted Camacho was frustrated by then at having his team reduced to nine by spurious infractions while Vaughn repeatedly let the Mexicans off with obviously intended, overly rough play. But Camacho should have tended to the business of soccer as his teammates were doing–and doing exceedingly well.
After the first expulsion, Allan Aleman, in the first half, the Ticos forged on so well one often forgot that they were playing with only 10 as they attacked the opponent’s goal with spirit and skill, despite Vaughn’s selective blindness at Mexican infractions. Then, as if playing “then there were none,” Vaughn kicked out Alvaro Saborio as the second expulsion.
The Ticos forced the 0-0 game into overtime and not only defended well against all odds but were dangerous on offense as well. Here, one has to credit the spectacular stops of Tico goalie Jose Francisco Porras. Then, the inevitable had to happen. Mexico’s Jared Borgetti blasted one past Porras.
The Mexicans were outclassed as even the Mexican press admitted–amazing since that country’s sports press is so insufferable, gloating in victory and usually blaming losses on the weather, their team’s off day and, if all else fails, calling for the coach’s head. Never do they admit that the opposition had a superior team.
The Mexican paper Record called the Aleman expulsion for protesting a Vaughn decision, “extreme” and the paper Reforma praised the Ticos as being “competitive and dangerous” even when reduced to eight players.
Praise is merited by coach Hernan Medford who kept his cool during the entire game despite the provocations, although he denounced Vaughn’s officiating after the game. Medford has not always been the soul of forbearance, having been thrown out of games when he was Saprissa’s head coach.
We would like to point out that we are not quick to scream “We wuz robbed!” after a defeat, but Vaughn’s officiating ineptness should definitely be investigated by the organizers of the tourney, since it raises questions of legitimacy. More than one fan has speculated that the sponsors, knowing the vast number of Mexican expatriates in the southern part of the U.S. where the Gold Cup is played, might fear that attendance at the games would be drastically reduced if Mexico had been forced out in the quarter finals. We do not say that is any more than an expression of anger, but that suspicion should be laid to rest.

by Rod Hughes
You can add another toothpaste to your list of “don’t buys” in Costa Rica: Dentamint. The bright red and white tubes look legitimate but Nicaraguan authorities say the toothpaste is laced with the antifreeze diethylene glycol, reports the daily paper Al Dia.
Nicaraguan Health Minister Maritza Cuan yesterday confirmed to Al Dia that laboratory tests of the 145-gram tubes had turned up traces of the chemical. She said the tests had been performed on tips from health authorities in Panama and the Dominican Republic.
Already this month, 85,000 tubes of Mr. Cool and Genial toothpaste imported from mainland China have either been confiscated or voluntarily turned over to health authorities in this country. Both brands are contaminated with the industrial chemical, which can be fatal and which even in small quantities can cause damage to the central nercous system.
Local authorities had not known Dentamint was being sold here until a Cartago woman turned over a tube purchased locally.
Nor are Latin America and the Caribbean the only places plagued by toothpaste contaminated by the chemical. Yesterday the AFP news agency reported that counterfeit “Colgate” toothpaste sold in the United States may be contaminated with diethylene glyocol.
As of today, no deaths from the contaminant have been reported in Costa Rica. (See previous news story No. 1179 - )

by Rod Hughes
Torrential rains in the Central Valley have moved the National Emergency Commission to declare a state of emergency in two cantons near Heredia, in the central canton of Alajuela and to issue a Code Yellow warning for the San Jose southern suburb of Desamparados.
Wednesday’s rains also provoked a near tragedy when two schoolgirls in San Francisco de Heredia fell into a meter-deep, flooded storm sewer across the street from their school and were carried half a block in the strong current before being rescued.
So far, no deaths have been reported but overflowing rivers have damaged homes in wide areas of the densely-populated Central Valley (Meseta Central) and strong rains continue to be predicted for the weekend.
In the community of Belen de Heredia, the ironically named Quebrada Seca (literally translated as “Dry Creekbed”) filled and left its course, damaging homes and businesses with currents so strong they carried away cars and mature trees.
The daily newspaper La Nacion reported that one resident, after spending the night in an Emergency Commission shelter, returned home and was “unable to believe my eyes.” The 70-year-old resident reported that the water inside the house in the laundry area came up to his chin and he found himself trapped. A neighbor had to extricate him through the roof.
So far, the Belen municipality reports 270 homes partially damaged, five totally destroyed, 40 businesses damaged and 20 cars submerged partly or totally. The municipal government immediately broke into its coffers to help with relocation of families and to pay cleanup costs.
And, as if that was not enough, a tornado ripped through the suburban Hatillo Cuatro and Alajuelita sections, damaging 200 homes and 40 businesses. Fortunately, no deaths or injuries were reported, but roofs were ripped off, light poles snapped and sheets of zinc roofing whirled dangerously.
Tornadoes are rare in Costa Rica and are usually weaker and shorter-lived than their counterparts in the U.S. “tornado alley” of the Midwest. This is fortunate, since no tornado warning or storm cellars exist here. But tin-roofing and lightly built tropical homes are susceptible to damage from high winds.

by Rod Hughes
The three-judge panel hearing the case of Juan Carlos Ledezma, accused of setting the fire at Calderon Guardia Hospital that killed 19 persons July 15, 2005, was not fooling around.
While Ledezma stood motionless and impassive Wednesday, the panel president read the sentence: 50 years in prison, the maximum the law allows. The sentence now goes automatically to the Supreme Court’s Third Chamber for review, either confirming it or ordering a new trial.
Prosecuting attorney Paola Guido praised the investigation that revealed that Ledezma, a medical assistant at the facility, was seen leaving the storage closet (where the fire started) just seconds before the conflagration was noticed. The defense suggested that cause of the fire could have been from a short circuit in a flourescent light fixture in the closet but prosecution witnesses testified that the fire started low and crept up the shelves and walls, not the opposite.
The prosecution claimed that Ledezma had been praised for his actions during a previous fire and was attempting to relive his moment of glory, but the defendant did not testify and his motive is unproven.
One of the key prosecution witnesses, Alfonso Perez, whose 17-year-old son died in the blaze, said after the trial that he intends to file a criminal complaint against such public officials as the director, administrator and chief of maintenance at the hospital and Health Ministry officials for negligence in allowing hazardous conditions at the old wing of the hospital. During the fire, extinguishers were found to be empty and the water pump for the interior fire fighting system did not work.
Last Friday, the English-language newspaper The Tico Times published an exclusive investigative report on what steps were being taken at public hospitals to beef up disaster defense. The results were grim: It could take up to 20 years and cost $100 million.
As a part of the exhaustive review, a Tico Times reporter checked out Calderon Guardia Hospital where the tragedy has occurred. Assistant Manager Carlos Alfaro wanted to proudly show the reporter the new 24-hour camera surveillance room that would warn of a fire instantly–but the room was empty and locked, the guard supposely monitoring the cameras absent on coffee break. But otherwise, reporter Blake Schmidt found vast improvement: 300 new fire extinguishers checked monthly, a backup water pump, emergency lighting on the stairs, evacuation signs.
But, Alfaro admitted much remains to be done, including adding to the 16 cameras (that cover only highest risk areas) some 200 more.

by Rod Hughes
The nation’s stocks of blood are at a serious low, due to a lack of donors. The situation is not helped by the mechanical failure in one of the big freezers that forced health authorities to destroy 15,000 sacks of stored plasma.
The National Blood Bank, serving 29 Social Security (Caja) hospitals, needs 30 donors per day to meet the needs and only two on the average have been showing up, said a spokesperson for the bank. This deficit of hemoglobin forces hospitals from time to time to suspend surgeries or treatment of cancer cases urgently needing hemoglobin, since the only blood available is earmarked for emergencies.
Jimmy Villalobos, chief of the bank, said that the only salvation are private blood banks. Just yesterday, the bank obtained 150 sacks of whole blood from a private source, he told the daily La Nacion. This temporarily alleviated the problem. But the downside to this is that each sack costs 100,000 colones.
The bank is accustomed to donor absence during such major holidays as Christmas and Holy Week (Easter) but the low turnout for donations recently is a serious situation.
Persons in good health may donate blood at any Caja hospital or at the National Blood Bank headquarters in Zapote.

By Katherine Stanley
Tico Times Staff | kstanley@ti…

Immigration Director Mario Zamora, who has been praised for his efforts to root out corruption and reorganize the troubled Immigration Administration, was “personally condemned” in a ruling yesterday by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Sala IV) following several suits by rejected visa applicants.

Judicial Branch spokesman Fabián Barrantes said the court found Zamora did not have adequate grounds for rejecting the applications.

“For many of the people who’ve turned to the Sala IV (regarding Immigration), it’s because he ( Zamora ) denied them a visa,” Barrantes said late yesterday afternoon. “The Sala condemned him because of a lack of grounds.”

Because the Sala IV doesn’t apply sentences, the ruling constitutes an “abstract condemnation,” Barrantes explained; however, if the parties involved file suit in an administrative contention court, it’s possible Zamora could eventually have to pay damages, he said.

According to a statement from the Sala IV, one reason for the decision is that the court has found in favor of those filing suit on multiple occasions, without corrective action by Immigration.

“In multiple cases, the Sala has had to restate the fundamental rights of Costa Ricans and foreigners because… the administration of Immigration has not corrected the constitutional errors in previous sentences,” the statement read.

by Rod Hughes
Costa Rica’s All-Star soccer team is off to Houston to play its second round opener in the Gold Cup competition, having been nearly been sent home early. The Ticos chipped out a hard victory last night, 1-0, against Guadalupe, on Walter Centeno’s third goal of the tourney.
First a word about Guadalupe, new to Gold Cup tourneys. The word is: IMPRESSIVE. The team from the tiny Caribbean island country led Group A and its only loss was last night where they ran a resurgent Costa Rica ragged on the field, so much that the Ticos were plainly exhausted two-thirds of the way through the second half.
It was, unfortunately, also a rough game and the referee nearly lost control of the game as tempers flared more than once. In fact officiating was not up to the standard one should expect of an international tourney, with the ref ignoring a clear penalty foul on what should have been Costa Rica’s second goal.
So Costa Rica’s Group A wound up with Canada, after yesterday’s win over Haiti, in first place, the Ticos second and Guadelupe third. It was a wild time, with Canada defeating Costa Rica, then falling to Guadelupe, which in turn got beaten by the Ticos. Haiti goes home, taking with them probably the best goalie in the tournament.
Ticolandia Sunday will play either Mexico, Cuba, Panama or Honduras–but without Walter Centeno whose yellow card means he will be watching from the bench. This is a blow to Tico hopes but perhaps will mean a bit more focus, knowing they cannot depend on just one player to see them through.
Centeno has shown himself a real star under pressure but he has one fatal defect that has got him repeatedly into trouble while playing the regular season with his Saprissa club: anger. When the going gets rough, he roughs back. He is short and solid but not large–except for his mouth which has been known to provoke not only opponents but officials.
An old saying in Latin American soccer is, “He who gets mad, loses.”

by Rod Hughes
Despite Costa Rica’s diplomatic recognition of mainland China June 1 and the subsequent cancelation of Taiwanese aid projects in this country, the firm building the Naranjo-San Carlos highway says the construction will continue, according to the daily Al Dia. The project is important to the area for transport of agricultural produce and tourism development.
Taiwan responded on June 7 by breaking its own diplomatic ties with this country, promising to cancel a reported $70 million in soft loans and donations to Costa Rica.
But Chiang Chih-Yang, chief of the construction, said the highway, nearly 30% finished, would continue. He added that the road must be finished by April, 2010 at a total cost of $61 million, the paper reported.
Al Dia’s sources on the island nation say that Peking promised to donate to Costa Rica $130 million plus to purchase $300 million in Costa Rican bonds. Neither Peking or the Arias Administration has confirmed these figures.
Mainland China considers Taiwan a rebellious province, so Taiwan and China have been engaged in a diplomatic struggle for decades. Costa Rica’s defection leaves 24 countries that still recognise Taiwan as an independent state, half of them in Latin America and the Caribbean.

by Rod Hughes
Now is the time for sports writers to tear up the poll results and start all over again.
Costa Rica may lose by tying. They tied Haiti 1-1 Saturday after losing 2-1 against Canada Wednesday. This means to have a chance to stay in the Gold Cup soccer competition in Miami, the erstwhile favorites have to win in their match with Guadelupe Monday (today at 5 .m. Costa Rican time.) Otherwise, it’s pack your bags and go home.
But the whole tourney is registering surprises. Canada, after tromping Costa Rica Wednesday, fell to Guadelupe Saturday, 2-1, meaning that Group A has an odd look to the standings–fortunately for the Ticos. And the other favorite, once powerhouse Mexico in Group C? They fell Sunday to Honduras 2-1. Thud! (Let’s tear up those poll results into even smaller pieces…)
Meanwhile, Group B is headed by the United States with a comfortable six points. And Panama leads Group C.
Costa Rica dominated play Saturday evening, which is a little like saying “The operation was a success but the patient died.” Only Haiti’s formidable goaltender, G. Fenelon, kept the constant Tico attacks on the goal from turning the game into a rout. Then, in the second half, Walter Centeno repeated Wednesday’s feat of making Costa Rica’s only goal of the match. (What did we call Centeno in our report of the Canada game? “Ever-reliable.” Well, we got something right, at least.)
But M. Alexandre took advantage of a moment of defensive confusion to tie it all up 10 minutes later.
After the game, Costa Rican coach Hernan Medford simply said, “I was satisfied with the way we played–except for our momentary lapse of concentration on defense–but, of course, I’m not happy with the result. But the boys gave it everything they had.”