by Rod Hughes

The saga of the tuna fishing vessel Tiuna has lasted a long time but finally ended last month when her owners were fined $668,000 and stripped of their license to fish in Costa Rican waters. It began last January when the vessel was caught with its nets in forbidden waters off the world heritage site, Isla del Coco, an island 587 kilometers off the Pacific coast of Costa Rica.

But the capture sparked a controversy between world environmentalists and Costa Rican authorities. After a Costa Rican coast guard cutter captured the Tiuna with the aid of the environmental group MarViva, she as escorted into the Pacific port of Puntarenas. But MarViva was not at all pleased when a Puntarenas court released the crew and then the captain.

Although the vessel had 280 tons of valuable yellow fin tuna in its hold, when the Environmental Tribunal, an arm of the Ministry of the Environment, finally got around to fining the Tiuna last month, the fine represents the market value of only 14.5 tons, The tribunal ruled that it could not prove that all the fish in the hold came from the Coco National Park waters.

Environmental groups question if this country’s authorities are really serious about protecting its national, and in this case, world treasures. As reported recently by Leland Baxter-Neal of the English-language Tico Times, this country has a difficult time protecting the priceless island and the myriad inhabitants of the sea surrounding it. At least one aspect of the tribunal decision no doubt pleased environmentalists: the Tiuna fine will be used exclusively to protect Coco Island.

by Rod Hughes

A flash flood hit the southern district of Desamparados and flooded 14 homes but was not sufficiently dangerous enough to remove anyone to emegency refuges. El Llano in the San Miguel district received the worst part of some 14 hours of rain over the past 24, which was enough to turn small creeks into rivers.

This year has been rainier than usual and has provided reservoirs with an ambundance of water but has qualified generally for what the British call “filthy weather.” (They know whereof they speak, the Brits.) In September, flooding was serious in Guanacaste and did oblige the National Emergency Committee to move some residents. Worse, the Housing Ministry, wracked by scandal, has been unable to even provide substitute housing for those made homeless last year by flooding.

Rains will continue throughout October, usually the wettest month before slowing down in November. Earlier this morning the sun shone briefly in southern Desamparados, as if to demonstrate that it still knew how, before a light rain began falling again.

By Rod Hughes

It was hot, hot, hot and the turf was bumpy, bumpy, bumpy at Andres Kamperveen Stadium in Panamaribo on the Dutch Caribbean island of Surinam Saturday. But neither condition seemed to bother the Costa Rican national soccer team (the beloved “Sele” as in the Spanish word for all stars, “Seleccion“).

The few standup moments for the fans were all Tico-generated and so were bitter for Surinam. Walter Centeno opened scoring after 10 minutes of play. Centeno varies between brilliant and merely competent and he was the latter in this match. (His Saprissa club could have used him in their tie with D.C. United earlier in Concacaf’s champion’s league play.)

Celso Borges (who had Friday described the ball rolling on the Surinam turf as “bouncing like a rabbit”) mastered the uncertain turf late in the first half to make it 2-0 for the Sele. It widened a few eyes in the small crowd because Borges leaped high as if he had rockets strapped to his legs to take Centeno’s pass and head it into the goalmouth.

Early in the second stanza, Guner Sandvliet (aren’t you happy not to be doing the live telecast with names like that?) of Surinam got the ball past the Tico’s new goalie Keylor Navas to close the gap a bit. But two minutes before, Armando Alonso had blasted in a marker so that merely made it 3-1. And then Alonzo Solis provided the second spectacular moment, taking J.L. “Pupy” Lopez’s pass and leaving three Surinam defenders and the goalie in the dust for the final goal.

Other Soccer News: Brujas and Alajuela Still on Top

Standings in Costa Rica’s First Division Soccer league: Brujas of Escazu has a surprisingly commanding lead of four points over Saprissa, Puntarenas and Liberia in Group A, followed by San Ramon and Carmelita, the latter with only 4 points compared with Brujas’s 18.

Group B has Alajuela and Perez Zeledon tied for the lead at 18 points with San Carlos breathing down their necks with 17. Back four points is Heredia, with University of Costa Rica and Puntarenas trailing.

by Rod Hughes

Were you ripped off by Internet pirates who accessed your Costa Rican bank account and emptied it? Take heart. In only the third condemnation of a local bank in a civil court, a Costa Rican university student was ordered to be reimbursed for 1.1 million colones he lost when hackers broke into his on line Banco Nacional account.

When Cristian Loria, who had been saving the money to finance his business administration studies, filed suit last year, alleging that Banco Nacional was negligent in not having sufficient safeguards to protect his deposit, few thought he had a chance. The courts had never found against a national bank before, not even in the case years ago when a normal deposit was raided with the aid of a bogus check and the obvious collusion of a dishonest bank teller.

But in September the courts found for claimants in two separete cases of on line fraud against Banco de Costa Rica. In each case, a court has found that the bank has an obligation to protect deposits except where the depositer himself has let slip his identify theft safeguards. More than 600 victims of identity theft have come forward and the two banks stand to lose millions in claims.

Another 10 cases have been filed against both banks, totalling 120 depositors gathered together in class-action suits by the Free Consumer Association. The association does not discount adding other names.

In all, 278 instances of identity theft were reported by Banco Nacional, which airily dismissed their claims as being due to their own fault for letting vital information out to the hackers, no matter how inadvertantly. The bank dismissed its own responsiblity without a hearing of any kind, raising the ire of both victims and the courts.

Interestingly enough, despite the banks’ statements that their deposit security was perfectly fine earlier this year, by July they had instituted further safeguards on their Internet banking procedures. The consumer group was happy about this but maintained it was a case of closing the barn door after the horse had gone bye-bye.

A Banco Nacional press release said only that the bank’s attorneys are studying the verdict “for form and content” and have not decided whether to file an appeal.

by Rod Hughes

One seldom hears the subject of Nicaraguan immigrants brought up these days in Costa Rica. As with the U.S. presidential campaign with illegal Mexican immigrants, such concerns have been swept away into a corner by issues such as high petroleum and food prices and other economic issues. That situation has been helped by, in Costa Rica’s case, the low unemployment rate (4.6% earlier this year) that ease’s worry that low salaried Nicaraguans will take jobs away from Ticos.

This will undoubtedly continue with the news that Nicaraguan laborers are no longer a burdon on this country’s health care system. Under the country’s socialized medicine, even illegal residents are entitled to hospitalization under Costa Rica’s Social Security (Caja) system. This was a worry to former President Abel Pacheco’s austerity administration that ended in 2006.

But Nicaraguan workers are now paying their way with their contributions to the Caja, reported health authorities this week. Some 120,000 Nicaraguan workers are contributing to their benefits, reports the daily paper La Nacion. In just 2007 alone, the Caja incurred costs of some 80 billion colones, but income from Nicaraguans was barely a third of that.

The figures tell the tale: some 400,800 immigrants reside in this country, according to the Central American Population Center. Of those, an estimated 230,000 are economically active, more than half of whom are registered with the Caja. Unfortunately, some 110,000 workers 12 years or older are still outside the health care system and pay notheing. (Note: Child labor is illegal in Costa Rica but still occurs, especially in the immigrant population.)

Population Center director Luis Rosero points out, “Contributions to the Social Security system could be better if it would develop a mechanism for the undocumented to contribute or if employers of the undocumented would fulfill their obligations to affiliate (those workers) with Social Security.” In Costa Rica, every employer has (theoretically) the duty to sign up even part-time workers with social security and pay the employer’s quota and deduct from the wages and pay employee quota as well.

Unfortunately, greedy employers are only too happy to forgo the expense of insuring their workers’ health benefits. Many of these delinquent employers run farms and prey on unskilled seasonal Nicaraguan workers. The lack of labor inspection by the Ministry of Labor and the Caja ensures that foreign workers are exploited by the unscrupulous with complete impunity.

La Nacion, in the absence of figures from the Caja, calculates that the workers who do pay into their own health care are also paying for care of the undocumented ones who contribute nothing. “These immigrants tend to be younger and therefore demand fewer health services,” points out Population Center director Rosero.

One unanswered question in all this information is whether employers may be credited with this happy situation. Perhaps more employers are registering their workers and paying their part. Certainly most or all the immigrants would be happy to have the small workers’ fee deducted from their pay for some health coverage.

by Rod Hughes >

Saprissa, which might have be expected to be revivalized after its Concacaf victory over Marathon, could not get past Carmelita and ended with a scoreless tie. San Ramon and San Carlos each earned a point with a 2-2 tie. Puntarenas upset Heredia 2-1 and proved that Heredia is having deep troubles this season.

by Rod Hughes

Not even playing the match on its own home (artificial) turf at Ricardo Saprissa Stadium yesterday could save the big purple “S” from a tie with DC United. It was all but a defeat, because in the regional tourney of soccer clubs, the Tico club is carrying the goal deficit from their previous 4-0 drubbing at the hands (or rather the feet, in soccer) of Mexico’s Cruz Azul club.

The U.S. club has been the doormat of this tourney and soccer buffs had predicted that playing them was a golden chance for Saprissa’s advance toward the finals. Alas, nothing is sure in love and soccer and the Tibas club has been so wildly inconsistent lately that they should have known things could go awry. Even though Saprissa had already beaten United before in the tourney…

Scoring went like this yesterday: DC United’s Francis Doe, assisted by Quava Kirk surprised the Saprissa defnese after barely five minutes of play. The home side evened it up but only in the second half when Cesar Elizondo scored, assisted by Alejandro Alpizar. Elizondo repeated again, this time on a pass by Alpizar. Things looked rosy with 2-1.

But at minute 92, United awoke and scored on Rod Dyachenko’s goal assisted by Ryan Miller. Saprissa fans left the stadium shaking their heads. The only consolation is knowing that five of their best players were in Surinam with the national All Stars for that match in the long run up to World Cup 2010. Saprissa will still advance in the tourney but they are making very hard work of it…

by Rod Hughes

As the national election campaign in the United States winds down, Costa Rica’s primary run up to the 2010 election is heating up. It’s official: Vice President Laura Chinchilla resigned her two posts on the cabinet (she was also Minister of Justice) Wednesday in order to run for the presidential nomination of the government’s National Liberation Party. Since the resignation under pressure of Second Vice President Kevin Casas, she was the only one who can substitute as chief executive in the Presiddent Oscar Arias’s absence. Now the country has no vice president.

Her desire to run for the top post was an open secret, especially since President Arias mentioned slyly that he would “not be opposed” to a female president. This is about as direct as he can be to favoring Chinchilla publicly under the country’s tough regulations against an elected official meddling in pre-election partisan politics, rules watched over by the Supreme Elections Tribunal.

Former Public Security Minister Ferando Berrocal, who has also has his eye on the standard bearer spot, commented sourly that since she has Arias’s support she has an advantage. Berrocal was fired as minister after his incautious remarks earlier this year alleging that the Colombian narco-terrorist group FARC had penetrated into high political circles. Since then, he has been increasingly critical of his ex-boss.

But politics, like romance, seldom runs smoothly and rumors have circulated that Chinchilla has clashed with the president’s brother, Rodrigo Arias, over issues discussed in cabinet meetings. Both Arias, Minister of the Presidency and the President’s closest advisor, and Chinchilla have poo-poohed the rumors. To make matters even more fascinating for the political observer, Minister of Finance Guillermo Zuñiga has hinted that he has support in the cabinet for the nomination as the party standard-bearer. But he has since lapsed into silence about the matter.

The strongest challenge to Chinchilla so far is San Jose mayor Johnny Araya, a long-time party stalward. Contrasted with Berrocal, he graciously welcomed Chinchilla into the race but he has had some pointed things to say about the president’s apparent backing of the vice president. His brother, Rolando Araya, was the 2002 nominee but lost to ex-President Abel Pacheco of Social Christian Unity party in a close run election that required the country’s first runoff.

One thing is certain: Araya will face opposition from the country’s small but increasingly visible gay community. Last week, the English-language weekly The Tico Times broke the story of Araya’s homophobic role in denying a liquor license to a gay club, characterizing homosexuality as “unnatural” and implying that freedom has its limits. But the newspaper also speculated that in this conservative Catholic country that may help, more than hinder, his political career.

by Rod Hughes

In an interview with the leading daily paper La Nacion published today, Central Bank President Francisco de Paula Gutierrez stated flatly that Costa Rica is largely immune to the fiancial meltdown that is occurring in the United States. Although not denying some affects here, he feels the situation will balance out for this country.

One immediate worry in Costa Rica is the unfavorable balance of trade that sent the Central Bank scrambling to secure its dollar reserves and to halt speculation in an unaturally strong colon vs. the dollar. But Gutierrez expects that prices of imports will also drop, especially of raw materials, one of the vital necessities if the country is to keep up the building boom and keep unemployment low.

The Central Bank chief says that dollar reserves are adequate and wants to maintain access to Latin American development funds. In fact, he will leave tomorrow for Washington D.C. to attend a meeting of just such a fund. He said the bank’s selling of a part of its dollar reserves earlier this yeat was normal.

Part of this country’s “immunity” to the “contasion” of investor woes suffered by major stock markets in the world is its size. He points out that this country’s stock market is small and speculative capital traditionally come in such instruments as bonds. He also feels that a drop in imports caused by tighter credit and a 12% devaluation in the colon have helped balance the drop in exports, especially to the United States, this country’s biggest trading partner.

Recently, Central America’s leading English-language publication. The Tico Times, ran a news story on much the same sense. Individually, Costa Rican investors have been steered away by local financial advisors from such risky investments as Lehmann Brothers and AIG. But not only will the U.S. economy’s crisis change the profligate way that country’s consumers live, but Costa Ricans’ way of life, as well.

Although not as credit-crazy as their neighbors to the north, Costa Ricans have had a tendency in the past decade to live right up to, if not beyond, their means. Implicit in Gutierrez’s preduction that imports will shrink is the possibility that Ticos will have to tighten their belts, at least in their purchase of luxuries. This country has, for example, one of the highest percentages of cell phones per capital in the world. A recent story in La Nacion noted that this craze has infected even poor students, a high percentage of whom use their scholarship money on cell phones and snacks instead of books.

In a recent hard-hitting editorial, The Tico Times blasted Wall Street greed for for “the precipitous failure of the U.S. financial system which is reverberating globally…” But included in that condemnation were U.S. consumers “..for living beyond their means, for racking up credit card debt, for accepting the too-good-to-be-true mortages.” But Ticos are also not immune from that “fiesta mentality” and many times through the years Costa Rican economists have warned that Ticos save too little, if at all.

Costa Ricans will not like a belt-tightening that is sure to come and have a tendency to blame their politicians and seek more radical remedies. An increasing number already blame the Arias Administration for high world petroleum prices that has spearheaded other inflation here. Such a knee-jerk reaction could be a danger to this democracy with an election coming up in 2010.

by Rod Hughes

The Supreme Court’s Constitutional chamber has frozen all sex offense prosecutions while it looks into the constitionality of cases where the only evidence is the testimony of the alleged victim. This applies to both rape cases and child sexual abuse.

If the appeal under consideration prospers, it will greatly complicate prosecution of sex offenders, since abuse of minors and rape do not often occur before an audience. On the other hand, it will free the court system from cases where the supposed victim or a guardian are fabricating an offense out of a desire for attention or vengeance.

In a meeting in San Carlos on family violence, Chief Prosecutor Francisco Dall’Anese expressed fears that the freeze on cases itself would create a huge backlog of such cases while constitutional judges deliberate. “There’s nothing for us to do other than to wait for the Constitutional Chamber to resolve this issue,” sighed Dall’Anese, “Those are the rules of the game.”

Just in San Carlos canton alone, judgment on 18 cases of sex crimes had to be suspended. (San Carlos, north of the capital, is a canton so large it has been proposed to become a province of it own, although now it is a part of Alajuela province. Although not populous, it stretches to the Nicaraguan border.) In the southern canton of Perez Zeledon, another dozen cases are frozen.

Luis Carlos Castro, convicted of sexual abuse of a minor and sentenced to four years in prison, filed an appeal on an article of the sexual crime code in July. In the appeal, he challenged the permission of the courts to convict solely on the testimony of the alleged victim. This violated, he maintained, the principle of in dudo, pro reo, Latin for “in doubt, the accused” is innocent.
This is the equivalent of “beyond a reasonable doubt” and “presumed innocent” principle in Anglo Saxon common law.

Analysis: As is common in profound changes in a culture, the pendulum may swing back. Up until the middle of the last century, Costa Rica was a machistic country like most of Latin America. Male dominated, courts normally gave short shrift to sex offenses and women were discouraged from presenting rape complaints and the male society assumed the woman provoked the crime. Women even achieved the vote late. Since then a feminist movement has moved forward steadily but quietly with an increasing number of cabinet positions and Legislative Assembly seats filled by women.

In the last Legislative Assembly, the lawmakers focused on family violence and a new Violence Against Women Law passed, spurred by a rash of men murdering their female housemates. So strong is pro-female sentiment that in the course of two months this year, two women fugitives charged with international abduction of children by U.S. courts were granted asylum here, mostly based on their own testimony that they and their children were victims of domestic abuse.

During floor debate on the Violence Against Women measure, one male lawmaker protested that men could be victims of domestic violence by their mates just as esily as women. Although such cases are rare here, no one can deny that such incidents occur. His protest was ignored as more out-moded machismo.