QCOSTARICA – The Constitutional Court or Sala IV said the banning of spontaneous public events, such as reading the bible (out lout), acts by clowns and music performances, by the Municipality of San José violated the freedom of thought and expression.
On Friday, by a unanimous vote, the Constitutional Court annulled the prohibition.
The Court said the by-law did not make a distinction between organized massive events and such as spontaneous, creative expression of an individual.
The decision of the judges was issued in response to an appeal (recurso amparo in Spanish), in which the appellant claimed a violation of their freedom of religion, speech and assembly.
It is not uncommon, especially around the Plaza de la Cultura, in front of the Teatro Nacional and the Parque Central, in downtown San José, for individuals to express their artistic talents, such as take to reading out loud (shouting) scriptures, clowns joking around and musicians entertaining, among other activities that make up the urban culture of the city center.
