With nearly all ballots counted in Sunday’s first round, Ivan Duque was leading with 39.7% ahead of Gustavo Petro on 24.8%. Former Medellin Mayor Sergio Fajardo came third with 23.8%.
Preliminary results of the first round of the Colombian presidential election go on display. Photograph: Luis Acosta/AFP/Getty Images
Duque, a hardline conservative who opposes the peace accord with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) took the largest share of the vote, though fell short of the 50% required to win at the first round.
Petro, himself once a guerrilla, was Colombia’s first progressive candidate in generations and had been expected to gain a larger share.
Supporters of Iván Duque celebrate after he won the first round of voting on Sunday. Photograph: Luis Acosta/AFP/Getty Images
Duque and Petro will now face off in the second round on 17 June.
The winner of the second round will begin a four-year term in office from August.
Colombian presidential candidate Gustavo Petro, accompanied by his daughter Antonella, votes in Bogotá. Photograph: Henry Romero/Reuters
It remains to be seen if Fajardo, a reformer and former mayor of Medellín, will back Petro in the second round. The two other candidates, Germán Vargas Lleras and Humberto de la Calle, were unable to muster 10% of the vote between them.
Sunday’s vote was the first election marked the first presidential elections since a peace deal was reached between the government and FARC, signed in 2016, a deal that has polarized opinion in the country.
A follower of Sergio Fajardo shows her disappointment after her candidate came third in the poll. Photograph: STRINGER/Reuters
The peace process was the initiative of outgoing president, Juan Manuel Santos, who won the Nobel peace prize for his achievement. Santos could not stand for re-election, after serving two consecutive terms.
Duque – now the clear favorite to take the presidency in June – is opposed to the peace deal. His mentor and ally, former president Álvaro Uribe, remains a powerful figure in Colombian politics, having long been fiercely critical of the peace process.
Laurys Dyva, the exquisite Paraguayan model is a sensation in social networks. In her Instagram @laurysdyva has more than 136,000 followers, who appreciate her sensual poses.
The national weather service confirmed that the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) remains active over the country, significantly destabilizing the atmosphere over Costa Rica.
On the other hand, tropical storm Alberto was formed 90 km east of the Yucatan peninsula, according to the National Hurricane Center, as a result of the rapid intensification of the low pressure system that was being followed up.
The forecast by the Instituto Meteorológico Nacional(IMN) as the subtropical storm directly impacts the southeast coast of the United States today (Sunday), among other atmospheric aspects, the Intertropical Convergence Zone, very active, will continue over the country, which is why a strong rainy activity is anticipated both for today.
From strong showers to thunderstorms are anticipated in the Greater Metropolitan Area (GAM) that includes Alajuela, Heredia, San José, Cartago); the Northern Zone (La Fortuna de San Carlos, Ciudad Quesada, Upala, Los Chiles, Sarapiquí and surroundings); and the mountainous sectors and neighborhoods of the Caribbean (Guápiles, Guácimo, Siquirres, Matina, Blanco River, La Estrella Valley, Talamanca and surroundings), with accumulated rains of between 30-60mm and maximums of 80mm.
In the case of the Central Pacific (Jacó, Parrita, Quepos, Zona de los Santos and surroundings) and South Pacific (San Isidro del General, Buenos Aires, Palmar, Coto Brus, Golfito, Osa Peninsula and surroundings), the rain activity will be strong with accumulated 20-40 and maximum of 50 mm.
As regards to Guanacaste (Abangares, Bagaces, Cañas, Tilarán, Tempisque, La Cruz, Liberia, Nicoya Peninsula and surroundings), estimate is accumulated rains of of 40-60mm and maximums of 80mm.
For tonight, the most intense rains will be concentrated in the North Zone and Guanacaste.
Extreme caution in areas prone to landslides mainly in the Pacific
Maintain alert due to flash floods in vulnerable sectors and urban areas, mainly in the GAM, Central Pacific, Pacific and North Zone.
Take shelter in a safe place in case of thunderstorm or strong gusts of wind near the storm clouds, as well as caution for possible falling of tree branches, and power lines among others.
The “Powers of the Republic of Costa Rica”: President of the Republic, Carlos Alvarado; President of the Tribunal Supremo de Eleccions (TSE), Luis Antonio Sobrado; President of the Supreme Court, Carlos Chinchilla; and President of the Legislative Assembly, Carolina Hidalgo.
On Wednesday, May 23, President Carlos Alvarado met with the hierarchy of the “Powers of the Republic” to ask them to consider the situation of the country’s finances when drafting the respective 2019 budgets.
By Tortilla Con Sal – Bolivia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela are all targets of the U.S. government because they challenge control of Latin America and the Caribbean by Western corporate elites and their local allies.
People in Nicaragua won’t get fooled again. | Photo: Reuters
By means of soft coups these interests have – at least for now – taken power in Brazil and Argentina, hijacked the government in Ecuador and derailed the peace process in Colombia.
Currently, U.S. efforts at regime change focus most urgently on Venezuela and Nicaragua, while reverting to the failed policy of punitive sanctions against Cuba and biding their time for the moment in Bolivia.
Despite the relentless psychological warfare campaign to discredit them, the governments of Bolivia, Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela defend their peoples’ fundamental democratic rights to peaceful economic development focused on human needs rather than corporate profit.
This is especially important to understand in the case of Nicaragua.
There, the government has democratized the economy to the point where the cooperative, associative and family-based small- and micro-business sectors generate 70 percent of employment, contributing over 50 percent of GDP.
In their different ways, these four countries – all members of the Bolivarian Alliance of the Americas (ALBA) – have developed viable economic models directly opposed to Western corporate monopoly finance capitalism.
They all face illegal actions by the U.S. government and its allies aimed at destabilizing – and, if possible, overthrowing – their legitimate governments. They all promote diverse models of genuine political and economic democracy for their peoples.
Theirs is a common struggle against the U.S. and European imperial elites, whose governments are desperate to brake their own accelerating decline relative to China, Russia and other majority world countries.
Nicaragua and Venezuela: Similarities
While the endless war on Venezuela aims at controlling the country’s enormous oil and mineral resources, Nicaragua also has significant natural resources. It has Central America’s most abundant water resources, well over 60 percent of Central America’s natural eco-systems and also around seven to 10 percent of the world’s biodiversity.
The geostrategic position of Nicaragua and Venezuela enables their governments to project into the Caribbean and their respective neighboring countries the political and economic vision of a multi-polar world based on solidarity and cooperation rather than the subjugation and pillage now rampant in Brazil, Argentina and elsewhere.
The minority opposition – led by the private business, media and NGO sectors in both Venezuela and Nicaragua – have consistently failed electorally and politically, resorting to insurrectional violence aimed at regime change, rejected by the countries’ majorities.
The political opposition is deeply divided in both countries, incapable of offering the electorate a viable inclusive program of sustainable national human development that meets everyone’s needs in every sphere of civil, political, economic, social and cultural life.
The governments of both countries have repeatedly demonstrated their institutional legitimacy in serial elections.
Both countries are surrounded by U.S. and allied military bases.
Both countries are committed to regional integration initiatives – Venezuela in Unasur, Nicaragua in the Central American Integration System (SICA), while both are strong supporters of CELAC.
In the United Nations and other international forums, Venezuela and Nicaragua defend international law, condemning the criminal actions of the United States and its allies against, for example, Palestine, Syria and Iran.
Both governments insist on dialogue and mutual respect to resolve both domestic national conflicts and regional and global international conflicts.
De Facto Popular Front
Differences between the two countries result directly from their different geography and economic structure.
Venezuela was able to decide to leave the Organization of American Statesn(OAS) because its status as a supplier of oil and mineral resources give it sufficient autonomy.
Nicaragua, more dependent on agricultural and commercial trade with regional partners, has chosen not to abandon the OAS. That decision may well be partly in order to maintain the number of OAS member countries resisting pressure to legitimize the illegal U.S. war on Venezuela.
But Nicaragua’s government also thinks maintaining dialogue with this North American-dominated forum will help disarm potentially strongly aggressive measures from the U.S. government against Nicaragua’s vulnerable economy.
That is also probably why Nicaragua remains a faithful ally of Taiwan, while U.S. client states such as Costa Rica and Panama have abandoned Taiwan in favor of the People’s Republic of China, a key investment and trading ally of Venezuela.
However, its loyalty to Taiwan has not prevented Nicaragua from working with China to develop the proposal for a new inter-oceanic canal to complement the Panama Canal by expanding shipping capacity across the Central American isthmus.
Nicaragua also maintains excellent commercial and development cooperation relations with South Korea and Japan, as well as various Arab nations, as well as Iran. Venezuela and Nicaragua share this eclectic approach to international relations. Both have very important trade and investment relations with Russia and are developing relations with India.
In effect, the ALBA countries form a modern-day Popular Front. Regionally, they resist the determination of the region’s fascist corporate elites to seize or keep power and subordinate their countries’ economies to North American and European corporate interests. Globally, they defend the vision of a multi-polar world based on solidarity and international law against repeated criminal imperialist economic and military aggression from the United States and its allies. Nicaragua is under attack now because it is a vital component of that regional Popular Front, both for strong political and economic reasons and, too, for deep historical and cultural reasons.
Current National Developments
After five years of unprecedented siege, Venezuela’s President Nicolas Maduro has again defeated the U.S. government and its allies, decisively winning the May 20 elections. Now the war on Venezuela will intensify even more: economically, diplomatically and militarily.
Similarly, U.S. government efforts to overthrow Nicaragua’s elected government will also fail. In what amounts to a war of attrition, President Ortega and his government team are systematically dismantling the illegitimate pretensions of the minority opposition’s makeshift coalition, despite cynical manipulation by the mediating Episcopal Conference trying to gerrymander the National Dialogue for Peace in the opposition’s favor.
Just as in Venezuela, public opinion in Nicaragua is strongly against the violent tactics of extortion and intimidation by the minority opposition. Even OAS Secretary General Luis Almagro has denounced the lies of the opposition representatives in Nicaragua.
The Inter American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR) has acknowledged that the deaths and injuries mentioned in its preliminary report have yet to be investigated.
As the facts come out, a truer picture will emerge confirming that most of the deaths and injuries have been of government supporters or bystanders caught up in the violence. For example, testimony from one of the protesters unable to square events with his conscience alleges that the two students killed on April 20 in Esteli were shot by paid opposition thugs.
Similar testimonies will confirm that the violence in Nicaragua was deliberately instigated by the opposition – exploiting genuine protest – to discredit the government unjustly, just as in Venezuela.
This weekend, campesino leader Comandante Jorge Diaz, president of a demobilized ex-combatants association, withdrew from the opposition side of the National Dialogue urging his rank and file to dismantle their roadblocks, a phenomenon that has paralyzed the country for weeks.
He denounced manipulation of his rural worker membership by some of the bishops and the opposition.
That move recalls the clear-sighted remarks of assassinated former Nicaraguan Contra leader Comandante Franklin to a Sandinista leader after the 1990 elections: “The oligarchy used you to overthrow Somoza. Now they have used us to overthrow you.”
All the signs are that – just as in Venezuela – people at the grassroots level in Nicaragua won’t get fooled again.
By Cinthia Membreño, Slate.com – Children of the Revolution. In 2006, I voted for Daniel Ortega. I was 17 years old, a freshman in college, and strongly influenced by the stories my parents told me about the Sandinista Revolution he helped lead in the 1970s. Oral history took a toll on me. Even if I hadn’t even been born in those times, I was able to imagine what my parents felt when they heard they were free.
Demonstrators set up a barricade while resuming protests, after peace talks between the government and opposition collapsed, in León, Nicaragua, on Thursday. INTI OCON/AFP/Getty Images
Ortega fought with the Sandinista National Liberation Front, the FSLN, in its long struggle against Anastasio Somoza’s dictatorship. After taking power and adopting socialist economic policies, his government fought a brutal civil war against the U.S.-backed Contra rebels throughout the 1980s. He was defeated in the 1990 election, then returned to the presidency in 2006. He was re-elected in 2011, and after changing the constitution to allow him to run for a third consecutive term, again in 2016.
Over the past 11 years, I, and many other young Nicaraguans, have come to see Ortega not as a revolutionary hero but as the face of dictatorship. But until a month ago, it was hard to believe that anything would ever change. Today, I get the impression that we are about to witness another kind of revolution and another moment of freedom. This time, we hope, it will be different.
For the past four weeks, Nicaragua has been mourning the deaths of more than 70 people, mostly university students, who were killed by the national police and paramilitary forces during demonstrations against Ortega’s government.
According to a recent report of the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights, 868 people were also wounded and 438 people have been detained in the past month. These protests have taken place in cities that would historically support Ortega. And they’ve been driven and led by young people like me.
Over the past 11 years, I, and many other young Nicaraguans, have come to see Ortega not as a revolutionary hero but as the face of dictatorship.
Young Nicaraguans are often described by their elders as individualistic, self-centered, and apathetic to politics. Academic studies describe us as strongly attached to our families and our religious communities. To be honest, I also thought we were politically “asleep.”
But something changed on April 18. That day, the government informed Nicaraguans that the president had approved a decree that would dramatically transform our social security system. Not only would workers and companies have to increase their financial contributions to the Social Security Institute, but elderly citizens were going to get less money from their squalid pensions. This is a significant cut in a country where the minimum salary ranges between U.S.$130 and U.S.$160 dollars per month.
Young citizens started demonstrating against the decree. And when the government showed that it was willing to use violence to end the rebellion, the fight changed. The demonstrators were no longer seeking to reject the social security reform—they wanted to get Ortega out of power.
It was an unequal fight. Pictures and videos posted on national and international media, and social networks, showed that the government shot civilians with guns, including AK-47 rifles, while the students fought with rocks, homemade mortars, and their Nicaraguan flags.
Isaac Briones, a 23-year-old communications student at Universidad Centroamericana, or UCA, felt infuriated when he saw the government killing his peers. He broadcast footage of the anti-government protests on his Facebook page, first showing how the national police were attacking citizens and then inviting people to participate in the marches that he would attend.
Like me, Briones grew up hearing heroic stories of the FSLN because of his Sandinista family, but he opposes its leader. “Daniel Ortega has betrayed the ideals of his political party,” he told me.
The Nicaraguan sociologist Elvira Cuadra said that Briones’ political rejection is common in a generation that she calls “the Youth of Democracy,” who were born in the late 1980s or ’90s and grew up in more peaceful times.
“They grew up hearing about the right to vote, constitutionality, and the construction of democracy. These three generations are building a different political culture from the one we have seen so far, which is based on values and beliefs related to democracy. They are very critical about the way the system works and have a civic attitude,” she said.
Lesther Alemán, a 20-year-old communications student at UCA, got widespread attention for calling Ortega a murderer right to his face, during a national dialogue session with the president that was organized and mediated by the Catholic Church on May 16.
“This is not a dialogue. We are here to negotiate your exit and you know it because this is what Nicaraguans have been asking for,” Alemán told the president, reminding him of the three massive marches that took place in Managua prior to the event.
He has become the face of a student coalition driving the protests, but he’s not the leader of the movement. There really isn’t a leader, a fact some Nicaraguans have used to criticize the movement.
Cuadra disagreed, saying, “In Nicaragua, we are used to having a leader, but this movement has several leaderships as well as new forms of civic organization. That is why it has been so hard for the government to stop it.”
“For me, the legacy of the party relies on sadness, disappointment, and murder.” — Isaac Briones
Cuadra believes that Nicaragua has been cultivating enormous social and political capital without even realizing it.
“Students have regained their autonomy, independence, and ability to act. There is a new student movement in Nicaragua. They have revitalized their cause, both in high school and university levels,” Cuadra said.
But why did these students become so actively involved within four weeks?
The government’s crackdown was a major factor in driving more support for the protests. Cuadra said the respect younger people have for elderly citizens also played a role in the social outrage. When the students heard about the social security reform and saw how elderly civilians were beaten by the police and paramilitary forces, there was a breaking point.
Twenty-six-year-old Gloria Cordero, who works in the marketing department of a private university, said her family also has a Sandinista background, but her mother never imposed support for FSLN on her.
Cordero said she was suspicious of Ortega since she started hearing about him and his potential presidency. “I was 15 years old when people talked about the consequences that a second term of Ortega would have on the country’s economy and its diplomatic relations. Daniel Ortega represented the uncertain to me,” she told me.
By the time Ortega returned to power, Gloria became anti-government. Her main motivation for participating in the protests of the past month was to demand a transformation of the political system. She doesn’t expect the upcoming governments to be perfect, but she would like to see a cleanup of the parties. For her, Ortega is the representation of corruption.
On the other side of the spectrum is 36-year-old Selene Reyes, an independent worker who sells food for a living. She admits that there is corruption in Ortega’s government but doesn’t think it is a reason for overthrowing him. Her family is strongly Sandinista and has got the theory that the university coalition is being financially supported by other political parties.
When the protests started, the Catholic church of her neighborhood served as a spot to collect food and medicine for the students who were under siege by the government and to provide medical care for both anti-government and pro-government citizens. It was a neutral area where doctors and aspiring doctors as well as young volunteers provided help for others.
Reyes supported the students at first because of ethical and Christian principles, but now she has a conflict with their political demands. She said that she voted for Ortega and doesn’t have a problem with him staying in power.
“We cannot say that Daniel Ortega’s government is completely negative … A lot of people criticize him for his populist programs, but he gave housing, free education, and farm animals for poor people … Daniel Ortega is not perfect, but no one is,” she told me.
Reyes thinks that if Ortega was behind the attacks on students, he should be held responsible for his mistake. But even if he turns out responsible, she would vote for him again out of loyalty to the FSLN.
At this point, talking about the legacy of the FSLN has become a complex task. Isaac Briones said that it will be quite difficult to separate the political figure of Daniel Ortega from the meaning of Frente Sandinista. He thinks that Ortega and his wife and vice president, Rosario Murillo, have taken over the political party to such levels that there is no distinction between them and the party.
“For me, the legacy of the party relies on sadness, disappointment, and murder”, he said.
Nevertheless, Elvira Cuadra thinks that there should be a separation between Ortega and the FSLN as a political movement, which has changed since its origins. “That movement, with the structure and organization that it used to have in the ’80s, does not exist anymore, but we see the remains of its historical impact when we hear young and old civilians singing the slogans of revolutionary times,” she points out.
In the several protests I have attended, we all ended up saying the slogans that we heard from our parents every July 19, in commemoration of Nicaragua’s Freedom Day. One, in particular, always come up: “The people united will never be defeated”. We keep repeating that phrase over and over, in every march. I think we may finally be starting to believe it.
A spectacular accident between two trucks, Friday afternoon, where one overturned and ended up on top of the concrete divider. Despite the spectatcular, no injuries were reported, according to local Red Cross and Transit authorities.
Diego Palma, an administrator of the Cruz Roja, explained that one of the drivers was the most affected but did not need to be transferred to hospital. The collision occurred in front of the Colegio Técnico Profesional de Cañas (CTP).
Apparently one of the vehicles lost control, possibly due to speeding, collided with the other. Wet road conditions possibly contributed to the crash.
The 50 kilometers Cañas-Liberia four lane route has become one of the most dangerous in the country where accidents are reported frequently, unfortunately some with deadly results.
Nicaragua’s national police force has garnered international praise in recent years for reducing crime one of the lowest levels in Central America. But, with officers accused of attacking and killing demonstrators in the past five weeks of anti-government protests, it has quickly become one of the hated groups in a country in crisis.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) that visited Nicaragua last week, at the invitation of President Daniel Ortega heeding to the demands of protesters, on Monday issued a reported blamed police and civilian groups associated with the police for most of the 76 deaths and 868 injuries of protesters or protest supporters
Their objective is repression is the sentiment by many Nicaraguans. President Ortega and the police are called “asesinos” (murderers) by citizens on the streets, on social media and street graffiti. They are depicted as the dirty dogs controlled by Ortega.
Both sides are muddying the issue, both sides claiming the violence is coming from the other. This has led to university students leading the protests, some to arm themselves, in defense of the police.
Saturday, one day after the ‘National Dialogue’ was suspended by the Episcopal Conference of Managua that had accepted the role of mediator between the government and opposition and despite the work of Ortega on the first day of the talks a week earlier, when he said “it is done, the police are in their barracks” that was clearly not the case.
A widely shared video of the incident on Saturday doesn’t make clear if the attackers of the university students were police. The police deny their involvement. But doesn’t stop the people assuming it is the police or police sponsored actions.
“You can’t trust anyone in a uniform,” said Wyman Bacon, a resident of Managua who has been documenting the protests.
“The people don’t trust them anymore. Their objective is repression,” said a university student protester who asked not to be named. “They’re there to attack and oppress us any way they can — bullets, bombs, whatever.”
Supporters of the Ortega and the Sandinista government has another view. They blame the university students for the killings, the students causing the problems, the students attacking the police, the police only defending themselves.
This is a sentiment aired by Ortega himself on the first day of National Dialogue. At the only day Ortega made a personal appearance at the talks, he spoke about how the police had to defend themselves from the protesters. “They are not little angels,” in reference to the university students.
At rallies coordinated by the Sandinista Party across the country, supporters wave the party’s red-and-black flag next to those waving the country’s blue-and-white flag.
Experts in policing methods say what Ortega did was blur the line between his government and the police, turning it into a political organization.
A 2016 USAID-funded study found, out of 26 countries in the Americas, including the United States and Canada, Nicaraguans had the eighth-highest confidence in their police force. That same year, Nicaragua Police Chief Aminta Granera, an Ortega appointee, spoke about her country’s policing methods at the Center for Strategic & International Studies in Washington, D.C., which described Nicaragua as a “sea of calm.”
The reality, however, the Ortega government has been destroying the police force.
In 1996, Ortega, then the opposition leader in Nicaraguan politics, the law was changed so that the police force was separated from the presidency by being placed under another government branch.
When Ortega returned to the presidency in 2006, his inherited ‘clean’ police force helped push the crime rate down, despite the few resources from a government of one of the poorest countries in the Western Hemisphere.
After Ortega’s 2013 re-election, he changed the national police law back to the way it used to be — with him in charge. The 2014 “Law of Organization, Functions, Career, and Special Regimen of Security of the National Police” made him the “Comandante” (supreme power) of the national police, granting him unlimited power.
The use of deadly force by police was back at protests, such as the protests against the “Gran Canal” and the anti-union busting protest by gold miners. In both incidents, protesters suffered injuries at the hands of the police.
The police were also in action to squash protests against Ortega’s plan to change the election laws that allowed him a consecutive third term.
By now the people began to see that the police weren’t working for the people, protecting them, rather working for the government.
On Sunday, May 27, Colombians will head to the polls to elect a new president. At play in this year’s election are a range of issues: Venezuelan migration, economic situation, rampant corruption, high levels of inequality, but above all is the country’s historic peace accord that ended over half a century of armed conflict.
The latest opinion polls released had Duque with an eleven percentage points lead. If no candidate gets a majority on May 27, a runoff vote will be held on June 17.
The election is Colombia’s first since the government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (known as the FARC) agreed to the peace deal. Voters won’t only be casting their ballot for a new political leader, but also for a potential new path forward for Colombia and its fledgling peace process.
The two leading candidates have very different views of the deal’s future. On one extreme is Ivan Duque, a right-wing politician favored by former president Alvaro Uribe, who has vowed to make structural modifications to the accord. On the other, leftist candidate Gustavo Petro, a former M-19 guerrilla and mayor of Bogotá, has voiced a desire to push the accord forward, but may lack the political support to do so if elected.
The other presidential hopefuls, Germán Vargas Lleras, Sergio Fajardo and Humberto de la Calle, fall between the two leading candidates.
The latest opinion polls released had Duque with an eleven percentage points ahead of Petro. If no candidate gets a majority of the votes on May 27, a runoff vote will be held between the top two candidates on June 17.
The presidential election, however, is just the first step toward ensuring the peace deal’s success and survival.
“On signing this agreement, as president of all Colombians, I want to invite all, with an open mind and open heart, to give peace a chance,” Santos said at a ceremony in Bogotá on 14 November 2016. A month before, 50.2% of Colombians voted to reject the accord in a referendum.
The accord was slightly amended and it later passed in congress by a vote of 130-0 in the Lower House and 75-0 in the Senate (members of Uribe’s party abstained from the vote.)
In October 2017, the accord gained legal protection under the law after Colombia’s Constitutional Court ruled that congressional approved legislation related to the peace deal cannot be annulled for twelve years. While this ensures that the accord will exist in some form not just beyond the next three presidents, it does not protect parts of the deal not yet approved by Congress.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) announced on Friday that Colombia would be officially invited to join the group. The Paris-based economic organization was founded in 1961 and has traditionally included industrialized nations, though in recent years it has extended its membership to emerging economies.
“We are comparing ourselves to the best to be the best,” said Santos who is set to fly to Paris on May 30 to sign the Accession Agreement
“The accession of Colombia will contribute to our efforts to transform the OECD into a more diverse and inclusive institution, which will ensure our relevance in the years and decades ahead.” OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria said, welcoming the new addition.
Colombia began its application process in 2013. As part of the requirements, 23 OECD committees conducted an in-depth evaluation of the country. Additionally, the Colombian government had to introduce major reforms to align its legislation, policies and practices to OECD standards.
The OECD entry marks a new achievement for outgoing President Juan Manuel Santos, whose administration undertook the challenge during his first term in office. Santos celebrated the decision, saying that it represented “great news” for Colombia.
“To enter this organization represents a very important step in the efforts to modernize our country,” the Colombian president said.
“We are comparing ourselves to the best to be the best,” he added. Santos is set to fly to Paris on May 30 to sign the Accession Agreement at the upcoming meeting of the OECD ministerial council.
Colombia will become the 37th member of the OECD and the third Latin American country to do so, after Mexico and Chile. Costa Rica is currently undergoing its own accession process.
Once marred by political violence from drug trafficking and a leftist insurgency, Colombia has experienced a revival in recent years. In 2016, the country celebrated a landmark peace agreement that ended Latin America’s longest-running conflict and has also experienced economic growth.
The OECD’s reported that economic growth in Colombia is projected to rise to around three percent in 2018 and 2019. The organization pointed to reduced corporate taxation, the historic peace agreement, better financing conditions and new infrastructure projects, as positive steps the country is taking to boost the economy.
A testament to Colombia’s comeback is the growth in its tourism industry. According to the US International Trade Administration, as of 2017, tourism has become a major economic engine for the South American nation, ranking above coffee export and below the oil sector. ITA predicts that Colombia will lead growth in tourism in the next decade.
Opposition parties, unions, human rights organizations and artists marched next to Buenos Aires’ emblematic obelisk, under the banner “the country is in danger.”
Thousands of Argentines on Friday protested the government’s bid to secure a credit line from the International Monetary Fund, which they blame for hardship during a past financial crisis.
Opposition parties, unions, human rights organizations and artists marched next to Buenos Aires’ emblematic obelisk, under the banner “the country is in danger.”
Opposition parties, unions, human rights organizations and artists took part in the march near the capital Buenos Aires’ emblematic obelisk, under the banner “the country is in danger.”
The protest is the latest of several organized since President Mauricio Macri announced on May 8 that he had started financing negotiations with the IMF after weeks of market volatility.
The unexpected move surprised investors and stoked Argentines’ fears of a repeat of the nation’s devastating 2001-2002 economic collapse.
Many Argentines blame IMF-imposed austerity measures for worsening the crisis, which impoverished millions and turned Argentina into a global pariah after the government defaulted on a record US$100 billion in debt.
Granada, the heart of tourism in Nicaragua has stopped beating. Almost all tourists have fled Granada, leaving behind a desolate town that is called by many the “Paris of Central America”.
The famous Granada road, where tourists came to eat, drink and listen to music, is now desolate.
The anti-government protests have hit Granada hard. Many hotels and restaurants are closed or have laid off a good number of their employees.
“Everyone left, what we have is those in the country finishing off their vacation, but I think that within a week we will not have any tourists”, said Raman Suzat, who together with his wife Apolline administers a hostel in Granada, 45 km south of Managua.
In only a few weeks, tourism that in the last decade became the largest generator of foreign exchange in Nicaragua, had suffered a severe blow by the protests that began on April 18 with street demonstrations, roadblocks, lootings and fires.
The news of the violence that, according to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights report on Monday included 76 deaths and almost 900 injured, spread across the globe.
Suzat added that men armed with clubs were out in the middle of the night looting. They even tried to force their way into the Suzat hostel, but the Frenchman quickly blocked the gate and entrance with his vehicle, while his 40 guests trembled in fear.
“At daybreak, they all packed their backs and left. It was a night of terror,” recalled Apolline.
“Now I only have two customers drinking soda,” sighs Angélica Talavera, owner of a restaurant in Granada
Other Europeans, as well as Americans and Canadians who have invested in Nicaragua, attracted by levels of economic growth over the years have seen their businesses collapse in the last few weeks.
All they can do is reduce costs to avoid complete financial ruin.
The reality, unfortunately, that it will take some time for tourism in Granada and Nicaragua to return to good times.
“Our main market is Americans and with the (U.S.) embassy, saying that there is alert, most left,” laments tour guide Eduardo Corea, who says that the few who remain are “backpacker” tourists, who spend little on their visits.
“We are living in uncertainty,” says Mexican-born Malena Ortiz, a partner in a restaurant in Granada.
MANAGUA – New demonstrations and more road blockades mainly in the north and central parts of Nicaragua erupted on Thursday, one day after the Episcopal Conference suspended the national dialogue, due to lack of advancement in the agenda.
The Upoli university, one of the scenarios of the violent protests registered in April, remains under the control of university students
The Episcopal Conference has taken the role of mediator between students, civil society, private business sector, campesinos (peasants) and the government.
The demonstrations are against President Daniel Ortega and his government, protestors calling for his resignation and that of his wife and vice-president, Rosario Murillo and demanding justice for the at least 76 people killed during the last five weeks of protests.
For the past five weeks, Nicaragua has been mired in a crisis, In addition to the deaths, 868 people have been injured, according to Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (IACHR) report last Monday.
The Upoli has been a stronghold during social protests against the government since April 19.
Groups of campesinos and other citizens blocked major roads in northern areas of Matagalpa and Estelí, and central areas of Nicaragua.
Leon was the scene of night clashes between demonstrators and groups backing the government, that left at least one person dead and dozens injured, on Wednesday night, the same day the talks were suspended.
The aftermath of the Wednesday night violence in Leon and Chinandega
At the dialogue table, government representatives could not agree to demands for early and democratic elections. The opposition want an end to the Ortega whose current mandate, his third consecutive since 2006, runs to November 2021.
Government representatives called the proposal a “coup d’etat.”
The crisis that has gripped every corner of the country, from the big cities to the small towns, began when the government, in the middle of April, introduced reforms to the Social Security (pensions), increasing rates and cutting benefits.
Despite a quick repeal by Ortega days after the April 19 start of a peaceful march that quickly escalated and grew, both for and against the government, the violence continued, the demands for Ortega to step down stronger.
At the first day of the National Dialogue, the only day personally assisted by Daniel Ortega and Rosario Murillo, university student representative, Lesther Aleman, called out Ortega ins a public setting never seen before.
Costa Rican Consul General Flora Leah Venegas meets with Joe Delisle, a partner at the law firm of Miller & Martin PLLC, which hosts the Consular Conversations series.
Costa Rica’s easygoing lifestyle and laid-back, “pura vida” vibe has been a godsend for tourism, but it has sometimes had a negative side effect: turning off other investors accustomed to a more expedient way of doing business.
Costa Rican Consul General Flora Leah Venegas meets with Joe Delisle, a partner at the law firm of Miller & Martin PLLC, which hosts the Consular Conversations series.
It doesn’t have to be that way, says Consul General Flora Leah Venegas Corrales, who represents Costa Rica in Atlanta. Preparing is simply a matter of learning how to go with the (slower) flow.
“It all starts with a coffee,” Venegas told Global Atlanta in a recent Consular Conversation, a monthly interview and luncheon hosted and sponsored by the law firm of Miller & Martin PLLC.
She specifically means a meeting with a government touchpoint, perhaps with her small office in Atlanta that deals with the Costa Rican community in six Southern states. Or maybe a visiting delegation from CINDE, the investment promotion agency that helped arrange the former president’s stop in Atlanta two years ago.
Either way, investors need initial exposure to someone who understands the way of life — and more importantly, the business atmosphere — in a place as brimming with opportunity as it is different from the U.S.
“We need to learn more about each other. You may not like our easygoing way. You may not like that we are always smiling. You want very serious people,” she said. “That can really impact an investment.”
Some Americans have had bad experiences — from buying retirement homes to developing major branded hotel properties — because they’ve traded cultural due diligence for prospective returns on paper. Rationality then crowds out relationship.
“Most people who had a bad experience … it was because they weren’t guided by someone who could really help them and point them where to go.”
Attorney to Diplomat
Venegas can seem a bit shy at first glance. But get her going, and she can be a prickly but charming apologist for her country. Maybe it’s her training as an attorney, a career that gravitated toward criminal law before she took a turn and became diplomat.
It turns out this shift wasn’t the hard pivot she thought: Serving in the consulate in David, Panama, a border town with Costa Rica, she saw it all: human and drug trafficking, smuggling and the nitty-gritty of immigration issues.
“There, I had to learn about reality, and when I say reality, it’s reality,” she said. “It seemed like life was taking me back again to criminal law, so after that, I decided I did not want that path again.”
She also served in Miami, where the pace was much faster but the issues more straightforward. Sometimes the consulate there would see 70-80 people a day. Here in Atlanta, the maximum daily flow of people is about 10, and most of those who seek visas or other assistance come from out of state. Apparently Costa Ricans like North Carolina.
But Venegas does usually have a full email inbox when she arrives in the office around 9 a.m., with messages flooding in from both Costa Ricans and Americans. Topics run the gamut, from how to gain citizenship or retire in Costa Rica (a popular query in the last few years as its brand has taken off) to concerns about basic investment issues.
Beyond Bananas and Coffee
Business questions are becoming more common as Costa Rica’s reputation as a technology and business hub grows. And while the county still relies in part on agriculture, its economy has climbed the value chain.
Early arrivals like Intel laid the groundwork for the country’s emergence as a hub for business-process outsourcing, call and data centers, cybersecurity firms and more. Now, the country boasts American names like Sykes, VMWare (which now owns Atlanta-based AirWatch) and Oracle. More than 250 high-tech manufacturers call Costa Rica home. Life sciences firms — including Pfizer, Baxter, Allergan — are finding fertile ground in research, sterilization and prototyping, along with logistics. Exports of medical devices grew nearly fourfold to US$2.2 billion during the 10 years ending in 2015, CINDE says.
During multiple reporting trips to the country, Global Atlanta has found companies tend to be happy with the labor force they can recruit, especially in the newer industrial parks outside San Jose, the capital.
But some are going even further, offering English courses and specialized industry training. Joint efforts between universities and the private sector are growing more common as employers develop a specialized workforce.
Startups are emerging, and people are more willing to branch out on their own rather than running back to well-trodden paths like law school or public service, Ms. Venegas said.
“We have put that seed in our people. They want to learn more, develop more, know more,” she added.
And now Costa Rica has become a leader in environmental protection and green living, drawing accolades at a time when many around the world worry about the impacts of climate change.
Venegas sees the impact in her hometown of Escazu, a suburb of San Jose, where it doesn’t rain like it used to, and the summers seem hotter than before.
At the highest levels, leaders are doubling down on the country’s outsized reputation for tackling big environmental issues.
New President Carlos Alvarado of the left-leaning Citizens’ Action Party has pledged to eliminate fossil fuels in the country by 2021, an ambitious goal that will require a vast commitment beyond existing incentives for electric vehicles. Costa Rica may be green from a grid perspective, with much of its energy supply coming from hydropower and other renewables, but 99 percent of cars sold in the country last year use gas.
Education Is Key
Venegas and other Costa Rican leaders trace their success back to the decision to trade in weapons for education in the aftermath of World War II.
In 1948, Costa Rica abolished its military after a brief civil war. The government has invested the savings into its most valuable resource: people.
“If you don’t have to form soldiers, you have to form citizens. And it seems if you invest in people, the results are very good,” she said.
From the earliest days of its founding as a republic, schooling was compulsory in the country, the result of forward-thinking leaders who saw the need even in the 19th century to grow a solid base of workers.
‘We were going to be planting coffee and bananas forever” if nothing was done, Venegas said.
This is not to say that Costa Rica doesn’t have its problems in education; rural schools, especially, face funding challenges and teacher shortages at times. But education has been essential to Costa Rica’s ability to distinguish itself as more of a knowledge economy, a move that has brought rising incomes.
Georgia groups have been integral to this growth, especially at the university level. The Atlanta-based EARTH Foundation supports the eponymous university there, while CATIE backs tropical agricultural research. University of Georgia runs a campus in the cloud forest of Monteverde, while Georgia Tech has a logistics center in San Jose to help farmers and companies get products to market more quickly.
Venegas welcomes such investment in her country’s secret weapon, and she invites those interested in doing more to visit her for — you guessed it — a coffee and conversation.
“I think the people are our strength. I think the people are what makes Costa Rica really attractive. I think we have to work on showing our people as much as we show our territory.”
With a vote of 50 in favor, Legislators on Thursday approved in first reading a bill to block cellular signals in prisons. The bill is a reform to the Ley General de Telecomunicaciones that required mobile operators and telecom services provides to effect the block.
In the photo, La Reforma maximum security prison in Alajuela.
Simply, the text required the telecoms to prevent telecommunications services inside prisons, juvenile penal centers, detention centers, and any other institutional care center of the national penitentiary system.
Despite cell phones being regarded as contraband within prison walls, they are smuggled in and used by prisons to communicate with the outside, including committing crimes such as extortion. For landlines, outgoing calls from telephones within the prison accessible to inmates announce the call is coming from a prison, the same cannot be applied to mobile phones.
The bill also requires the telecoms to guarantee there is no impact on the service to users in areas surrounding the prisons and detention centers.
A 75-year-old man was the latest to lose a battle with the train. The man, whose identity was not released to the press, sustained serious injuries after being hit by the commuter train in the area of La Sabana Sur on Thursday afternoon.
Paramedics from the Cruz Roja (Red Cross) and the Bomberos assisted the injured man and transferred him to hospital where is reported in stable condition.
Apparently, the man was walking along the railway when he was hit by the train and thrown some 10 meters.
Incidents involving the train are common due to a lack of safety measures along the railway, in particular in populated areas and the lack of respect for the train by some.
The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its office building in Seoul, South Korea, March 23, 2018.
Samsung must pay Apple US$539 million dollars for infringing patents related to the iPhone’s design, a US federal jury found. The decision in the US District Court in San Jose, California increases the amount that Samsung previously was ordered to pay Apple for the patents under dispute, from US$399 million to US$539 million, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The logo of Samsung Electronics is seen at its office building in Seoul, South Korea, March 23, 2018.
The bulk of the new damages award, US$533.3 million, was for infringing three Apple design patents on the iPhone. An additional US$5.3 million was for infringing two utility patents.
The jury’s new award was in the middle of the possible range. Samsung, which was found six years ago to have infringed Apple’s patents, had argued in the current case that it should have to pay a penalty of only US$28 million. Apple sought US$1.05 billion.
Samsung said the ruling “flies in the face” of an earlier Supreme Court decision it obtained on the scope of design patent damages. In 2016, the Supreme Court found that the holder of a design patent wasn’t always entitled to the total profit of an infringing product sold to consumers.
Samsung said in a statement it will “consider all options to obtain an outcome that does not hinder creativity and fair competition for all companies and consumers.”
Apple said it was pleased the jury agreed that Samsung should pay damages for patent infringement, saying “Samsung blatantly copied our design.”
Costa Rica's national team and fans are ready for Russia in June. Photo Diez.hn
(Reuters) – Costa Rica were one of the surprise packages of the 2014 World Cup but, having failed to build upon that success, it is hard to see Oscar Ramirez’s side performing similar heroics in Russia.
Costa Rica’s national team and fans are ready for Russia in June. Photo Diez.hn
Four years ago, ‘Los Ticos’ defied all predictions by finishing top of a group featuring three former World Cup winners in Italy, England and Uruguay, emerging unbeaten in all three games.
Then, inspired by goalkeeper Keylor Navas, the Central Americans battled past Greece on penalties to take their place in the last eight for the first time.
Their quarter-final shootout ended in a loss to the Netherlands, however, and the impressive run of Jorge Luis Pinto’s team had come to an end without the loss of a single game in regulation play or extra time.
Having gone further in Brazil than regional rivals Mexico or the United States, some felt Costa Rica might be on the verge of becoming the new major force in the CONCACAF region.
But such a prospect has failed to materialize.
The Costa Rican federation was unable to agree a new deal with Colombian Pinto, who five months after being hailed for his achievements at the World Cup moved to take charge of Honduras.
Former striker Paulo Wanchope was put in charge and promised to be the man to bring through a fresh generation to compliment and liven up the experienced squad from Brazil.
But after Wanchope got involved in a fracas with a steward at an under-23 match in Panama, he stood down and the federation turned to Ramirez, a dependable figure who had enjoyed success in the domestic league.
In the 2015 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the region’s tournament for national sides, Costa Rica were eliminated by Mexico in the quarter-finals and two years later were beaten by the Americans in the semi-finals.
The qualifying process for Russia showed, however, that there is still plenty of quality in the side, even if there has been no significant change of generation.
The 4-0 crushing of the United States in November 2016 and the 2-0 win over the Americans in New Jersey a year later, were performances that showed Los Ticos are not to be under-estimated.
The draw for Russia has not been kind to the Central Americans though, with Brazil, Serbia and Switzerland lined up as formidable opponents in Group E.
Recent defeats to Tunisia and Hungary in friendly matches have done little to raise hopes of another surprise run and while there have been some new faces introduced, the country’s hopes rest on the tried and tested core of players.
That spine includes Cristian Gamboa, Celso Borges, Bryan Ruiz and of course, Real Madrid keeper Navas.
(Reporting by Simon Evans; Editing by John O’Brien)
Some of the most violent hours of the year were lived between the early hours of Wednesday and Thursday, in that lapse of less than hours there were 8 murders.
The bloody scenes were spread across various parts of the country: Los Yoses, Goicoechea, Desamparados and San Ramon.
Wednesday
At 2:35 a.m. in El Llano de Desamparados a woman’s body is found with 2 bullet wounds to the head.
At 11:40 a.m. Wednesday, two men on a motorcycle shot and killed a short distance outside the Italian embassy in Los Yoses, the Italian national Salvatore Ponzo. His companion, an Ecuadorian woman is in critical condition in hospital.
At 12:48 p.m. in Los Guido de Desamparados, Katherine Vega Delgado, 19 years old, was found murdered as a result of suffocation. The body was inside a half-open bag. Forensic analyzes are pending more details.
At 7:00 p.m. in Huazo de Desamparados, George Michael Picado Venegas was shot to death by 2 gunmen who waited for him at the door of his house. The suspects were traveling by motorcycle. The victim was accompanied by his partner, who as unhurt in the attack.
At 11:30 p.m. in Ipis de Goicoechea, an Uber driver defends himself against an apparent robbery attempt. Two men tried to jack the vehicle when the driver fired his gun on the suspects and fatally impacted one of them identified as Miguel Ureña Carvajal, who had a criminal record of at least 31 counts for assault and robbery.
Thursday
At 1:30 a.m. in Santiago de San Ramón, Alajuela, inside a bar located on the Bernardo Soto (Ruta1) 5 men storm the bar, after some minutes of arguing with other 4 men who were in the bar, the opened fire. Three of the victims died on the site.
All cases are keeping the Fuerza Publica (national police) and agents of the Organismo de Investigacion Judicial (OIJ) busy, searching suspects and trying to piecing together the events and motives for the violence.
37 patients in Costa Rica with diseases such as cancer, lupus, fibromyalgia, hernias or chronic pain consume between 8 and 15 drops of medicinal cannabis oil (marijuana) each day. This mitigates the symptoms of treatments such as chemotherapy and alleviates other side effects that conventional medicines generate.
From Costa Rica Alchemy Facebook page
The Cannabis oil is provided free of charge by the Costa Rica Alchemy movement, a non-profit association that began the artisanal production of the oil eight months ago, using a proven recipe in other countries and with raw materials, which they say are donated by the members of the association.
In an interview with CRHoy.com, Rebeca Arias, Vladimir Chavez and Mónica Valverde, three of the 37 patients who are currently consuming the product, claim that since the first month of constant use of cannabis oil, they began to notice positive changes in their health status and psyche.
Vladimir Chavez was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer and for six months he has been consuming cannabis oil, with results that, according to him, restored his hope and his desire to live.
Chavez says he learned of medical cannabis through his son and since then, other cancer patients he knows as well as his doctors – with whom he receives chemotherapy – are surprised at his progress. Inclus, or markers of tumor burden in your body were reduced by more than 80%.
The organizers of the association say they already have a waiting list of more than 100 patients who also seek the product eventually while negotiating with some legislators to help them push bills that allow legalization of cultivation, production and distribution of cannabis for medicinal use.
“I found the relief I looked for 12 years”
Rebeca Arias investigated medicinal cannabis when her mother was diagnosed with cancer and suffered devastating effects as a result of chemotherapy. After getting the option in Europe, her mother rejected the use of the product, however, she tried it as a remedy to the constant pain in her spine after a traffic accident.
From Costa Rica Alchemy Facebook page
Monica Valverde is one of the patients with lupus that belongs to the association, her disease is autoimmune, that is, her own system attacks healthy cells and tissues by mistake, causing severe pain and whose treatment, like chemotherapy, leaves even worse consequences in her body.
According to her, cannabis oil is “her last option,” since the synthetic drugs she has taken over the past 13 years have altered her body’s functioning and her life and sleep cycles.
How do they make it?
The process of producing medical cannabis oil is relatively simple, required only is marijuana in its natural state, olive oil and alcohol. The association produces two types of oils, a “light” that is made in a few hours and another with greater cannabis load, to treat severe pain and that leads to a process of concentration of the plant for up to 10 days.
Diego González, secretary of the association explained that with 100 grams of pure marijuana, they can produce up to 12 droppers with 20 milliliters each, which they distribute monthly among the patients registered to the movement.
“We do not sell the oil and we do not buy the marijuana to produce it, since this would be illegal (a crime). We are a legally registered association with the authorities that manage everything through donations and we seek to take the product to more and more people with chronic diseases in the country,” he explained.
Among the properties attributed by its manufacturers are the anti-inflammatory, relaxing, sedative and antibiotic effects of the CBC, CBD, CBN and CBG components of the plant.
According to the spokespersons of the organization, although marijuana is a substance prohibited by national legislation, this conflicts with international treaties signed by Costa Rica that are above the law and that the country must comply with, such as the Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs of the United Nations, which excluded marijuana and its derivatives from the official list of narcotics.
The Trump administration is crafting a range of options, including potential sanctions, against the government of Nicaragua and President Daniel Ortega if it fails to properly address the concerns of student groups, church leaders and other civic players about increasing violence and political repression.
“We’re watching this with laser focus because we need to ensure that, the people have called for dialogue, the government participates; the people have called for investigations, the government does that; the military has said we’re staying out of that, they continue to do so,” a senior administration official told McClatchy.
The Nicaraguan government is just a few days into its dialogue that came to an impasse on Wednesday and suspended indefinitely, with students and other opposition groups over the political turmoil that has enveloped this nation after tens of thousands of Nicaraguans took to the streets of Managua in massive demonstrations that led to the deaths of more than 75 people.
Protests broke out after the Nicaraguan government approved a resolution that would increase payroll taxes and cut pension benefits to strengthen the country’s social security fund.
A preliminary report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) released Monday said the Ortega government violated human rights through the “excessive use of force” by state security forces. The commission recommended an international investigation of the violence to identify and hold accountable those responsible.
Like Venezuela, Nicaragua has become a growing concern in Washington.
Vice President Mike Pence, UN Ambassador Nikki Haley and Mark Green, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development, among others have publicly condemned the Nicaraguan government’s aggressive reaction to the protests.
“Hundreds of thousands have demonstrated in response, demanding democratic reforms and calling for Ortega’s resignation,” Haley recently told the 48th Annual Washington Conference on the Americas at the State Department. “For the first time in many people’s lives, Nicaraguans are unafraid to openly express their desire for a real choice in determining their future, despite the very real threat of violence.”
Nicaragua has been relatively stable in the region for years, enticing Americans to visit for beach vacations. And the Ortega administration benefited from a relatively strong economy in part due to years of support in the forms of cash and oil from Venezuela and former leader Hugo Chávez, aid that helped Ortega gain popularity and power.
Now Ortega’s leadership is under threat and the image of a peaceful country has been, at least temporarily, shattered by the sweeping protests that have also led the State Department to warn against visiting Nicaragua and pulling the families of embassy staff from the country.
The senior administration official said the U.S is not directing the opposition, and must handle opposition groups gingerly so as not to raise government accusations of U.S. imperialism.
“This is a country at the government level that takes a fair amount of joy in poking us in the eye at any opportunity,” the official said. “The danger is if we get to rhetorically in front of where the situation is on the ground than we risk undercutting it. “
But the official said the United States is ready to act if the Ortega government doesn’t cooperate with the independent investigation, fails to stem the violence or uses the dialog as a stalling tactic.
“We have to let part of that process play out because we demanded this process,” the administration official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
The Nicaraguan government said Tuesday that its committed to the dialogue and will adhere with any agreements as long as it complies with the framework of the constitution.
“Likewise, the government will be analyzing and studying the recommendations of the preliminary report of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights,” said Foreign Minister Denis Moncada.
The senior administration official would not detail what type of sanctions and other measures could be taken. But an official from another agency, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to discuss government strategy, said the administration could pull visas from Nicaraguan government officials or their family members, file sanctions under a so-called “anti-Russia” law and block Nicaraguan government officials or financial leaders from accessing U.S. financial institutions.
“We’re talking about this. We’re meeting about this,” said another senior administration official who was not authorized to speak publicly. ”But people don’t realize it because they’re more focused on our actions in Venezuela. But this is an important matter to us as well.”
As an example, the official pointed out that late last year, the U.S. Treasury froze any U.S. assets of Nicaraguan Supreme Electoral Council President Roberto Rivas under the Global Magnitsky Act, the so-called “anti-Russia” law that allows the executive branch to impose visa bans and targeted sanctions on individuals anywhere in the world responsible for committing human rights violations or engaging in corrupt activity.
The United States has multiple interests in Nicaragua. Nicaragua is a member of the Central American Free Trade Agreement, many U.S. businesses operate there and U.S. law enforcement and intelligence officials need a presence there because it’s a key transit point for drugs and other contraband.
The second official said the United States is under no illusions about the Ortega government and sees little indication that it will follow through.
The official said Ortega is following the same script that Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro followed when he used promises of dialogue with the opposition in his country to ease international pressure against his government while at the same time consolidating his power by dismantling democratic institutions.
“It’s a stalling technique,” said the senior administration official. “As Maduro taught us, they don’t believe in negotiating in good faith.”
The National Dialogue between President Daniel Ortega’s administration, after the President failed to show personally in the second round of talks, and opposition and civic groups on resolving the more than a month of violence and unrest throughout the country, hit an impasse on Wednesday.
Leaders of the Roman Catholic Church look down as Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes reads a statement suspending talks between the opposition and the government, in Managua, Nicaragua, Wednesday, May 23, 2018.
Opponents demanded earlier elections and changes in electoral laws. The opposition and civic groups were quiet on their earlier demands for Ortega and his wife and vice-president Rosario Murillo, to step down.
Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes announced late in the day that a decision was made to suspend indefinitely the process mediated the Episcopal Conference of Nicaragua by the Roman Catholic Church, due to a lack of progress.
Cardinal Leopoldo Brenes talks with reporters at the end of the third day of the national dialogue in Managua, Nicaragua, Monday, May 21, 2018.
“Given that on this fourth day of dialogue no consensus has been achieved, the bishops are suspending the plenary dialogue,” Brenes said in a live transmission. “But they suggest a mixed commission, three from each side, to seek consensus and overcome the impasse.”
The National Dialogue proposed by the Episcopal Conference was accepted by President Ortega, intended to defuse tensions in the country that began on April 19 with protests over changes in the pensions by the Social Security, namely increasing rates and reducing benefits.
Despite the decision by President Ortega to repeal the changes, the protests continued, along with the violence that saw more than 70 dead and many more injured in the more than 4 weeks manifestations across the country.
According to the preliminary observations of the commission.Inter-American Commission on Human Rights said on Monday the government of Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega violated human rights through the excessive use of force against street demonstrations.
The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), in Nicaragua last weekend, said on Wednesday “the situation in the country is far worse than we at first believed”.
Much of the blame for the violence and spilled blood is being focused on Daniel Ortega and his repressive policies of governing. Some have gone as far as calling it dictatorial.
One of the demands by the demonstrators, led by university students, has been the exit of Ortega and Murillo from office.
But by then a heavy-handed response from police, Sandinistas and para-military groups led to the violence.
In a report released Monday, the IACHR found that Ortega’s government violated protesters’ human rights during the unrest, with at least 76 people dead, nearly 900 injured and hundreds arrested. Many were students.
In the first day of the Dialogue on Wednesday last week, Lesther Aleman confronted President Ortega is a manner no one has ever seen before in public. “We put the blood,” Aleman told the President and Murillo, who tried to explain that many of the protestors “are not little angels” when being demanded to stop the violence by police.
Student leader Lesther Aleman, center, speaks with reporters at the end of the third day of the national dialogue in Managua, Nicaragua, Monday, May 21, 2018.
In the second round of talks held last Friday, after more than 90 minutes of waiting, Ortega did not show, sending in his place a delegation made up of high-level government officials.
The delegation continued to represent Ortega on Monday in the third day of talks that seemed to be moving, albeit slowly for many, advancing the agenda outlined by the Episcopal Conference.
But on Wednesday it all came to a halt when the question of having early “democratic” elections, including reforms to the elections law that prohibts presidential re-elections, was the topic of discussion, rather government negotiators refused the discussion, stalling the 40-point agenda proposed by the bishops.
“The agenda leads us to one point: a coup d’etat, because it is a map to change the government outside of the constitution and the law,” said Foreign Minister Dennis Moncada, who headed the government delegation at the talks.
Demonstrators burn a Sandinista party flag prior the second day of the national dialogue, in Managua, Nicaragua, Friday, May 18, 2018.
The statement is in irony, in that the Ortega government in the last years of its 11 years in power, is accused of electoral changes ‘outside the constitution and the law’, which allowed Ortega to be elected to a third consecutive term, past the two consecutive terms and 10 year limit in place when he took office in 2007.
Ortega also held power in Nicaragua following the ousting of Anastasio Somoza by the Sandinista. Ortega led the nation from 1979 until 1990, when he lost an election to his companion in the revolution, Violeta Chamorro.
Moncada said the government is open to discuss any theme within a constitutional framework but conditioned talks on protesters taking barricades, cutting off free transit on the roads across the country. “We cannot be discussing almost the 40 points in the agenda while traffic blockages affect the population,” the foreign minister said.
Representatives of civic groups, students, and the private sector rejected the government’s statements.
“In no way is the agenda a roadmap to a coup d’etat, but a path to democratic change, which is what the people have been asking for recently with massive marches across the country,” said former education minister Carlos Tunnermann.
The IACHR also called for the government to ensure that deadly weapons are not used against protesters, and also said it found evidence of torture, arbitrary arrests, and media censorship. “Potentially lethal force cannot be used merely to maintain or restore public order,” the commission said.
Duron Harmon said he’s learned a lot in wake of the March incident in which he was denied entry into Costa Rica for trying to bring marijuana into the country. He was appreciative of the organization’s support, but he also knows he could have made a better choice.
“It was a dumb incident. I definitely could have not been in that incident,” Harmon said. “The whole organization — players, everybody — has been supportive, letting me know they have my back. It’s been easier to get through, knowing you have the support from Mr. (Robert) Kraft, coach (Bill) Belichick and the rest of team.”
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Christian Palma/AP/REX/Shutterstock (5926791a)
Julio Iglesias Spain's singer Julio Iglesias acknowledges the media during a press conference promoting his album "Mexico" in Mexico City. Iglesias called Donald Trump a clown during an interview published, in the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, and vowed not to sing again in his casinos
Mexico Julio Iglesias, Mexico City, Mexico
After the success of the television series about Luis Miguel in Latin America, another international star of the song will have his life exposed on the small screen.
Mandatory Credit: Photo by Christian Palma/AP/REX/Shutterstock (5926791a) Julio Iglesias Spain’s singer Julio Iglesias acknowledges the media during a press conference promoting his album “Mexico” in Mexico City. Iglesias called Donald Trump a clown during an interview published, in the Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia, and vowed not to sing again in his casinos Mexico Julio Iglesias, Mexico City, Mexico
According to Variety magazine, Miami-based Disney Media Distribution Latin America (DMDLA) announced a biographical 13-episode series about Julio Iglesias is in the works. At the LA Screenings DMDLA said that it has optioned the worldwide rights to “Confessable Secrets,” the memoir of Iglesias’ former manager, Alfredo Fraile.
Fraile is credited for having steered the singing career of Iglesias, who was a reserve goalkeeper for Spain’s Real Madrid until serious injuries from a car accident ruined his aspirations for a career in soccer. Fraile was with Iglesias for 15 years, during which Iglesias sold hundreds of millions of albums in 14 languages worldwide.
“We started the bio-series genre in 2015 with our show about the singer Juan Gabriel, which scored high ratings on Telemundo,” said Fernando Barbosa, senior VP and general manager, Walt Disney Media Distribution, Latin America & U.S. Hispanic Market.
“We think the biopic genre is an evergreen property; something that will be watched time and time again,” he said.
In Latin America, DMDLA has made Spanish-language editions of “Desperate Housewives” and “Grey’s Anatomy” in various territories since 2005. A Portuguese-language version of “Desperate Housewives” was also made for Brazil.
The time spent on construction permits each year costs the country 5,284 homes and up to 4,622 jobs. This from the study published this Wednesday by the Cámara Costarricense de la Construcción (CCC) – Costa Rican Chamber of Construction.
The research was conducted by the Academia de Centroamérica based on an analysis of the input of the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR) and data from the National Institute of Statistics and Census (INEC).
Each year, delays in processing permits costs the country between 0.1% and 0.2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is equivalent to the construction of 5,284 low-income homes, 4,622 jobs and up to ¢3.9 billion colones not collected in taxes. José Angulo, researcher at the Academia de Centroamérica, explained that every ¢100 colones of demand in the construction sector generates ¢10.7 colones in taxes for the country.
“What we have in the country is a problem of “tramitomania” (red tape) that has direct implications for the economy,” said Angulo, in an interview with La Nación.
MADRID – The father of Keylor Navas, Freddy, said at the screening of the film “Hombre de Fé” (Man of Faith), a biography of his son, “is a source of pride for his family and for Costa Rica”.
“Everything that he’s achieved is a source of pride for his family, he’s great example of work and discipline. We feel very happy to put Costa Rica way up there and he’s a source of pride for our country,” he said.
Freddy was emphatic regarding whether Keylor Navas, who plays for Real Madrid, would manage to hold the UEFA Champions League trophy high for the third consecutive year on Saturday, May 26 in Kiev, Ukraine, in its final match against Liverpool saying “We’re going to celebrate a third Champions League (cup).”
Regarding criticism of his son, he said that he doesn’t give it any “importance” and that he thinks about “the good moments.”
He did not want to talk about Keylor’s future, but he emphasized that his son is doing “very well and enjoying” playing for Europe’s current champion soccer team, adding, “Who wouldn’t like playing for Real Madrid.”
The biggest fear of a woman diagnoses with breast cancer is not just losing her life, but also one or both of her breasts.
Photo from Facebook
Although medical advances allow reducing the number of surgeries in which the entire breast is removed because of a tumor, it is always important to have alternatives such as those offered by the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) or Caja.
The state health institution is delivering to women who have lost one of their breasts, a special bra that is filled with a silicone prosthesis that allows them to maintain their female figure in a very natural way.
This is an ideal option for women who decide not to have a breast reconstruction by means of implants or tissue expansion, but who need to feel that their body was like before.
According to the Caja, each patient can request a medical prescription, through which they will be given, every two years, four bras and a prosthesis that allows them to give them the body appearance they want.
Women who wear the bras claim that the use of prosthetics improves their lives because it allows them to look like before the disease and avoid the back pain that can occur when having an unbalanced weight in the torso,” said Yorleny Calvo, oncologist and coordinator of the Breast Unit at the San Juan de Dios Hospital.
Photo from Facebook
According to the Caja’s data, 7,959 prostheses and 28,450 bras have been delivered so far.
The bra is personalized so that each time a new package is ordered, the patient must repeat the measuring procedure to ensure that any changes in weight are taken into account.
The material of the prosthesis is very resistant and only requires basic care. The bra should be washed by hand with an antibacterial soap and running water, drying is with a damp cloth, explained Wendy Delius representative of Ferivalor, the importee of orthopedic devices, breast prosthesis and TruLife Brand Bra in Costa Rica.
Dr. Yorleny Calvo, oncologist coordinator of the Breast Unit at the San Juan de Dios Hospital, points out that mastectomy is an increasingly rare procedure in the institution because fortunately, early detection allows for less aggressive surgeries.
According to the Caja, on average in the last five years, there have been 1,200 new cases of breast cancer each year.
In total, each year, about 11,500 Costa Ricans receive the news that they have cancer. Another 5,000 will die because of this disease, according to the Registro Nacional de Tumores del Ministerio de Salud and the Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censos (National Registry of Tumors of the Ministry of Health and the National Institute of Statistics and Census).
The U.S. Embassy in San Jose will be closed Monday, May 28, in commemoration of Memorial Day.
Memorial Day is an American holiday, observed on the last Monday of May, honoring the men and women who died while serving in the U.S. military. … Originally known as Decoration Day, it originated in the years following the Civil War and became an official federal holiday in 1971.
Memorial Day is not to be confused with Veterans Day – Memorial Day is a day of remembering the men and women who died while serving, whereas Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. military veterans.
In the U.S., the holiday marks the unofficial start of the summer vacation season, while Labor Day marks its end.
The embassy, located in Pavas, will re-open Tuesday, May 29 at its regular hours from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m
It was shortly before noon, the Italian and his Ecuadorian companion were coming out of the Italian embassy in Los Yoses, Monte de Oca (San Jose), when two men on a motorcycle opened fire on the couple were about to get into their parked car, on the public street near the embassy.
A witness who chose not to be identified said that he saw a man and a woman leave the diplomatic center and approach their vehicle when the two on the motorcycle shot them several times.
Another witness, also who asked for anonimity said the one of the men on the motorcycles wore a helmet, the other, in the back not; the motorcycle did not have license plates and the shooters kept shooting even though the male victim was on the ground.
They kept shooting him while he was on the ground!
The Italian was identified as Salvatore Ponzo, owner of the Tierra Nuestra Latina, a company that exported Costa Rican pineapples to Europe; the woman, her last names Lopez Toaquiza.
The pair were rushed to the nearby Hospital Calderón Guardia. Ponzo died shortly after arriving at the hospital, his injuries were too massive – hit at least six times – while Lopez continued surgery at press time.
According to information from a medical center source, the man had “multiple injuries to the liver, intestines and suffered a hypovolemic shock”.
Hypovolemic is an emergency condition in which severe blood or fluid loss makes the heart unable to pump enough blood to the body.
A consul of the Embassy who came out to see what had happened would not give a statement to the press. Shortly after agents from the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ) arrived at the scene, one of the agents accompanied the consul into the embassy.
According to Carolina Figueroa, dispatcher of the Cruz Roja (Red Cross), the call to 911 came 11:39 a.m. and they immediately sent three ambulances to the site where they found the wounded with multiple impacts on various parts of their bodies.
Daniel Calderón, General Director of the Fuerza Publica (national police) in San José, said the motorcycle was spotted in Desamparados, where the special units were deployed and after an intense search came up empty-handed.
The motive for the attack is yet unclear.
Ponzo, 38 years of age, was in Costa Rica once a month to check on his business that he started in 2015, exporting golden pineapple and other fruits. An employee of the company located in Pital de San Carlos, in the northern zone, said her boss was at the embassy to update his papers, he came to Costa Rica every four weeks, living most of his time in Italy and Spain.
Primer Consejo Gobierno Administración del Presidente Carlos Alvarado Quesada( 2018-2022), Casa Presidencial, Costa Rica. 15 Mayo 2018. fotos: Roberto Carlos Sánchez @rosanchezphoto
President Carlos Alvarado issued a directive that instructs ministers and vice ministers to reduce expenses in travel abroad. The directive, announced on Monday, states that international departures must be authorized only when strictly necessary and provide a benefit of importance to the country.
For each trip, the official must present a detailed request to the Governing Council, which “will assess the need of such trips, taking into consideration criteria of austerity and efficiency in the use of public funds,” says Article 1 of the guideline.
The authorization issued by the Governing Council will be a requirement to process the travel authorization by the President’s office.
Katherine Tatiana Smith refused to be photographed during her interview with La Teja at the women's prison. Photo from Facebook profile
The 24-year-old Caribbean woman with the surnames Smith Smith, suspected of killing Italian businessman, Stefano Calandrelli, claims on the social media to be a nurse.
Smith, who is currently in jail on remand following a raid on her home in Heredia last Friday, describes herself as working as a nurse for the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) or “Caja”. However, the Colegio de Enfermeras de Costa Rica (College of Nurses of Costa Rica) denies she is registered as a nurse. To work as a nurse in Costa Rica a person has to register with the Colegio.
Judicial authorities presume that Smith claimed to have studied nursing as part of her story to attract potential victims. Of course, the do not rule out having a degree as an assistant or nursing technician, something they are still investigating.
According to the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), Smith is a single mother of a 7-year-old child. She is originally from a downtown Limon barrio known as La Colina, but was living in Heredia.
He liked to post sensual photos of herself, making a particular point of exposing her pierced naval. Describing herself as tall and slender, she raraely showed her face on the social media.
Smith rented a house in San Joaquín de Flores in Heredia along with a friend named Vega Badilla, 19 years old, who is also in preventive detention.
In that house, where authorities believe Calandrelli was killed, were three men – with the surnames Vargas Cerdas (38), Rivas Suazo (22) and Mckenzi Banton (20). Investigators discovered that Vega has a love affair with one of the suspects.
