Panama is the Central American country with the most number of Roman Catholics, this according to the latest results of the report on global Catholicism by the Pew Research Centre, a nonpartisan source of data and analysis.
The study, produced in 2010, focuses on the size, distribution and evolution of the Catholic faith around the world.
The Pew Research indicates that more than seven out every 10 persons (74%) in Panama consider themselves “strong” members of the Roman Catholic Church, for a total of 2.6 million Catholic faithfuls.
Following in second place is Costa Rica (68%) with an estimated 3.1 million Catholic population; Nicaragua (59%) in third place with 3.3 million Catholics; Guatemala (58%) is in fourth place with 8.3 million Catholic faithfuls; Belize (52%) with 160.000 Catholics; El Salvador (51%) with 3.1 million Catholics; and Honduras (50%) with 3.8 million.
The report on the size and distribution of the world’s Christian population is a comprehensive demographic study of more than 200 countries finds that there are 2.18 billion Christians of all ages around the world, representing nearly a third of the estimated 2010 global population of 6.9 billion. Christians are also geographically widespread – so far-flung, in fact, that no single continent or region can indisputably claim to be the center of global Christianity.
Saturday evening, eight o’clock, I saw the second choreography of Henriette Borbón! As in her last modern dance, from the lighting, the music and the truly original interpretation of “Krisis”, the work of Borbón will and perhaps already has out grown this country.
To expect something like the “Nut Cracker Suite”, stay home. To see and more important feel messages of life, look for a Borbón production.
Those attending were 99% nationals and they each seem to have had a flare for the major league arts. This was or is a Costa Rica that I have forgotten among Hummer cars and tacky jive pick-up joints, not to mention vacant, and over priced condos.
While such a contrast to the La Trocha scandal, the work of modern dance and in particular Borbón demands each audience member to soul search for meaning, a meaning and message as abstract as any painter, living or dead.
We live her pain, her frustrations her social issues all within one hour and fifteen minutes for a minimal price of admission. (Less than a medium pizza)
The dancers, ballerinas carry messages with the grace of any developed country, with the grace and imagination of New York or Los Angeles.
Truly, a side of Costa Rica that expats too often miss in favor of beaches, sloths and beer.
The audience was young, between 20 and perhaps a max of 40 years old, except for my wife and me. But both times it was an audience of young people who find their future in the arts. A traditional Costa Rica journey going way back: way, way back before corruption, conflict and trying desperately to become a “developed” country that carried the news headlines.
When I worked Central America, one thing I will always remember are the words of a client in Panama, “Costa Rica has culture we have very, very little so we import it.”
The production is made up of a superb team of talent: Costa Rica’s own national lead by diva of dance, Natlia Herra and the choreographer, Henriette Borbón. They make a unique combination that any dance group, local or international would love to host.
Whatever Henriette Borbón and her dance troop offer to the public, go see it and if you do not like it, email me and I will refund your ticket price.
Dr. Rodolfo Hernández is the third declared candidate for the 2014 presidential elections, being chosen Saturday as leader of the Partido Unidad Social Cristiana (PUSC), at a ceremony at the INBio parque in Santo Domingo de Heredia.
Dr. Hernández will lead the fractured party that once was a political force in the country and with the support of former president Rafael Ángel Calderón. The former president was not present, represented by his wife and legislator, Gloria Bejerano.
Dr. Hernandez joins San José mayor, Johnny Araya, for the Partido Liberacion Nacional (PLN) and José María Villalta Flores-Estrada of the Frente Amplio (FA) party in the contest for the presidential chair on Sunday February 2, 2014. See report: Only Two Candidates Confirmed For 2014 Presidential Elections
In his speech, the good doctor promised to help the poor, promote education and environmental protection. One woman in the audience was overheard muttering a reference that the doctor has features similar to the newly elected Pontiff.
“Today we take the first step in a struggle to restore the dignity of Costa Ricans,” said Dr. Hernandez, who for the last 12 years has been medical director at the Hospital Nacional de Niños (Children’s Hospital) in San José.
The approval of the concession for the construction and maintenance of the toll road between San José and San Ramón has generated controversy and criticism, many in the country questioning the contract going to the Brazilian firm OAS, while residents of San Ramón and other communities west of the airport of the cost of daily travel, among other concerns.
One reader of the Q writes, “does this (road construction) have to be done by a foreign company, how about putting the monies back into Costa Rica? Does this sound stupid or does taking care of ones own country make sense?“.
Before the end of the year construction, well really, modifications to the portion of the Ruta 1 – Interamericana Norte – that starts northeast end of the Sabana park and ends 58 kilometres northwest at San Ramón will (may) begin. The construction will take 30 months to complete and will be operated and maintained for the next 30 years under a concession contract.
The concerns of residents west of the airport and opponents of the road say the project was forced down the people’s throat, the Contraloría General de la República (CGR) – Comptroller’s office – did not listen or respond to their concerns.
The central government, the Ministerio de Obras Públicas (MOPT), the Consejo Nacional de Concesiones (CNC) and the CGR itself have not been able to answer questions about the project. Meanwhile, the MOPT minister, Pedro Castro, said that “those who do not want to use the route can always use alternates…”.
The major upset of residents is that no one is listening to them, not taking their concerns into account and not getting responses to the queries of groups like the Foro de Occidente and the Municipalidad de San Ramón.
This is the first impression visitors to Costa Rica traveling West get minutes after arriving at the airport in San José.
Paul Brenes, leader of the Occidente group, told CRHOY, “the Constitution establishes the obligation of local governments to ensure the welfare of its citizens and the obligation of the State to respect municipal autonomy to know about projects that could affect or benefit its residents.”
In this case, the group argues, neither the MOPT, the CNC or the CGR took time to visit and remove doubts before endorsing the project.
“We asked the Comptroller not to approve and give us time to discuss the project. We know they have the full power to approve, but what we expected is that before (giving approval) there is a social, environmental and economic impact studies done”, said Brenes.
Brenes added that the studies used in the process were done eight years ago.
The social and economic impact of the project is clearly seen by all but by the powers that be, it seems.
Once the new road is complete and the tolls kick in – which are now being discussed at ¢1.900 each way for a light passenger vehicle – it will mean that the only “viable” way to and from the Pacific coast is by way of a toll road: either by the Ruta 1 or the Ruta 27 (San José – Caldera).
Taking the “alternates” takes forever and at certain times of the year – like the rainy season – passage is next to impossible. For example, the alternate to the south takes one trough Escazú, Santa Ana, Puriscal and Orotina before connecting back to the Ruta 27, which still means a toll at Pozón before reaching Caldera. To the north, one has to weave through Heredia, Alajuela, Grecia, Sarchi, Naranjo to reach San Ramón to connect back to the Ruta 1. In either example you can add up to two hours or more of additional travel, depending on traffic and weather conditions.
Take the local farmer who makes his daily trip from the fields to the Cenada (fruit and vegetable wholesaler group) in Heredia or the downtown San José street markets. Every Saturday and Sunday there local fruit and vegetable markets in every community. Farmers tavelling to markets east have to face the tolls. Using the passenger vehicle toll, each farmer now has to spend ¢80.000 a month extra to get his/her product to San José markets. Taking the alternate would add hours to his/her daily run.
Bus companies and thus passengers to and from points west of San José will also be affected. Taking the daily bus to and from Grecia, Palmares and Atenas – three major San José sleeper communities – will cost more. Taking the family to Guanacaste for a vacation will cost more.
Given the nature of Costa Rica’s political system, there is doubt that this project will get underway. Not for some time at least. Even Presidenta Laura Chinchilla joked about appeals being filed within 24 hours of the project’s announcement.
The question is not whether the country needs this project complete, but whether it should be a toll and under the control of a foreign operator, in this case, the Brazilian company OAS which is being alleged to have committed acts of corruption and payoffs in other South American countries. See report:San José – San Ramón Road Concessionaire Questioned For Corruption in Other Countries
Another way of looking at it is this: it took almost 30 years of planning and construction for the San José – Caldera, the San José – San Ramón is only in its eighth year. Pura Vida, Mae!
Nobody knows how many there are in total or where they came from, but they have been seen regularly in and around the Legislative Assembly building. Some days are just a couple, sometimes four cats, others times five and seven. One cat even gave birth below the Christmas portal.
While they are seen in the day, it is at night when they become most active, as the sun goes down, the cats roam the halls and the roof of the empty Legislative building.
Some say the cats have been around for several years.
The photo says it all, as the ministro de transportes, Pedro Castro, visited the community of San Ramòn Friday night to face residents about their concerns of the San José – San Ramón construction, mainly the cost of the tolls.
Among the concerns raised by the residents attending the meeting were the expansion to four lanes – two in each direction – of the section of road between Manlos and San Ramón and the cost of the tolls, about ¢4.000 coloes for a round trip for a passenger vehicle.
Despite the unease of residents, minister Castro confirmed that there will be no changes on the construction plans.
The minister did say that there is the possibility of a toll reduction which will be up to the Autoridad Reguladora de los Servicios Públicos (Aresep) to set the rates.
The opinion of the majority of the residents of San Ramón and the areas of Grecia, Sarchi, Naranjo, Palmares and Atenas is that the project – the tolls – would negatively impact many families.
The mentioned areas are a sleeper community for many who travel to and from San José daily, which based on a 20 day a month work week, would add ¢80.000 colones monthly to their transportation costs.
About 5.000 runners are expected to participate in the Central American Games marathon this Sunday, March 17, forcing the downtown core of San José to be closed to vehicular traffic from 5:00am to noon Sunday, confirmed the coordinator of the Committee on Safety, Rafael fair Arias.
The mayoral adviser recommended drivers to avoid the area bound by the La Sabana park, Avenida 10, Plaza Gonzalez Viquez, Avenica Central and Paseo Colon. (See map).
The Juego Centromamericanos (Cental American games) come to a close Sunday with a big closing ceremony at the Estadio Nacional (National Stadium) starting at 7:00pm.
Tickets for the event are still available online at Specialticket.net or call centre at 2206 7770 and Servimás outlets in Mas x Menos and Walmart stores across the country, La Barberia in Santa Ana and the Ramada Plaza Herraduea hotel. Prices start at ¢12.500 to ¢20.500 plus service charges.
Costa Rica is ill equipped to prevent its growing importance as a major drug smuggling corridor, according to the US, even as Mexican trafficking groups expand their operations throughout Central America.
“Our geography has us imprisoned,” President Laura Chinchilla told the Wall Street Journal, referring to Costa Rica’s position between South American’s cocaine-producing nations and the principal drugs market of the United States. The government cannot match the “power and stealth” of the Mexican cartels, said the paper, of which the Sinaloa Cartel is believed to be the greatest threat.
According to the US State Department’s 2013 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report, Costa Rica has “inadequate resources” to tackle the rising tide of transnational crime, an issue highlighted by the WSJ’s trip to Peñas Blancas, a border crossing with Nicaragua.
Facilities are described as outdated, understaffed, and poorly equipped, with one “rickety wooden rain shelter,” staffed by just one person, responsible for dealing with the thousands of people crossing by foot each day. “It’s very rustic, it’s old,” said a police anti-narcotics official. “It makes [the work] more difficult. We don’t have enough teams.”
Officials said that it is difficult to combat the changing methods used by drug traffickers, which include carrying smaller, less conspicuous amounts of cocaine and finding alternative, less-policed routes.
A lack of effective border patrolling was an issue also noted by the US report, alongside a vulnerable coastline.
As drug routes have shifted from the Caribbean into Central America, Costa Rica has gained increasing importance as a drug transshipment point, as investigated by InSight Crime. Cocaine is now reportedly trafficked to 39 destinations from Costa Rica, with seizures nearly doubling between 2011 and 2012 — almost all connected to Mexico’s Sinaloa Cartel. In 2012, the Costa Rican Drug Institute (ICD) also stated that the Gulf Cartel and the Zetas have a presence in the country, along with the Colombian business partners of these organizations.
In addition, local drug demand is being spurred by the tourism industry, which attracts high numbers of American and European consumers, as noted in a 2011 article by the Council on Hemispheric Affairs.
In the face of this, Presidenta Laura Chinchilla has emphasized security as a government priority, highlighting as achievements a decrease in homicide and crime rates since 2010, when her administration took office.
The presidenat has met also certain security goals, including increasing the police force by 880 officers, constructing a new Coast Guard post on the Caribbean, and putting over US$1 million towards improvements at the Peñas Blancas crossing.
A February Associated Press article highlighted increased security collaboration with the US, which reportedly spent over US$18.4 million in security assistance to Costa Rica in 2012.
Samsung Galaxy S4 keeps calm, carries on with big screen
If you’re looking for Samsung’s new Galaxy S4 to define a novel new era of smartphone greatness, it’s time to temper your expectations. The brand-new flagship smartphone, which runs the latest Android 4.2.2 Jelly Bean, improves hardware significantly and it piles on the features.
Compared with the extremely successful Galaxy S3 that came before, it’s a firm stride forward rather than a giant a leap, but it raises the bar again for Samsung’s competitors. And by super-sizing the screen and packing in so much specialized software, the GS4 sets itself even farther apart from the iPhone.
[colored_box color=” grey”]Apple iPhone Still A ‘Work of Art,’ But Samsung’s Galaxy S4 Ups the Smartphone Ante
Samsung’s new Galaxy S4 may not be a game changer (with some reviewers calling it “meh” and “completely amazing and utterly boring.”) But the smartphone may have just enough new features to lure over iPhone users and steps up the pressure on Apple CEO Tim Cook and his team to deliver a groundbreaking new phone this year.[/colored_box]The Galaxy S4 handset steadily draws from the same design language as the S3, but takes almost every spec to an extreme — the screen is larger (5 inches), the resolution greater (1080p), the battery capacity higher (2,600mAh), the processor faster (1.9GHz quad-core or 1.6GHz octa-core), and the rear-facing camera stuffed with more megapixels (13, to be exact). But, once you’ve gone through the features checklist (which also includes lots of internal and external storage space and RAM), it’s the software extras that Samsung continues to lean on to keep its phones one step ahead of the competition.
The problem is, based on my brief time with the Galaxy S4, very few of the extensive list of enhancements stood out as a killer, must-have, cannot-possibly-live-without feature. The TV control app that works with the IR blaster is perhaps one exception (the HTC One has this, too), as are a handy translation tool and eye-tracking and gesture capabilities that allow you to pause a video when you stop paying attention and let you hover your finger over an item to preview what it is. Many other software additions are semi-interesting ideas that some power users may enjoy once they’ve figured them out, but which will hardly convince a prospective buyer to pick the GS4 over, for instance, the HTC One, Nokia Lumia 920, or iPhone 5.
After using the device at a briefing (along with several other journalists), I do think that Samsung has accomplished what it’s set out to do in pushing its Galaxy brand forward. Fans will find a familiar, appealing smartphone that’s packed with hardware and software features — albeit more than one person would ever use.
With less than a year to go before the presidential elections, on the first Sunday of February 2014, only two candidates have been declared by their political parties.
The first one out of the gate was Johnny Araya Monge, the current mayor of San José, who will be waving the “verdiblanco” (green and white) fag of the Partido Liberación Nacional (PLN).
The only other declared candidate is José María Villalta Flores-Estrada, who will be waving the “bandera amarilla” (yellow flag) of the Frente Amplio (FA) party.
The PLN and FA are the only two political parties that have completed their internal procedures and named their presidential running horse for the elections on February 2, 2014.
The other major parties, the PUSC, PAC and ML, all have to yet define who their running candidate will be.
Johnny Araya announced his candidacy bid last year, locking it up following the nomination withdrawal of Rodrigo Arias and Fernanco Berrocal.
If the elections were to be held today, it would not be a matter of which is the best candidate, but the fact that voters would only have two candidates to choose from – Green or Yellow.
Costa Ricans are used to having choices, a choice of candidate from several major political parties and a number of smaller ones.
Following the tugging and pulling between the municipalidad de Belén, the Centro de Eventos Pedregal and the Asociación de Importadores de Vehículos y Maquinaria (AIVEMA), Expomóvil (re)opened its doors to the public on Friday.
The 23 car dealers and the major banks opened with the same “car fair deals” offered on February 21 before the event was shut down by the municipality for lack of permits.
Last month, the Tribunal Ambiental Administrativo forced the closure of the Expomóvil the day after its opening, for alleged environmental damage by construction being carried out by the Centro de Eventos Pedregal.
The car fair this time around will only be for five day, running until March 20.
The reaction of customers was lukewarm, as those who had had intention to buy had the opportunity to do so at the respective car dealers, who carried on with the Expomóvil special pricing, though the main event was postponed.
According to event organizers this will be the last time Expomóvil will be held in Belén.
Costa Rica and Panama have agreed to a cross-border card and so Costa Ricans and Panamanians no longer need a passport to enter the neighbouring country.
The first ID card was issued by the Dirección de Migración y Extranjería (Costa Rican immigration service) to the Governor of Chiriqui in Panama
According to Presidenta Laura Chinchilla, the idea is that by the end of 2014, some 4.000 Panamanians and Costa Ricans will have the ID card to cross-border.
There is no charge of the ID card and will be most useful to those living closest to the border.
Next month, April 2013, the bridge over the Tempisque river in the Nicoya Peninsula celebrates its 10th anniversary. It also marks 3,653 days of neglect, not even a drop of paint to remove the graffiti that has been accumulated.
The bridge was inaugurated in April 2003, facilitating transit to the Pacific coast of Guanacaste. Prior to the construction of the bridge, this route required the use ferries to cross the Tempisque River, or long alternate land routes.
The bridge, spanning 780 metres, was financed and designed by Taiwan and built primarily by the Taiwanese, with participation of Costa Rican engineers and workers, and served as a launching point for major development in the Guanacaste region.
The Puente La Amistad de Taiwán (English: “Taiwan Friendship Bridge”), which became known colloquially as Puente de la Apuñalada (Back stab Bridge) since former Costa Rican President Óscar Arias cut off relations with Taiwan in favour of China, today has no friends.
Recent studies have found some problems in the structure that have required increased maintenance. The bridge also suffered damage on 5 September by the 2012 Costa Rica earthquake.
That day in September, the director of the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad (Conavi), Luis Salas, visited the bridge by helicopter and found that the structure that is crossed by 4.000 vehicles daily had cracks and crumbling concrete on the expansion joints.
The Laboratorio Nacional de Materiales y Modelos Estructurales de la UCR (Lanamme) – National Laboratory specialists Materials and Structural Models at the Universtiy of Costa Rica – has confirmed the existence of damage. The Lanamme has also confirmed that the September quake caused a mismatch between the sides of the bridge.
The damage is noticeable. The Lanamme report indicates that the one side of the sidewalk has shifted about 7 centimetres over the other side of the expansion joint. Rolando Castillo, the Lanamme specialist on bridges, however, assures there is “no risk to users”.
Castillo, in his report says there is not structural damage to the bridge, but it does not mean it does need attention.
This lack of attention, according to Castillo and other experts, is due to the country’s lack of culture towards its bridges.
The Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT) admits that, throughout this time, has virtually ignored the bridge, only replacing stolen signs.
La Nacion, in it’s report on the anniversary of the bridge, said it spoke to Omar Segura, spokesperson for the MOPT, who said that the one of the main problems in the area is vandalism. Segura, however, did not address the problem of maintenance, or the lack of.
Following two assaults last month, the Parque Nacional Volcán Arenal (Arenal Volcano National Park) had decided to stop charging visitors.
The first attack was on a guard at the collection station at the park entrance, anti-socials getting away with some ¢300.000 colones and wounding an employee.
The second attack was on a conservation area vehicle, this time antisocials made off with some ¢1.5 millio colones, bounding and gagging the driver.
Thus, park administration made the decision to stop charing entry into the park, eliminating the lines of vehicles to enter the park and the collection station, to prevent more assaults.
The situation is a major loss of revenue for the park and left to rely only on ticket purchases made in San José.
Some 200 visitors a day visit the Arenal, located in La Fortuna de San Carlos, making it one of the most visited in the country.
The saga of closure of textile companies in Costa Rica, which began a few years ago, seems to be continuing unabated as yet another textile company has announced its closure.
Textile firm, American owned, Confecciones BorKar SA, has announced the shutdown of its entire operations in Costa Rica and all the 300 workers currently employed by the company will lose their jobs.
Speaking to media, Michael Borg, the owner of BorKar, said the company once employed about 1,100 workers, but the number of employees has decreased during the last few years, as the Costa Rican textile industry lost its competitiveness in global markets.
The latest closure follows the shutdown of US-based firm Confecciones Jinete in January this year that rendered around 500 employees jobless.
The year 2009 saw closure of 10 textile companies in Costa Rica. Since then, thousands of jobs in the country’s textile sector have disappeared due to closure of several companies, including the shutdown of Cimer, manufacturer of Levi’s, in 2010, and Compañía Textil Centroamericana last year.
The closure of companies has negatively impacted the exports of Costa Rican textiles, which have declined from US$ 700 million in 2000 to as little as US$ 200 million in 2012, as per official figures.
Meanwhile, some former employees of BorKar have created a cooperative called Coopetrajes del Poá, and they plan to take BorKar’s existing facilities on rent and start operating on a small scale, initially with manufacturing of coats and suits.
From the time of the Chorotegas until today, corn has been a mainstay in the Costa Rican diet, especially so in the Nicoya Peninsula, where local farmers have planted their own seeds for generations, personally identifying with their crops.
However, after the company DPL Semillas obtained permission on January 21 to plant 0.9 hectares of transgenic corn in the country, concerns have grown in various sectors of the population, once again raising the debate of the dietary safety of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs).
It should be mentioned that the history of GMOs in the country is not new since the first permits for planting crops with genetically altered characteristics were granted in the 90s.
According to the January 2013 edition of the magazine Germinar (Germinate) from the College of Agronomy Engineers of Costa Rica, “In Costa Rica since 1991 the National Technical Commission of Biosafety authorized tests to produce genetically modified seeds of corn and soy for export.”
These tests were also performed with cotton, banana, corn, pineapple and soy during 2007, 2008 and 2011. According to data from Germinar, in these years a total of 448,894 hectares of genetically modified organisms were planted
Currently in the country many think that the GMOs represent a threat to national dietary sovereignty since the introduction of these “different varieties” could replace farmers’ use of native corn in addition to modifying the genetic structure of native corn by means of pollination.
But Nevio Bonillo, specialist in genetic improvement from the National Institute of Agricultural Technology Transfer Innovation (INTA), assured that there is a lot of misinformation and ignorance about GMOs and that the effects of these organisms have even been “demonized.”
Bonilla explained that in the country farmers use improved varieties, hybrids and local varieties. “In improved varieties, the most utilized being diamante 8843, the farmers use their own varieties or hybrids, that is to say the combination of a father and a mother plant that are very different in themselves, which yield a child that has a higher yield and better performance with plagues or environmental conditions,” he assured.
This means that each farmer can produce their own seed, “crossing” the corn varieties they want to thus obtain higher yielding seeds. However Bonilla remembered that these hybrids are for personal use and not for commercial purposes.
Alonso Chacon, in charge of the National Seeds Office (ONS), explained that to grant the permit to plant seeds with commercial purposes, the producer should first have the approval of the State Phytosanitary Service. Then the National Biosafety Technical Commission is responsible for evaluation technical-scientific aspects and finally ONS supervises and follows up on the companies and their crops.
Chacon mentioned that currently ONS is gathering information about the existing local corn varieties that have been planted for years in the national territory.
The Risk of Cross-pollination
One of the strongest points made by those who are speaking out against transgenics is the risk of cross-pollination. This happens when the pollen from a transgenic plant is “passed” to a non-transgenic plant. Jorge Baltodano, agronomic engineer in charge of Finca La Ceiba of Nicoya, explained that each grain in corn on the cob is a fruit and when it is found in the flowering stage, it receives pollen in various ways such as by means of insects or the wind, among others.
“This process is called cross-pollination, so if a corn plant were near white, yellow and purple (pujagua) varieties of corn, the grains of each ear could be of these three colors combined,” he assured.
But both Chacon and Bonilla affirm that studies prove that the pollen can travel up to 500 meters from one field to another, and currently the permit being granted to the company DPL establishes a minimum distance of one kilometer between crops.
Bonilla added that “the transgenic is the same plant genus and species, with the difference that science has made it possible to determine certain physical features and characteristics that aren’t present in the common varieties. For example, some of these organisms have a gene that is resistant to drought that has been taken beforehand from another plant or animal and is transferred to the corn plant, which allows this gene to activate in the corn plant so that when it is facing drought problems, it can resist the climatic changes,” he commented.
Local Corn Remains the Favorite
In Nicoya, local producers think that the local corn is the best, for yield, ease of production and even for the sentiments acquired over the years.
“Since I started to work with my dad, I planted corn, beans and rice to eat at home,” Liborio “Goyito” Perez Madrigal, who lives in Matambuguito de Nicoya, proudly commented.
He believes that the local corn yields more than others and assured that the arrival of transgenic corn as part of the GMOs is a threat to the tradition of the farmers of the Nicoya Peninsula.
Jose Luis Zuñiga, a resident of Santa Ana of Nicoya, is another local farmer who has lived most of his life among corn fields. He longs for the arrival of the first rains of April or May to start planting his corn, grains that his family will later turn into tasty tortillas, rosquillas, tanelas and chorreadas, among other treats.
For his part, Luis Felipe Arauz Cavallini, dean of the faculty of agro-dietary sciences at the University of Costa Rica who is mentioned in Germinar magazine, said that “corn is a crop native to Costa Rica, which boasts a wealth of biodiversity that could be altered by contamination from patented genes.”
Arauz emphasized that “there is a lot of interest from small farmers to rescue local corn and give this local character an added value linked to cultural values.”
With so much local affection for corn, Baltodano assured that the Nicoyan rural community will never change their local seed, with which they have “even been feeding the chickens.”
Insurance giant Sagicor Life Jamaica (SLJ) will initially invest US$6 million to enter the Costa Rican market, according to its financial report for the year ended December 2012.
Sagicor aims to grow revenues via its new venture in Central America. It received regulatory approval to operate an insurance company last month in Costa Rica but the company previously did not disclose the expected value of its investment there.
“At year end the company’s share of capital invested was US$6 million,” stated Sagicor in its just released financials. “Sagicor injected its 50 per cent share of capital in a joint venture company, Sagicor Costa Rica through its wholly-owned subsidiary Sagicor St Lucia.”
Sagicor now operates in Jamaica, the Cayman Islands, St Lucia and Costa Rica.
The organizers of Expomovil never gave up and tomorrow will, again, inaugurate the annual car show. This time with permits in hand.
The Executive Director of the Asociación de Importadores de Vehículos y Maquinaria (AIVEMA), Liliana Aguilar, said the fair will take place at the Pedregal Events Centre – the original location – for only five days, until March 20.
The Municipalidad de Belén said through a press release that based on the decision by the Tribunal Ambiental Administrativo (Environmental Administrative Tribunal), imposing on Pedregal a recovery plan and mitigation of damages of about ¢68 million colones, the municipality removed the estoppel.
The Court ruled that the construction work on the access bridge to the events centre caused environmental damage that the company must correct.
President Laura Chinchilla welcomed the re-opening. By way of Twitter, the presidenta said, “we celebrate the reopening of Expomovil after countless efforts. An example of the absurd ‘tramitomanía’ (endless processes) which we are fighting”.
On February 22, the municipality closed the Expomovil the day after opening for lack of a permit. Car dealers moved the car fair to their dealerships, offering customers the same fair prices and incentives.
The choice of Pope Francesco (Francis) was unsurprisingly greeted with huge, enthusiastic coverage in the newspapers of his home country, Argentina. Almost all of them carried the same front page picture of Jorge Mario Bergoglio smiling and waving to the crowds outside the Vatican.
In Costa Rica, La Nacion’s headline “Un Papa del Nuevo Mundo” (A Pope of the New World), the headline of the Diario Extra, the self proclaimed most sold newspaper in the country, reads “Francisco Nuevo Papa” (Francis New Pope), the La Teja’s headline, “‘Chico’, es grande” (‘Boy’, is big).
The papers in Brazil, which is reputed to have the world’s largest Roman Catholic population, also devoted full front pages to the new Pope.
Folha de Sao Paulo’s picture of the Pope bending in prayer surrounded by fellow cardinals was headlined: “Francisco, argentino, é o 1º papa latino-americano” (Argentinian Francis, the first Latin-American pope). And Sao Paulo’s Agora, preferred the smiling face of the Pope: “Francisco, o papa dos pobres” (Francis, the Pope of the poor). Odiario “Papa é argentino, jesuíta e decide se chamar Francisco” (The Pope is Argentinian and decides to call himself Francis).
Very similar images were in front pages of papers in Central and South America. In Mexico, every major daily – El Universal, La Jornada, Milenio and even the business title, El Financierio – splashed on the papal story. El Salvador’s La Prensa ran with “Su Santidad el Papa Francisco” (His holiness Pope Francis).
Here are five things you might not know about daylight saving time.
Daylight Saving Time Was Conceived as a Way to Save Energy
In the U.S., daylight saving time was first used during World War I to conserve resources. It was reinstated again during World War II until Sept. 1945. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 created a standardized system to observe daylight saving time.
The Department of Energy studied the energy savings in 2008. They found that during daylight saving time, U.S. electricity use decreased by 0.5 percent per day, which added up to 1.3 billion kilowatt-hours, enough to power about 122,000 average U.S. homes for a year.
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Daylight Saving Time Begins in March and Ends in November
From World War II until recently, the seven-month period of daylight saving time in the U.S. ran from April until mid-October.
But in 2007, Congress adjusted daylight saving time to begin three weeks earlier and end one week later, a move they hoped would help save energy. At the time, they pointed to the fact that longer daylight in the evening hours reduced the need to turn on lights in homes at night.
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Not All US States and Territories Observe Daylight Saving Time
The majority of the U.S. loses an hour of sleep when the time switch occurs. With the exception of the Navajo Nation in the northeastern part of the state, Arizona has not been moving their clocks forward like the rest of the country each spring.
According to an Arizona Republic editorial in 1969, the reasoning behind not springing forward was due to the heat.
“The above data [sunrise and sunset times and average temperatures during the summer months from the U.S. Weather Bureau] clearly show that we must wait until about 9 p.m. DST to start any night-time activity such as drive-in movies, moonlight rides, convincing little children it’s bedtime, etc. And it’s still hot as blazes!” the editorial stated according to the Arizona State Library, Archives and Public Records.
Aside from Arizona, Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Northern Marianas and the Virgin Islands do not move their clocks forward.
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Time Changes Can Impact Body
It’s just one hour but the time shift and stress caused by time changes can be bad for the body. Researchers in Sweden reported in 2008 in the New England Journal of Medicine that the number of heart attacks jumps during the period immediately following time changes, and that those vulnerable to sleep deprivation should be extra careful.
“More than 1.5 billion men and women are exposed to the transitions involved in daylight saving time: turning clocks forward by an hour in the spring and backward by an hour in the autumn,” wrote Imre Janszky and Rickard Ljung, health and welfare researchers in Sweden. “These transitions can disrupt chronobiologic rhythms and influence the duration and quality of sleep, and the effect lasts for several days after the shifts.”
Unemployment, the insecurity and the high cost of life are the Costa Rican population’s main troubles, confirms a survey by Unimer for the Spanish language daily, La Nacion. Twenty-one percent of those consulted responded that the lack of employment is its main concern, while 17 percent for the consulted population said the main concern is the high cost of life.
In accordance with recent data of the National Institute of Statistic and Census (INEC), in the last quarter of the year 2012 the unemployment stayed in an inamovible 10 percent in the country.
The Unimer poll demonstrated that the number of people that considered insecurity like its main concern was reduced.
In 2009, 48 percent were concerned for the crime rate, but from then the following studies began to show a tendency to drop and three and a half years later, only 18 percent of the interviewees manifested great concern for the insecurity.
The poll was carried out between January 24 and last February 4, by means of consultations to 1, 200 citizens in their houses in the whole national territory and has a margin of error of 2,8 percentage points, Unimer specified.
According to Unimer, behind unemployment, the high cost of life and the insecurity, corruption occupies the fourth place in concerns and worries of 12.3 percent of the population.
Below these problems and in descending order there is the condition of the economy of the country (9.3 percent) and poverty (6.5 percent), indicates the survey.
The consultation also shows stagnation in the pessimism of the Costa Ricans with regarding the future of the country, although those who say that they are now more optimistic, went down from a 13 to 9 percent in one year, it pointed out.
The poll shows that the group of citizens that considers that Costa Rica is taking a good direction, went down from five percent in October 2012, to hardly 2.5 percent in February this year.
The First International University Book Fair (FILU in Sapnish) will in now ongoing in Heredia, with the participation of 30 publishing houses from Latin America and Japan.
Until Sunday March 17th, the streets, squares and cultural centres in the Cuidad de la Flores (City of Flowers), as Heredia is known, will receive texts published in Brazil, Cuba, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, Republic Dominican, Panama, Japan and Costa Rica.
As part of the program, local public figures and visitors will give lectures and workshops on teaching.
Several authors will read their stories and local musicians and theatre groups will perform.
The fair will be dedicated to the writer Luis Dobles Segrega, who was born in Heredia in the late nineteenth century and wrote about local customs.
FILU is part of the celebrations for the 40th anniversary of the National University in Heredia, which opened on February 15, 1973.
The latest Unimer opinion poll contracted by the national newspaper La Nacion reveals that Costa Ricans are most worried about unemployment and the cost of living. Twenty-one percent are very worried about employment.
Another 17% say they are worried most about the cost of living. But Planning Minister Roberto Gallardo says he’s surprised at worries about costs since the economy is going through an historic era of low inflation.
“I’m surprised at the result of the survey,” Gallardo told La Nacion, “because this country is going through a period of low inflation unparalleled in the last 40 years. As for employment, never have we had more employed persons than now — nearly two million.”
Security Minister Mario Zamora sounded as if he were the only government official gratified by the results. “We’re the first national in the region not to number insecurity as the highest concern.” he told the paper.
It is true that citizen insecurity is, in most Central American nations, a number one concern as it has been in the past in Costa Rica. Zamora feels that the man on the street is now feeling a drop in lawlessness.
“From Mexico to Colombia,” he added, “security is the principal problem in public law and order.The fact that it’s now the third most important concern is apositive indicator for the country, especially since Central America is the most violent zone in the world according to the United Nations.”
Government figures show homicides have dropped 17%. They are, said Zamora, the crime that causes people a sense of fear and alarm.
Surprisingly, Jorge Vargas, head of the State of the Nation program and one of the most exacting critics of government, agrees. These lowering crime figures in the last three years have been, Vargas says, “a government accomplishment.”
Vargas noted that pessimism has been on the rise since 2001 and that employment is an issue that all politicial parties will have to face in the 2014 election campaign.
Certainly this appears true with this survey. The sense that the country was on the right course dropped 5% from an October, 2012, poll and can hardly go lower — it’s now 2.5%. That’s a great distance, notes La Nacion, from the 14% that felt the country was on the right track in March, 2011.
The Chinchilla Administration can take little solace from the poll of 1,200 persons taken from Jan 24 to Feb. 4. It shows 69% definitely feel the government is on the wrong track, up even from March 2011’s 51%.
Commentary: This final figure is telling. It shows the cumulative effects of a constant chain of scandals topped by the northern border road fiasco, frequent cabinet changes and a fragmented, fracticious congress.
La Nacion pointed out that, despite an unrelenting public relations campaign to underscore achievements, the bad news has obviously outweighed the good. Of course, it has not helped that the opposition has rubbed the President’s nose in every misstep — but that is their role.
This is an excerpt translation of an article by Alfonso J. Palacios Echeverría published in ElPais.cr
A national newspaper brings the news that threatens the peace and tranquility of we who are seniors. It notes the following: old man disappears after being dragged by the sea (while wetting his feet), that is, no walks on the beach; senior hit by a car when walking by the side of the road, that is, no strolls, unless in a park; seventy year old man dies in fight, which frightens us so we best not claim our rights; assault kills dream of living out old age in the mountains, is it not normal that they intern us in a retirement home and nothing about living alone and less in far away places.
This reminded me that I have lived out four of the five years on the waiting list at the Calderón Guardia hospital for cardiac catheterization I urgently needed, according to the cardiologist that treated met at the time, though I doubt they will call me one day, for the young lady who received my medical documents did not formally put me on the list, saying that, if there was any space she would call me immediately and recommending me to go the emergency room, with my symptoms of heart disease, I would be treated immediately. Sure, she seems to forget what blood chemistry is, essential in a stroke. What if I am unable to pay the more than one million colones the treatment costs at a private hospital, what happens, I die just like that, waiting for treatment?
In the view of this young lady, ignorant and full of malice, she implied an attitude of contempt towards the elderly, in the sense that the old must give way for the young in the health system, because they (the young) are still able to produce, forgetting that for at least the last forty or forty-five years we produced. And we have rights as much or more for all we have given the country.
Our pension was earned by our contributions to the disability, old age and death fund and not a gracious concession they are giving us. And we have the same rights to the health system as any younger citizen.
More and more stories come to light of the elderly being abused, neglected and abandoned or as in my case, put aside on a waiting list for a treatment that a specialist deems urgent and having to see the right hand and left discuss who is responsible.
Generally, the elderly are people who for many years contributed with their work or with their experience, only to face oblivion and become a nuisance to society, which does not allow defects like being a failure, being poor, disabled, fat or “old”.
All pass the ball, the government, charities and the unscrupulous who profit from the poor “grandparents” and so on. Growing old is almost a conviction, and is a topic that no one wants to talk about, and is not just a problem experienced by the elderly who are poor.
In this country we underestimate the elderly. Not everyone is sick in the head to as to treat them as such and talk to them like children. Having difficulty to walk does not mean they can not do small tasks that make them useful. The decrease in hearing ability that does not mean they can not have an interesting conversation. Being 70 or 80 years of age does not mean they stopped having dreams.
Many seniors are disconnected from the world because they are terribly alone, because they are marginalized of any family activity, because young people do not give them room. We do not make the time to walk a little slower or to hear a slurred phrase. The elders have to be listened to with patience. They are the ones who have left us everything to pass on to those who come after us. The decline would be less painful if everyone who has a relative, friend or neighbour who is a senior to begin by paying attention to them, by treating them as an equal who has things to say, be it with just a greeting or a smile and not underestimate them.
The abandonment of families can come from external problems to them, who may want to care or look after their elderly. However, there are often difficulties in doing so and feel powerless to realize this, and the lack of support for their loved ones.
Some of the obstacles are as follows: the current lifestyle, and lack of time, since the family is dedicated to work, study or attend their “own family”. Lack of economic opportunities, as family members now have families of their own and have to work to keep it in the first instance. On the other hand, there are family problems as merely seeking “revenge” on the part of the children, taking advantage of the weakness of the elderly, in response to the abuse they received from their parents, or, some people abandon their families “in hospitals, where they are admitted for minimum conditions, but they turn away from their families almost immediately, because they do not visit, do not worry about their evolution and often leave no correct data to locate” for convenience only. This in turn has been the product of prejudice facing the elderly, lack of empathy and breaking inter-generational coexistence.
In today’s society, he who does not produce is left behind, as if old age was a hindrance to progress and modernization, which is false, but it’s that the media, for example, has been commissioned to create the negative image of the elderly in society, even in today’s culture. As noted by Diana Cohen Agrest, it is now clear that the demographics indicate a world grown old, and yet culture has fostered more than idolatry powered by external beauty and youth media for “eternal” hiding and even going to reject both the ugliness and old age.
Being old and ugly does not make me less intelligent, educated, experienced, and able to contribute something to society.
To define the effects this demographic change will cause, Oliver Azuara the author clearly states this process is changing the needs of the population since before he was given priority in care for children, from now on the aging population will demand more health services and social security. The adult population has an epidemiological profile with high incidence of chronic degenerative diseases, whose treatment is more prolonged and expensive. This requires more and better trained personnel, infrastructure construction, and increased spending on medicines. In sum, the real resources necessary to maintain the aging population are increasing and will continue over the next years. The aging population will force a substantial allocation of resources, not only in the demand for health services, but also in the area of social security, especially pensions.
The solution begins to change perspective, stop seeing seniors as a problem and see them as an opportunity. Lacking is promoting education and a mindset that instills respect for the elderly, and to stop ignoring the needs for quality of life and dignity of our elders. Raising public awareness about this opportunity, and stop attacking it through the media, accept aging and regain the admiration and the symbol representing wisdom and experience and that the elderly are fully capable of providing.
Young people should not distance themselves from the elderly, our education should promote generational empathy, to maintain good relations within the family and thus reduce the amount of abandoned of the elderly by their families.
One of the main causes for the abandonment of older people, which is beginning to be seen as another example of social violence, is that the older person and does not have a useful working life and start generating expenses in the family. A situation that causes tension.
Another common case is when the family takes possession of the goods or materials of the elderly, taking advantage of their weakness, forgetfulness or dependence.
I confess that I am old, I am about to turn seventy, but I’ve never felt better intellectually, but my body is showing signs of physical deterioration, and was shocked to see that others like me are abandoned in hospitals when the holidays come, because the family wants to enjoy (the holiday time) without the discomfort of carrying their grandparent with them or send them to the streets to beg so that they bring something (financial) to the house. In most extreme cases, they face physical aggression.
The absence of public policies related to the aging population is one of the barbarities of all governments that have we had so far, the insensitivity of the legislators, criminal distraction of political parties, and the lack of interest by those who gave everything to the country and today we are discriminated against.
The online news source, ElPeriodicocr.com, reports that the minister of Public Works and Transport (MOPT), Pedro Castro, was a legal advisor to the OAS, the Brazilian company awarded the San José – San Ramón road concession.
In 2012, Castro, on his ministerial appointment, told the media that he would be abstaining from any decision having to do with the OAS.
For Manrieque Oviedo, legislator for the Partido Acción Ciudadana (PAC), the appointment of Castro as minister of the MOPT, was “very regrettable”.
For the legislator, although Castro says he will play a neutral role it is impossible, for it will be he (Castro) who heads the transport ministry and oversee the OAS work and contract complaince.
“Deifintely a bad sign”, says the Oviedo.
For Costa Ricans the MOPT is akin to corruption. Minister after minister has stepped down following allegations of irregularities. The latest major project that is still being question is “La Trocha”, the northern border road.
The Brazilian company, OAS, that was awarded the concession contract for the San José – San Ramón section of the Interamerican highway (Ruta 1), has been widely questions in other Latin American countries for presumed low social environmental responsibility and corruption.
On Monday the government of Laura Chinchilla announced the approval of the contract by the Contraloría General de la República (CGR)- Comptroller’s office of the awarding to OAS a 30 year concession.
Reports since indicate that OAS has been invovled in “administrative irregularities” and alleged payments of bribes to politicians in Brazil, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia and Chile.
In Brazil, OAS has been accused of committing irregularities in large urban works. According to the daily JusBrasil, irregularities were uncovered in the construction of the Rotary Foundation in Brasilia. In addition to other Brazilian companies, OAS is linked to strong allegations of corruption and influence peddling in Brazil.
The daily Globo Noticias in Brazil reports the corruption led to the collpase of a railway terminal.
Similar charges of corruption are alleged to have occurred in Peru and Ecuador, where OAS was involved in an engineering project of high environmental importance.
In Costa Rica, OAS is expected to begin work on the 58 kilometre section of the Ruta 1, between San José and San Ramón, within six months. The work that will take some 30 months to complete, when the Autopista General Cañas (La Sabana to the airport) and the Bernardo Soto (airport to San Ramón) will be a toll road with five toll stations, costing users up to ¢4.000 colones.
Currently the road had two toll stations, one on the Cañas, immediately east of the airport (Alajuela bound) which costs uses ¢75 colones (¢100 voluntary for using the left express lane) and southeast of Naranjo (San José bound) where drivers have to hand over ¢150 colones.
The study, produced in 2010, focuses on the size, distribution and evolution of the Catholic faith around the world.
