After the unprecedented event in the recent history of Costa Rica, in which protesters proffered insults and vulgarities against President Carlos Alvardo, even pushed him and an object was thrown at this waiting vehicle, the president has asked his security team to not isolate him from contact with the people is his upcoming events.
The president is under the security of the Dirección de Inteligencia y Seguridad (DIS), the government’s intelligence service, headed by Eduardo Trejos, who is reportedly investigating the fail of last Wednesday, October 3, when what appears to be a lapse in protocol President Alvarado was mobbed by angry protesters when leaving the Teatro Nacional, in the heart of San Jose, after attending a Urban Mobility event.
To ensure that the President could not sneak away, protesters against the tax reform bill, took up space in all four corners of the block that includes the Teatro and the Plaza de la Cultura.
On the way to the waiting vehicle, parked on the boulevard (Avenida Central) in front of the McDonalds, the people got a bit too close for comfort.
Later in the evening, President Alvarado recorded a video that he transmitted on his Facebook page, to show that the events that took place in the morning did not represent our country.
In the video this time everyone was friendly as the president delivered his message, “Let no one take away our peace. This is Costa Rica, peaceful people, quiet people, people who live in peace,” while walking through the Plaza de la Cultura and chatting and taking pictures with passers-by.
In the social media, Alvarado was criticized for creating a “staged” environment.
Will the security protocol surrounding the president change? In an interview with La Nacion, Trejos said, “It is our duty to generate an effective security process. After the events of yesterday (Wednesdy), we have the report and we will have to make forecasts for the next activities. Each of them is analyzed separately. The president has requested that, in any case, we maintain our civilian vision of presidential security.”
Trejos explained that the DIS will maintain the “traditional course” of the President’s contact with the citizenry, so that it is not interrupted, but always have security protocols.
Six DIS agents accompany the president, who protect him during official activities.
