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declared safe for evacuees By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Experts have evaluated 1,087 homes in the Jan. 8 earthquake area and have pronounced 664 as being safe for habitation. But getting the occupants back home is going slowly. More than 2,000 persons remain in shelters. Some are afraid to return home. Meanwhile rescue workers are considering ending the search for seven persons who are missing. The Cruz Roja already announced that it was reducing its presence in the earthquake area. Rescue workers have been digging in the landslides that buried buildings and people. But the danger of the work has been compounded by rain. The job is frustrating. For example, in the community of Cinchona, two persons are almost certainly buried under hundreds of tons of dirt at the scene of the destroyed eating place or soda El Mirador. But even heavy machinery has been unable to locate them. In another case, an occupant of a wrecked home is listed as missing, but neighbors speculate that the man may have returned home to his native Nicaragua. The death toll still stands at 23. The experts at the national emergency commission and the Colegio Federado de Ingenieros y Arquitectos said that 423 homes were destroyed or are so heavily damaged as to be unusable. The government is seeking to find permanent housing for these victims. Much of Ruta 126 remains closed. Slides and obstructions have been removed, but stretches of the highway collapsed into the adjacent valley. The Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes is considering ways to restore the roadway at these gaps. The tragedy has ignited sympathy among average Costa Ricans. Several fund drives and marathons were held over the weekend, and volunteers with donations cans have been making their way along highway traffic and even in malls and walkways. The most secure way to donate, however, remains Banco de Costa Rica (91100-3 colons and 118281-1 dollars) and Banco Nacional de Costa Rica (colons 100-01-000-100100-7, and dollars 100-02-000-068666-7). Transfers can be made online. Those outside of the country can make a wire transfer to the accounts or sign on to the Cruz Roja Web page where one link allows donations by credit card from anywhere in the world, the Cruz Roja said. Those accounts are 100100-7 (colons) and 68666-7 (dollars), both at Banco Nacional. Western Union, which has donated $50,000 to earthquake relief, has setup a program to allow foreigners to donate to the Cruz Roja without cost. The company will accept donations of up to $1,000 each, and those making the donation should specify EARTHQUAKERELIEF CR. In Costa Rica the code word is AYUDATERREMOTO CR. Morning Escazú robberies lead to arrest of suspect By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Investigators have detained a man they suspect patrolled the Escazú area with the aim of committing violent robberies against young women. They estimated that there are at least 22 cases involving this individual. The robber was distinctive in that he used a microbus to approach the women victims, whose ages ranged from 18 to 28. The crimes took place in San Rafael de Escazú, San Antonio, Guachipelín, Trejos Montealegre and spots along the highway to Santa Ana. The time usually was between 7:30 a.m. and 9 p.m, and the victims mainly were women on their way to work, said agents. Investigators said that the robber would pull up on a victim and then get out and violently take the possessions of the women. If the victims put up resistance, the robber would hit the women. Judicial investigators in the Sección de Asaultos are seeking information from more victims. Salary base for 2009 set for judges to set fines By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Lawmakers address the problem of the devaluation of the colon by setting criminal fines according to what they call the salario base. Sometimes a fine will be expressed in base salaries and sometimes in a number of days' pay. For example, being drunk in a public place calls for a fine of from 10 to 50 days and a tourist who is found working here draws a fine of three to 30 days. The Consejo Superior del Poder Judicial fixed the base salary for this year at 269,800 colons, which a typical office worker's monthly salary and is about $491.50. If there are no drastic changes in the economy, the amount of the base salary will remain in force for the entire year, said the Poder Judicial. More cell phones enter consumer market today By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad is putting some 100,000 cell phone lines up for use today to persons who already have submitted their names on the waiting list. Among other items, those seeking a telephone line have to bring a telephone and the sales receipt for the device.
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| A.M. Costa Rica third newspage |
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Costanera Sur expected to be
finished by end of this year
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The end of work on the Costanera Sur is in sight. The transport ministry said that by the end of the year, the entire 42 kilometers (26 miles) between Quepos and Dominical will be paved. The project is seen as a boon to tourism and a way to reduce traffic in the Central Valley. In addition, transport officials said that critical bridges should be finished by the middle of the year. Work had been stopped by and damage sustained from the October floods. The Costanera Sur already has been graded. That was a $17.7 million job that included installing drainage systems. The final paving is in two contracts. Consorcio Meco-Santa Fe has the job between Savegre and Quepos. That stretch is about 19 kilometers (about 13 miles) and will cost $16.4 million. The section from Savegre to Dominical is 22.6 kilometers (about 14 miles) and the responsibility of Constructora Solís-Sánchez Carvajal. The contract is for $15.5 million. In both sections the workers will install a 30-centimeter (12-inch) sub base, a 20-centimeter (eight-inch) base and a 13-centimeter (5.1-inch) road surface. |
The Costanera Sur was one of those
projects that was much talked about
and promised by every administration for the last 30 years because of
the obvious beneficial impact on the area along the central Pacific
coast. When the road is finished, trucks can easily go north and south along the coast without traveling on the Interamerican highway that goes through San José and Cartago. That is possible now but the condition of the road makes travel risky in bad weather. Trucks from the north and south also will be able to avoid crossing the central mountains twice to go from one border to the other. The Meco-Santa Fe contract has a deadline of eight months. The Solís-Sánchez Carvajal has a 10-month deadline, according to the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes. However, there are provisions for extensions if bad weather intervenes. Most of the bridges on the road also are expected to be finished by the middle of the year. The span at Parrita, a $3.7 million job will have a cycle path and a pedestrian walkway. A bridge over the Río Naranjo is valued at $2.8 million. Bridges at Hatillo Viejo and Hatillo Nuevo were begun in May. These are on the Costanera Sur route. In addition, Jan. 5 work began to rebuild and widen a bridge over the Río Savegre. |
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Polls show optimism in U.S.
and tarnished image overseas
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By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
A poll published Sunday in The New York Times newspaper indicates that Americans have high hopes for and high confidence in president-elect Barack Obama. Meanwhile, a separate poll said that citizens in 18 or 21 countries do not view the United States favorably. Some 79 percent of those polled said they are optimistic about the next four years under Obama. And 61 percent of the 1,100 Americans surveyed this month said they think the United States will be better off five years from now. But, most Americans said they do not expect to see real progress for at least two years. A separate poll published Sunday indicates that citizens in 18 of 21 countries do not view the United States favorably, mostly because of U.S. policies towards human rights, citizen rights, and peace and cooperation. That online poll of 22,000 people was conducted in late |
November for
Reuters news agency by the international market research company Ipsos
Global Public Affairs. It shows that only India, Poland and the United States itself had majorities that gave the U.S. favorable ratings. Ipsos polled people in Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, Poland, Russia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the United States. Last week, President George Bush strongly disagreed with a reporter's assertion that the reputation of the U.S. had been tarnished overseas. Bush countered that America's reputation might have been damaged only among some of the so-called "elite." An Ipsos spokesman, Clifford Young, said the poll's results suggest that Obama's administration will need to address U.S. policies on human rights and peace and cooperation, if it wants to improve U.S. standing overseas. |
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Bush issues proclamation
putting revised trade treaty with Perú into force
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By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
U.S. President George Bush has issued a proclamation putting into effect a free trade agreement with Perú. U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab said Friday the proclamation marks an important milestone in the relationship between the U.S. and Peru. The agreement gives Perú permanent, duty-free access to the U.S. In return, Perú will eliminate duties on most U.S. industrial and consumer products. |
The pact was initially approved
after discussions between President
Bush and Peruvian President Alan Garcia. Democrats in Congress forced U.S. officials to reopen negotiations and add stronger labor and environmental provisions. Peru's Congress this week passed modifications to earlier legislation to conform with the trade pact. The agreement will take effect on the first of February. |
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featured by rights group Special to A.M. Costa Rica
The Human Rights Foundation published a report Friday detailing the arrest and torture of Jose Humberto Quintero, a lieutenant colonel of the Venezuelan National Guard. Quintero was detained in January 2005, by the Venezuelan government for capturing terrorist leader Ricardo Gonzalez, popularly known as Rodrigo Granda, of the Furezas Armadas Revolucionarias de Colombia. Granda, known as the terrorist group's foreign minister, has ties to Costa Rica. He later was released by the Colombian government as part of an effort to conduct an exchange of prisoners. “The case of Humberto Quintero exemplifies numerous violations of human rights, including violations of international law, specifically, provisions that prohibit arbitrary detention and the use of torture, inhumane, and other degrading treatment," said Sarah Wasserman of the foundation. "Colonel Quintero’s imprisonment also appears to be politically motivated, as his arrest came at a time of heightened tensions between the governments of Colombia and Venezuela over Granda’s capture.” As commander of the anti-extortion and kidnapping unit, Quintero led successful counterterrorism operations. The Venezuelan government charged him with high treason, abuse of authority, violation of military decorum, and illegitimate deprivation of liberty for capturing Granda in December of 2004, and delivering him to the Colombian authorities in return for a cash payment. Other sources are less kind to Quintero and call him crooked or corrupt for taking money and conducting a rogue operation. Quintero was arrested, taken to a dungeon at the military intelligence division, and tortured by members of Venezuela’s military intelligence and civilian police for seven days. At the time, Granda lived in Venezuela under the protection of the Venezuelan government. Granda was on the International Police Agency's list of wanted guerrilla members in Colombia. The Paraguayan government claims that in September 2004, while he was in Venezuela, Granda planned the kidnapping and eventual murder of Cecilia Cubas, daughter of former Paraguayan president Raúl Cubas. An arrest order for Granda from a Paraguayan court is still outstanding. During an interview with a foundation employee inside Ramo Verde prison, Quintero said that he was subjected to asphyxiation, beatings, and threats to kidnap his wife and daughter and hand them over to the the Fuerzas Armadas, said the foundation. According to Quintero, the reason for his torture was three fold: to coerce him to accept his alleged responsibility for Granda’s capture; to force a confession that he had received a significant monetary reward for the capture; and to make him declare that members of the Colombian and U.S. Special Forces had been part of the operation, the foundation said. |
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