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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
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Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for more details |
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Second news page | |
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San
José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 3, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 66
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Bureaucratic
slowness upsets
the nation's food producers By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Costa Rica's food industry is asking President Laura Chinchilla to intervene and fix the bureaucratic delay that hampers their ability to register products for sale. The Cámara Costarricense de la Industria Alimentaria sent a letter to Ms. Chinchilla to alert her to these common dilemmas faced by food companies every day. The chamber's president, José Manuel Hernando, said that business owners have been awaiting more efficient systems that can reduce costs and time. He noted that the owners told the organization that Costa Rica has the available technologies to speed up these simple processes, yet they are being withheld from the small businesses. “They told us results of the current system tend to deteriorate with consequential damage to production and commercial activity,” said Hernando in the letter. “They have to wait numerous months to conduct a simple renovation.” For the past few years, the Cámara has begged the government to take action in regard to modernizing the food industry's infrastructure. Group leaders said they had expected there would have been more progress made by now, but instead say that registration procedures that should take mere minutes continue to get bogged down for more than two months at a time. Business practitioners complain that mounting disadvantages are piled against them as the elongated process freezes their ability to trade and cripples export opportunities. Hernando echoed these concerns over competition. He said that food companies from other nations will continue to enjoy more international trade success than the domestic businesses because they are not subjected to these same launch delays. “Given the situation and the deterioration of this service industry, we are asking for a strategy to analyze why this problem hasn't been resolved,” Hernando said. “At the same time we can evaluate alternative solutions, which the food industry can use for its benefit.” Registration is required for all new products and for existing products that have been changed in some way. Also imported products also must be registered before they can be sold. Election Sunday will provide some advantages to expats By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The runoff presidential election is Sunday and there are a few benefits for expats. The toll booths will not be operating on highways managed by the government. These include the Bernardo Soto, General Cañas, Florencio del Castillo and Braulio Carrillo. The idea is to make traveling to the voting locations easier. Although many voters live near the polls, some who may have moved or never changed their location have to travel some distances. At least in San José there will be no prohibition on buying and consuming alcohol. Under the new alcohol law, each canton can make a decision of how these traditional rules are enforced. Other cantons will prohibit sales and consumption. The tourism industry has long called for flexibility in the rule during election day and also Semana Santa. The usually general election day in Costa Rica, the first Sunday in February, also happens to be the date for the annual U.S. football Super Bowl. That has caused trouble in the past. However, expats will find few activities Sunday. The Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones forbids organized activities like professional soccer games and similar because they may distract voters. In addition, the valley rail line will not be running its tourism service to Cartago and Heredia Sunday. Many Costa Ricans owe their soul to credit card firms By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Just like the central government, average Costa Ricans continue to spend more than they bring in. The economics ministry computed that the country's credit card debt increased 21 percent in the last 19 months. That is a bit more than 1 percent a month. The Ministerio de Economía, Industria y Comercio said that the increase was about 4 billion colons a month. The credit card debt for the country was estimated to be 787.5 trillion colons as of Jan. 31. That is about $1.5 trillion. In addition to the debt, Costa Rica does not have anti-usury laws, so some banks are charging more than 50 percent interest a year. The ministry said that the credit card debt went up 4.8 percent just since October. There are about 1.7 million individual credit cards in use. In the last four years it has been doing the study, the ministry said that the number of credit cards has increased 30.8 percent. First group of certifications ready for Esencial Costa Rica By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Not just any firm can use the new trademark, Esencial Costa Rica. The firms that seek this designation must first be vetted by the Instituto de Normas Técnicas de Costa Rica. The institute, a private firm, conducts the evaluation on behalf of the Promotora de Comercio Exterior, which holds the trademark. The promotions firm is trying to develop the trademark as something that will make Costa Rica recognizable to foreigners. The idea is to have exporters place the trademark on boxes of their product and for others to use it in their advertising and handout material. Tourism operations that seek the designation must already have obtained a certificate of sustainability, according to the rules set down by the promotions agency. The first 23 firms that have been approved to use this trademark will be awarded their certification in a ceremony Friday at 8:30 a.m. Although the institute does the study, the certification comes from the Ente Costarricense de Acreditación, another public agency. Boat inspections planned for craft using Lake Arenal By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Boat owners at Lake Arenal will be able to obtain a navigability certificate starting Tuesday. Representatives of the Dirección de Navegación y Seguridad del Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes will be in the area through Thursday. Boats must be well painted, and bear the registration number and the national flag on the hull, the ministry said. There is a fee for inspection depending on the length of the vessel. The ministry also says that appropriate safety devices need to be installed and that last year's certificate needs to be presented. More information is available at the Capitanía de Puerto de Los Chiles at 2471-1791 or from the Dirección de Navegación y Seguridad in San José, at 2233-5022.
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by A.M. Costa Rica.com Ltda. 2014 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
A.M. Costa Rica Third News Page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 3, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 66 | |
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| Golfito fishing boat captain caught with a sack of illegal
shark fins |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Members of the Servicio Nacional de Guardacostas have detained a fishing boat captain in Golfito after they said they found a 36-kilo sack of 153 shark fins on his boat, the "Emily G." Shark finning has been declared illegal by President Laura Chinchilla. The coast guard said the boat was boarded when it docked in the southern Costa Rica port. An inspection turned up the shark fins among fish that had been taken legally, the agency said. Félix Villalobos of the Golfito coast guard station estimated that the number of fins required the capture and killing of about 40 sharks, said the Ministerio de Gobernación, Policía y Seguridad Pública. The Sunday night action was one of three against illegal fishing, said the agency. Another patrol boat discovered about 700 meters of illegal nets in the Pacific off Punta Burica. And Monday the coast guards located a commercial fishing boat near Golfito that was using live bait, another illegal practice, the agency said. |
 Ministerio de Gobernación,
Policía y Seguridad Pública photo
These are the shark fins
discovered on the Golfito fishing boat. |
| Gasoline prices will follow the U.S. dollar and go higher
shortly |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The U.S. dollar has gotten stronger, so now the gasoline prices will follow. The Autoridad Reguladora de Servicios Públicos said Wednesday that super gasoline will increase 45 colons, plus will go up 36 colons and diesel will increase 25 colons. In terms of the U.S. dollar, the increases mean that a gallon of super will cost $5.30, some 32 U.S. cents higher than the previous price. Plus will be $5.07 a gallon, up 25 U.S. cents, and diesel will be $4.73 a gallon. |
The new prices in
colons will be 756 colons for a liter of super, 723 for plus and 675
colons for diesel. The U.S. dollar has increased about 50 colons since Feb. 1. Since petroleum is an imported product, the price must be settled in dollars. Another increase is coming because the Autoridad used an exchange rate of about 530 colons to the dollar, but the rate continues to favor the U.S. currency more. These rates will go into effect when they are published in the La Gaceta official newspaper. The new prices mean that a 20-gallon fill up will cost the equivalent of $106. |
| Study predicts massive generational change in public sector
jobs |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
An unusual study by the agronomy professional organization shows that 45 percent of the persons involved in the public sector of that field will be eligible for retirement within four years. The agencies include the agricultural ministry, the fishing institute and a host of others known mostly by their initials. The Colegio de Ingenieros Agrónomos said that the number was |
about 1,500
persons. Nearly 500 of these persons are highly specialized, said the
study. Leaders of the professional organization said they were alarmed and wanted to make sure that the government posts are filled. The impact of the generational change will be significant and might help reduce the 20 percent unemployment among younger individuals in the field now, they said. |
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| You need to see Costa Rican tourism information HERE! |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page | |||||
| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 3, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 66 | |||||
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| Extreme Amazon weather events studied as clues to warmer future | |
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By
the Virginia Polytechnic Institute
and State University news service Three extreme weather events in the Amazon Basin in the last decade are giving scientists an opportunity to make observations that will allow them to predict the impacts of climate change and deforestation on some of the most important ecological processes and ecosystem services of the Amazon River wetlands. Scientists from Virginia Tech, the Woods Hole Research Center, and the University of California Santa Barbara are collaborating with Brazilian scientists to explore the ecosystem consequences of the extreme droughts of 2005 and 2010 and the extreme flood of 2009. “The research fills an important gap in our understanding of the vulnerability of tropical river-forest systems to changes in climate and land cover,” said the project’s leader, Leandro Castello, assistant professor of fish and wildlife conservation in Virginia Tech’s College of Natural Resources and Environment. The huge study area encompasses 1.7 million square miles, the equivalent of half of the continental United States. In addition to historical records and ground observations, the researchers will use newly available Earth System Data Records from NASA, satellite images of the Amazon and its tributaries over the complete high- and low-water cycles. NASA is funding the study with a $1.53 million grant shared among the three agencies. “Amazon floodplains and river channels — maintained by seasonal floods — promote nutrient cycling and high biological production, and support diverse biological communities as well as human populations with one of the highest per capita rates of fish consumption,” said Castello. The researchers will look at how the natural seasonality of river levels influences aquatic and terrestrial grasses, fisheries, and forest productivity in the flood plains, and how extreme events such as floods and droughts may disturb this cycle. “We are confident that deforestation and climate change will, in the future, lead to more frequent and severe floods and droughts,” said Michael Coe, a senior scientist at the Woods Hole Research Center. “It is important that we understand how the Amazon River and ecosystem services such as fisheries are affected so that we can devise mitigation strategies.” Amazonian grasses, sometimes called macrophytes, convert atmospheric carbon to plant biomass, which is then processed by aquatic microorganisms upon decomposition. “Terrestrial grasses grow during the short window when water levels are low, sequestering some carbon, and then die when the floods arrive, releasing the carbon into the aquatic system,” said Thiago Silva, an assistant professor of geography at São Paulo State University in Rio Claro, Brazil. “They are followed by aquatic grasses that need to grow extremely fast to surpass the rising floods and then die off during the receding-water period.” “Although most of the macrophyte carbon is released back to the atmosphere in the same form that it is assimilated, carbon dioxide, some of it is actually exported to the ocean as dissolved carbon or released to the atmosphere as methane, a gas that has a warming potential 20 times larger than carbon dioxide,” said John Melack, a professor at the University of California Santa Barbara. |
 Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University photo
Father and son return after a
successful day fishing on an Amazon tributary. The local diet is heavy
with fish.Researchers will measure plant growth and gas exchange, and use photographs from the field and satellites. Two other Amazon resources, fisheries and forests, are important to the livelihood of the people of the region. “We will combine water level, fishing effort, and fish life-history traits to understand the impact of droughts and floods on fishery yields,” said Castello, whose specialty is Amazon fisheries. “Floods in the Amazon are almost a blessing because in some years they can almost double the amount of fish in the river that is available for fishermen and society.” The fishery yields data include approximately 90,000 annual interview records of fisheries activities on the number of fishermen, time spent fishing, characteristics of fishing boats and gear used, and weight of the catch for 40 species. The hydrological data include daily water level measurements recorded in the Madeira, Purus, and Amazonas-Solimões rivers. There are actually three types of forests in the Amazon, upland forests and two types of floodplain forests — those enriched by rising waters, called whitewater river forests, and nutrient-poor blackwater river forests. The researchers will examine the potential impact of future climate scenarios on the extent and productivity of floodplain forests. For example, extreme droughts may reduce productivity due to water stress and increases in the frequency and severity of forest fires. Prolonged periods of inundation, on the other hand, may decrease productivity or increase mortality due to water logging stress. “We will evaluate these responses for the first time at a regional scale using remotely sensed indicators of vegetation condition and fire-induced tree mortality to measure the response of floodplain forests to inter-annual flood variability and extreme climate events,” said Marcia Macedo, a research associate at the Woods Hole Research Center. Researchers will measure tree litter dry weight, depth of flooding, tree height and diameter, and stand density. They will also use photographs and satellite images. Previous research has focused on Amazon upland forests and the potential impacts of deforestation, fire, and drought. The research team will compare new greenhouse gas simulations to previous simulations. “Our research informs large river ecology globally because natural flowing rivers like the Amazon are rare these days, and most research to date, being done in North America and Europe, has focused on degraded systems,” Castello said. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
| The contents of this page and this Web site are copyrighted by A.M. Costa Rica.com Ltda. 2014 and may not be reproduced anywhere without permission. Abstracts and fair use are permitted. Check HERE for details | ||||||
| A.M. Costa Rica's Fifth news page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 3, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 66 | |||||
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 U.S. Geological Survey
graphic
This is the coast of Chile with
past epicenters marked.Click HERE for larger image Subduction
reported as cause
for Tuesday's quake in Chile By
the U.S. Geological Survey news staff
The Tuesday 8.2 magnitude earthquake in northern Chile occurred as the result of thrust faulting at shallow depths near the Chilean coast. The location and mechanism of the earthquake are consistent with slip on the primary plate boundary interface, or megathrust, between the Nazca and South America plates. At the latitude of the earthquake, the Nazca plate subducts eastward beneath the South America plate at a rate of 65 millimeters a year. Subduction along the Peru-Chile Trench to the west of Chile has led to uplift of the Andes mountain range and has produced some of the largest earthquakes in the world, including the 2010 8.8 magnitude earthquake in central Chile, and the largest earthquake on record, the 1960 9.5 magnitude earthquake in southern Chile. The Tuesday earthquake occurred in a region of historic seismic inactivity, termed the northern Chile or Iquique seismic gap. Historical records indicate a magnitude 8.8 earthquake occurred within the Iquique gap in 1877, which was preceded immediately to the north by a magnitude 8.8 earthquake in 1868. A recent increase in seismicity rates has occurred in this vicinity. A magnitude 6.7 earthquake with similar faulting mechanism occurred March 16 and was followed by 60-plus earthquakes of magnitude 4.0 or more and 26 earthquakes of 5.0 or more. The March 16 earthquake was also followed by three 6.2 magnitude events on March 17, March 22, and March 23. The spatial distribution of seismicity following the March 16 event migrated spatially to the north through time, starting near 20 degrees south and moving to about 19.5 degrees south. The initial location of the Tuesday earthquake places the event near the northern end of this seismic sequence. The South American arc extends over 7,000 kms, from the Chilean margin triple junction offshore of southern Chile to its intersection with the Panamá fracture zone, offshore of the southern coast of Panama in Central America. It marks the plate boundary between the subducting Nazca plate and the South America plate, where the oceanic crust and lithosphere of the Nazca plate begin their descent into the mantle beneath South America. The convergence associated with this subduction process is responsible for the uplift of the Andes Mountains, and for the active volcanic chain present along much of this deformation front. Relative to a fixed South America plate, the Nazca plate moves slightly north of eastwards at a rate varying from approximately 80 millimeters a year in the south to approximately 65 millimeters a year in the north. Although the rate of subduction varies little along the entire arc, there are complex changes in the geologic processes along the subduction zone that dramatically influence volcanic activity, crustal deformation, earthquake generation and occurrence all along the western edge of South America. Most of the large earthquakes in South America are constrained to shallow depths of 0 to 70 kms resulting from both crustal and interplate deformation. Crustal earthquakes result from deformation and mountain building in the overriding South America plate and generate earthquakes as deep as approximately 50 kms. Interplate earthquakes occur due to slip along the dipping interface between the Nazca and the South American plates. Interplate earthquakes in this region are frequent and often large, and occur between the depths of approximately 10 and 60 kms. Since 1900, numerous magnitude 8 or larger earthquakes have occurred on this subduction zone interface that were followed by devastating tsunamis, including the 1960 9.5 magnitude earthquake in southern Chile, the largest instrumentally recorded earthquake in the world. Large intermediate-depth earthquakes (those occurring between depths of approximately 70 and 300 kms.) are relatively limited in size and spatial extent in South America, and occur within the Nazca plate as a result of internal deformation within the subducting plate. These earthquakes generally cluster beneath northern Chile and southwestern Bolivia, and to a lesser extent beneath northern Peru and southern Ecuador, with depths between 110 and 130 kms. Most of these earthquakes occur adjacent to the bend in the coastline between Peru and Chile. The most recent large intermediate-depth earthquake in this region was the 2005 magnitude 7.8 Tarapaca, Chile, event. Earthquakes can also be generated to depths greater than 600 kms. as a result of continued internal deformation of the subducting Nazca plate. Deep-focus earthquakes in South America are not observed from a depth range of approximately 300 to 500 kms. Instead, deep earthquakes in this region occur at depths of 500 to 650 kms. and are concentrated into two zones: one that runs beneath the Peru-Brazil border and another that extends from central Bolivia to central Argentina. These earthquakes generally do not exhibit large magnitudes. An exception to this was the 1994 Bolivian earthquake in northwestern Bolivia. This magnitude 8.2 earthquake occurred at a depth of 631 kms., which was until recently the largest deep-focus earthquake instrumentally recorded and was felt widely throughout South and North America. Subduction of the Nazca plate is geometrically complex and impacts the geology and seismicity of the western edge of South America. The intermediate-depth regions of the subducting Nazca plate can be segmented into five sections based on their angle of subduction beneath the South America plate. Three segments are characterized by steeply dipping subduction, the other two by near-horizontal subduction. The Nazca plate beneath northern Ecuador, southern Peru to northern Chile, and southern Chile descend into the mantle at angles of 25 to 30 degrees. In contrast, the slab beneath southern Ecuador to central Peru, and under central Chile, is subducting at a shallow angle of approximately 10 degrees or less. In these regions of flat-slab subduction, the Nazca plate moves horizontally for several hundred kilometers before continuing its descent into the mantle, and is shadowed by an extended zone of crustal seismicity in the overlying South America plate. Although the South America plate exhibits a chain of active volcanism resulting from the subduction and partial melting of the Nazca oceanic lithosphere along most of the arc, these regions of inferred shallow subduction correlate with an absence of volcanic activity. Three persons, gunman die in new Fort Hood shooting By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
U.S. law enforcement officials say a gunman opened fire at the Fort Hood military base in central Texas Wednesday, killing at least three people before taking his own life. As many as 14 others were wounded. President Barack Obama, speaking from Chicago, offered condolences, saying "we're heartbroken that this might have happened again." He referred to the wounded and their families as those who have sacrificed so much for freedom, and said the situation at the base is fluid. Officials at the huge base confirmed Wednesday's mayhem after gunfire was first reported on social media. Shortly after the first reports of gunfire, television footage showed helicopters overhead as military police searched the base. Nearby civilian police agencies searched vehicles and helped seal the perimeter of the base, located south of the city of Waco. The base remained on lockdown hours later, as military police and other law enforcement combed the heavily guarded facility. Fort Hood was the scene of a mass shooting spree in 2009. Thirteen people were killed and more than 30 others wounded when a Muslim Army psychiatrist opened fire on troops headed to Afghanistan. After that shooting, the Pentagon ordered tightened security at all U.S. bases. U.S. High Court ruling gives wealthy bigger role in politics By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday issued a ruling that further loosens restrictions on campaign contribution limits, possibly opening the way for even greater influence by wealthy donors. By a vote of 5-4, the conservative majority on the Supreme Court struck down overall limits on campaign contributions for individual donors who wish to support federal candidates, political parties and political action committees. The previous overall limit for any one donor during a two-year election cycle was $123,200. The high court decision opens the way for wealthy donors to contribute millions of dollars to various campaigns and political parties, an influence that has grown since another sweeping campaign finance decision by the Supreme Court in 2010. Wednesday’s ruling does not do away with current restrictions on contributions to individual candidates, which remain set at $2,600 per candidate per election cycle. The ruling got a favorable reaction from Republicans, including National Committee Chairman Reince Priebus, who spoke to reporters in a conference call. “The First Amendment applies to all of us. People should have the right to give their money and exercise their free speech to as many candidates and as many political committees and PACs as they want to," said Priebus. referring to political action committees. Democrats blasted the narrow decision as a defeat for the average voter and a victory for wealthy donors looking to have undue influence on U.S. elections. Sen. Charles Schumer, a Democrat of New York, was critical of the conservative majority on the Supreme Court. “They wish to dismantle all limits on giving, piece by piece, until we are back to the days of the robber barons when anyone or anything could give unlimited money, undisclosed, and make our political system seem so rigged that everyone will lose interest in our democracy," said Schumer. The decision also drew negative reviews from various groups that support strengthening campaign finance laws to guard against political corruption. Marge Baker is with People For the American Way in Washington. She says this latest high court ruling could fire up grass roots support for tougher laws and restrictions to guard against buying influence with political candidates. “There is a movement building around the country calling for addressing the huge money in politics problem that we have and that movement is growing every day," said Ms. Baker. But conservative Republicans in Congress are likely to block any attempt in the near future to tighten campaign finance laws. Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell is a longtime critic of campaign finance reform. He equates giving political contributions to the free speech guarantee in the U.S. Constitution. “There are many wealthy Americans who feel deeply about the country, who are committed to one side or the other, who are trying to have an impact on the country, as many on the left as on the right," said McConnell. McConnell was a supporter of the controversial Supreme Court decision four years ago known as Citizens United that removed a number of restrictions on corporations and labor unions that wish to spend money on campaign advocacy as long as it is independent of specific candidates. Outside political groups and individual wealthy donors have played a bigger role in recent national elections, and in some cases have become as influential as the two main political parties in terms of fundraising. Polls show Americans are concerned about the growing influence of wealthy campaign donors, but the issue ranks low on the list of priorities for most voters. This latest high court ruling continues to reverse a trend that began in the 1970s when Congress enacted stricter campaign finance laws in the wake of the Watergate political scandal that drove then-president Richard Nixon from office. Senate advances jobless bill, but House unlikely to do so By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The U.S. Senate has advanced a bill to restart federal jobless benefits that expired late last year for the long-term unemployed. Final approval is expected by week’s end in the Democrat-controlled chamber, but the bill may not get a vote in the Republican-led House of Representatives. Normally, unemployed Americans are entitled to six months of modest, government-provided income to help them and their families cover basic needs until a job is secured. But economic conditions are far from normal, according to Sen. Jeff Merkley, a Democrat who said millions of Americans need more time to find work and extended unemployment benefits in the meantime. “They are hoping to make their payment on their light bill. They are hoping to make their rent payment or their mortgage payment. And savings run thin. And that is why, during periods of high unemployment, we have created a longer unemployment insurance bridge to get them to that next job,” Merkley said. Jobless benefits have been extended repeatedly since the 2008 financial crisis. But Congress allowed the extension to expire in December, causing millions to lose compensation. Many would get retroactive benefits if the Senate bill became law. Wednesday, the legislation cleared a procedural hurdle when six Republicans voted with a unified Democratic caucus to end debate and proceed to a final vote. But most Republicans voted no. Sen. John Cornyn said government benefits must be limited in duration. “When the government continues to pay unemployment benefits for people who are out of work, human nature is such that people are disincentivized to go back to work and look for work,” he said. Other Republicans objected to majority Democrats’ refusal to consider amendments to the bill. Sen. John Barrasso cast a no vote after his proposal to liberalize U.S. natural gas exports was blocked. “What we are proposing is to be able to export liquefied natural gas to our European allies, our NATO allies, and to Ukraine. Russia is using natural gas as a political weapon. And it is up to us, not just to get Americans back to work, but to help undercut the ability of Russia to hold the people of Ukraine hostage,” Barrasso stated. But final Senate passage of the bill is all but assured. Not so in the House of Representatives, where Speaker John Boehner said Democrats are misguidedly focused on extending jobless benefits rather than boosting slow-growth economy that is not generating enough employment. America’s economic performance will be a top issue in midterm elections in November, when one-third of the Senate and all House seats will be contested. Turkey's high court vetoes prime minister's censorship By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Rebuffing his government's efforts to censor parts of the Internet, Turkey's highest court Wednesday rejected Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan's block of Twitter, saying it violates freedom of expression and individual rights. The ruling comes in one of two legal challenges to the government's ban on certain social media sites. In a binding decision, the constitutional court ordered the government to do what's necessary to lift the ban. It's not yet clear how, or if, the Erdogan government will respond. With his broad, some say authoritarian, attempts to block social media, Erdogan has embarked on a bold but difficult strategy that is causing alarm worldwide among Internet freedom activists. "Erdogan’s strategy is to demonize social media," says cyber law scholar Zeynep Tufekci. "It is a strategy of placing social media outside the sacred sphere, as a disruption of family, as a threat to unity, as an outside blade tearing at the fabric of society." Added Doug Madory of the web security firm Renesys: "They are quite serious about censoring the Internet and are willing to go to lengths to do so." Both Twitter and Google, which owns YouTube, have protested Istanbul's actions. State Department spokesperson Marie Harf called Turkey's actions an encroachment on free speech, saying the U.S. will "continue to urge the Turkish government to unblock its citizens' access now to YouTube, but also still to Twitter." Erdogan's antipathy to the Internet has been brewing for years. "There is now a scourge that is called Twitter," he told a 2013 rally. "To me, social media is the worst menace to society!" He has called Facebook "immoral," YouTube "a devouring force," and has promised to eradicate Twitter. And last month, in the lead-up to local elections, Erdogan attempted to make good on that promise by banning Twitter. Promising to wipe out the micro-blogging site, Turkish telecom officials - at Erdogan's orders - tried to simply block access to the site. However, within hours Twitter users fought back, breaking through the ban by sending SMS messages, and later using Google's free Domain Name System, or DNS for short. DNS is the system that converts recognizable Web site domains, or names like twitter.com, into the specific Internet address. Twitter activists quickly spread the word that by using Google's free DNS database of 8.8.8.8, users could easily workaround Turkey's block. Nearly one week after the clumsy Twitter block, the Erdogan government announced a ban on YouTube, and strengthened the blocks for both sites. Then the Erdogan government took it one step further. In what analysts see as an unprecedented step for a government, it redirected web site searches accessed through Google to its own sites. "We have received several credible reports and confirmed with our own research that Google’s Domain Name System service has been intercepted by most Turkish ISPs," Google software engineer Steve Carstensen posted on the company's blog, referring to internet service providers. Earl Zmijewky with Renesys liken that to hijacking Google's Internet address book. "Now when Turkish users seemingly ask a Google DNS server for YouTube’s address," Zmijewsky wrote on the Renesys blog, "they get the IP address of a Turkish government site (195.175.254.2)." What that means, in short, is that Turkish Internet users presently cannot necessarily trust that any Web site they are accessing, either via domain name or DNS, is in fact the actual Web site. That's because Turkey's telecommunications providers have apparently intentionally scrambled the Internet's phone book of domain listings, routing traffic around sites unpopular with the government. "DNS tampering is done in a number of places, but this particular technique has not been used before on a national scale," said Renesys' Madory. "China, for example, also does DNS tampering, but they do it by listening for DNS queries and then sending a forged bogus response to the client before the legitimate response arrives," Madory said. "They aren't hijacking IP address space to do it." For the moment, it doesn't appear that Turkey has implemented any tougher blocks than what's already in place. Still, Internet free-speech activists continue sounding the alarm. And while those blocks are likely to hold for a while, Jillian York, the Electronic Frontier Foundation's director of international freedom of expression, said there are still plenty of ways to evade Turkey's censorship. "Existing Turkish Twitter users can send Tweets using SMS," she says. "Avea and Vodafone users should text START to 2444. Turkcell users can text START to 2555. Tor can also be used to bypass censorship." Analyst Madory also recommends using the anonymizing program Tor, or something called a Virtual Private Network, or VPN. Internet legal scholar Ms. Tufekci said its likely both the government will keep trying to vilify and block social media, and that Turkish Internet activists will continue busting holes through the blocks. "Erdogan likely still has enough supporters to win elections, but to continue to win, he needs to keep them off social media," she said. "His game is to scare them about all that comes from social media. He knows they’ll hear of the corruption tapes. "But they are now associated with the same source that maligns housewives as porn-stars," she said. Search results still zero after effort of three weeks By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The search continued Wednesday over a vast expanse of the Indian Ocean for any debris from a Malaysia Airlines jetliner which has been missing for more than three weeks. Each day becomes more critical because the missing plane’s black box, which might contain the key to understanding what happened, has an expected battery life of about 30 days. The ongoing search in remote waters, 1,800 kilometers west of Australia, has yet to yield any trace of the Malaysia Airlines plane. Distraught relatives of the Chinese passengers of Flight 370 met with Malaysian officials at a hotel near Kuala Lumpur. The event was simulcast to relatives in Beijing. Government authorities in Kuala Lumpur have faced criticism, especially from Chinese relatives, about the lack of transparency in releasing information about the flight, missing since March 8. The director general of the Malaysian Civil Aviation Department, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, says authorities answered all of the questions from the relatives who did not express any hostility. "No, they are not hostile. Everybody, they conducted themselves very well in the meeting and we had a very good question and answer time," he said. In Beijing, relatives also met with Malaysian officials and watched the briefing in Kuala Lumpur on a private simulcast. Steve Wang, whose mother was on board, said the meeting with Malaysian officials provided little clarity about what happened. "We're still confused about why they could give such a conclusion...we'll still wait for the truth," Wang said. Malaysia Airlines flight 370 was carrying 239 passengers, bound for Beijing. Two thirds of them were Chinese. A multinational search for any traces of the plane continues in the southern Indian Ocean, far off Australia's west coast, encompassing about 220,000 square kilometers. Malaysia's top police official tells reporters the real cause of the airliner's disappearance may never be known, but more time is needed for the investigation. Khalid Abu Bakar, the police inspector general, says nothing has been ruled out, including mechanical error. He says all of the passengers have been cleared of suspicion but the investigation of the pilots and crew members continues amid the open question of whether the plane was hijacked or there was sabotage. However, authorities stress no evidence has emerged suggesting a motive by either of the pilots who were well-regarded by their peers. The investigator adds that every piece of cargo that was loaded onto the flight is also being investigated. Even the several tons of mangosteens were traced from the orchard they were grown, to who plucked, packed and shipped the fruits and then loaded them on the plane. Modern television series seen as rival to Hollywood films By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
American television series have evolved to a point where their original stories, well-crafted dialogue and talented casts often trump formulaic Hollywood films. And there is a wide selection to satisfy every taste. Consider the new series "Turn," the latest from AMC Studios. Based on historical facts about American revolutionaries during the War of Independence, the drama flows like a modern-day espionage film in this character-driven TV series. Today, most of the young actors in the series are largely unknown. Tomorrow, they could be household names. Heather Lind plays Anna Strong, a historical figure from the late 18th century, who spies on the British. “It surprised me and amazed me how specific and hardworking people in TV are right now,” Ms. Lind said, “and with material that every episode is like doing a movie." Seth Numrich, who plays Ben Tallmadge, another revolutionary, says the plethora of quality series has created many opportunities for actors like him. “All the actors that I know are really excited about the types of characters and story lines that are happening on television,” Numrich said. It all started with "The Sopranos." The 1990s gangster drama about the life of New Jersey Italian-American mobster Tony Soprano took risks by creating a gritty, violent show with complex anti-heroes. The Sopranos paved the way for unconventional storytelling and many still hail the show as the greatest TV series ever. Others root for current favorites such as Frank Darabond’s "The Walking Dead." The Oscar-nominated filmmaker says, gore and zombies aside, the show became popular because of its depth and unique perspective about the struggle to stay human in a zombie-infested world. Darabond says the walking dead are not really the dead but the living. Darabond also credits the studio for developing the series. Once AMC came on board, the pilot and script were revamped and the director was asked to run the series like one of his acclaimed films. "Breaking Bad" is another powerful character drama that many consider one of television’s finest. The award-winning show features Walter White, a chemistry teacher with stage-three cancer who becomes a crystal meth kingpin to fund his treatment. Walter is a complex figure that viewers fall in love with. These are just a few of the layered stories about the human condition on the small screen. Many series run for years, allowing viewers to bond with the characters, something a film cannot effectively do in 90 minutes. After such huge TV hits, it is not surprising that the cast and crew of the historical series "Turn" are ebullient that AMC studios added them to its fold. Executive Producer Barry Josephson, a fan of "The Walking Dead" and "Breaking Bad," is hopeful "Turn" can be added to AMC’s successful mix. |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 3, 2014, Vol. 14, No. 66 | |||||||||
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Rights Foundation
deplores repression in Venezuela Special
to A.M. Costa Rica
The Human Rights Foundation said Wednesday that it strongly condemns the ongoing crackdown on elected public officials in Venezuela. Following the arbitrary detention and prosecution of opposition leader Leopoldo López in February, opposition mayors Daniel Ceballos and Vicenzo Scarano were removed from office and sentenced to prison, while opposition assemblywoman Maria Corina Machado was dismissed from the National Assembly, the foundation noted. The Venezuelan regime, which has been using police, military, and paramilitary forces to repress massive student protests, is cracking down on these three officials with charges of incitement and other vague, politically-motivated allegations related to the protests, it added. “The 49.12 percent of Venezuelans who voted against Maduro in the last presidential election are now effectively disenfranchised because the government rules by decree, deprives their elected representatives of any meaningful participation in the country’s legislative body and local governments, and stigmatizes opposition leaders as fascists, nazis, and terrorists for standing against the authoritarian status quo,” said Garry Kasparov, foundation chairman. “Not only is half of the country prevented from participating in their own political institutions, but their voices have been silenced following the shutdown of all independent TV networks in the country. Meanwhile, the long list of individuals who have been killed, detained, and tortured continues to grow. Judges are arresting innocent people to keep their jobs, armed paramilitary colectivos are murdering protestors under presidential orders broadcast on mandatory national television, and authorities like the attorney general and the ombudswoman are bending over backward to defend the government against documented accusations of torture,” said Kasparov. March 13, Maduro threatened Venezuela’s mayors, saying that they would face serious consequences if they did not clear the barricades set up by protestors on roads in their municipalities. March 19, the mayor of the municipality of San Diego in Carabobo state, Enzo Scarano, who was elected in December with 75.24 percent of the vote, was removed from office and sentenced to 10 months and 15 days in jail for allegedly committing the crime of libel (desacato) for disobeying a ruling by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice that instructed him to “prevent the placing of obstacles on public roads that block, hinder, or alter the free passage of people and vehicles,” said the foundation. March 25, Mayor Daniel Ceballos, who won 67.67 percent of the vote in the municipal elections Dec. 8, was removed from office and sentenced to 12 months in prison for the same crime, the foundation added. Ceballos is also facing charges of civil rebellion and unlawful assembly. Ceballos was the mayor of San Cristobal in the state of Táchira, a municipality at the epicenter of the protests. Maria Corina Machado, who was brutally beaten by members of the ruling party during a session of congress last year, was dismissed by the Supreme Tribunal of Justice from her post at the National Assembly. The dismissal came days after the president of the National Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, stated that Machado was no longer a member of the assembly. Cabello also accused her of treason after Machado was granted time by Panamá at the Organizaton of American States to speak about the Venezuelan crisis. Cabello previously accused Mr. Machado of being an “accomplice, an instigator of murder in this country,” and stated: “Here in Venezuela she will be tried as a murderer, she will be tried as a terrorist, she will be tried for crimes against humanity, for conspiracy, she will be tried for destabilizing this country,” the foundation said. “The kangaroo courts that summarily convicted Ceballos, Scarano, and Machado are just part of the mounting proof that Venezuela ceased to be a democracy long ago. Maduro has followed in the footsteps of his predecessor and for months has legislated via the same decretos ley that Pinochet and Videla used in the seventies,” said Kasparov. “All democratic countries in the world should emulate the European Parliament and be firm in expressing solidarity with the Venezuelan people and emphatically condemning the dictatorial measures of the regime. The world must denounce the regime’s ongoing crackdown on the legitimate representatives of 49.12 percent of Venezuelans who refuse to stand idly by as they are dragged toward a Stalinist dictatorship like the one that has ruled Cuba for the past 55 years,” said Kasparov. |
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| From Page 7: Dispute with U.S. involves dehydrated ethanol By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Costa Rican leaders are trying to work with the United States government on an import duty issue. The nation has submitted a request to the U.S. to discuss a change in the current system of assessing duty on dehydrated ethanol. This request comes just before the elimination of a quota for 31 million gallons of the ethanol that was previously granted to Costa Rica per the Central American Free Trade Treaty. In 2013 the U.S. imposed a controversial duty of 2.5 percent on imports of dehydrated ethanol. Member countries of the free trade pact claimed the arbitrary tax was unfair and violated the free trade agreement. From 2000 to 2013 exports of dehydrated ethanol to the U.S. Accounted for 70 percent of the product's worldwide exports, according to the Ministerio de Comercio Exterior. The parties have until June 1 to solve the dispute. If it is not resolved by then, they will move on to a next step in the trade treaty guidelines. Dehydrated ethanol, which is basically 200-proof alcohol is a solvent and has many medical uses. |
