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Court defines
aguinaldo as police take the streets By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The Sala II labor court has found in favor of an employee in a 2004 case and has defined aguinaldo as one-twelfth of all money and certain benefits paid by an employer. The court rejected the notion that an aguinaldo, the Christmas bonus, is a 13th month's pay. The aguinaldo should include base salary, commissions, extra hours and value given in lieu of money, said the court. The decision comes at a time when Costa Ricans are figuring out what they will buy with their bonus and at a time when crooks are figuring out how to steal it. The Fuerza Pública has begun its Operativa Aguinaldo all over the country, said the security ministry Tuesday. As part of the operation, Janina del Vecchio, the minister of security, called on the nation's banks to close the automatic teller machines from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. She said this would cut down on stickups and criminals abducting persons so they can get money from their bank accounts. She also called on bank customers to use the machines only during the day to cut down on robberies. Some 9,500 officers will be on the streets patrolling, the minister said. This includes students of the Escuela Nacional de Policía. The Sala II decision is not really a surprise, although the court noted that some employers simply pay their help the equivalent of a month's base salary. The man who was seeking more money is named Villalobos, according to the court decision. He was awarded 32 million colons (about $58,000) in a trial court but then his employer appealed. The case finally got to the supreme labor court that issued the ruling in favor of the employee. The court noted that the man's full income as a manager of distribution was 120 percent his base salary. The court noted that an aguinaldo should be one-twelfth of all that an employee received from December to November. The initial trial court added insult to injury by ordering that the employer be reported to the Caja Costarricense de Seguro Social for only reporting as income the man's base salary. Inauguration of portal will be held Monday By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Next week is a big Christmas week. Monday the Teatro Nacional inaugurates its portal or nativity scene at 6 p.m. This is a big event that includes choirs and visiting dignitaries. For those not anxious to participate in a crowd, the portal will be open for viewing during daylight hours through the holidays. Monday also is when the Instituto Tecnológico de Costa Rica will dedicate the Christmas tree there on the Cartago campus. The 5 p.m. event will feature the national musical group Senderos Then Thursday at 6 p.m. the Hospital Nacional de Niños turns the lights on for the giant evergreen tree on the front lawn. The well-attended function is sure to bring smiles to the hospitalized children who see the event from the vantage point of the hospital balconies. Plaza Rohrmoser shootout leaves suspect, others hurt By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Police and two robbers engaged in a shootout Monday evening in front of Plaza Rohrmoser, officials said. Officials said that the two armed men tried to stick up a taxi driver but police busted up the crime. The taxi driver, identified as Marvin Madrigal Alvarado suffered two bullet wounds, one to the back and one to the hand. The Poder Judicial said that a police officer, Corrales Jiménez, suffered three bullet wounds. A suspect, identified by the last names of Esquivel Chaves, was arrested at the scene. A second suspect was grabbed nearby, officials said. One report said that Esquivel suffered a bullet wound, too. Interamerican closed at night By the A.M. Costa Rica staff Blame the closing on Tropical Storm Alma that hit Costa Rica at the end of May. The transport ministry reminded vacationers that the Interamericana Sur highway remains closed at night from 6 p.m. to 5 a.m. while crews try to get the main route back in shape.
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| A.M. Costa Rica third newspage |
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Air flights reveal extent of
storm damage and flooding
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
As access to the Provincia de Limón opened up Tuesday, residents elsewhere in the country became aware of the magnitude of the disaster that has befallen the region. Television crews on the ground and in the air provided images of vast areas under water, broken bridges and flooded roadways. The national emergency commission was in the air, too, in three rented helicopters bringing food and support to communities that have become isolated. The town of Sixaola in southern Limón province still was cut off because the river of the same name is flooding out of its banks over the main road several miles to the north. President Óscar Arias Sánchez went on television Tuesday night to urge support and aid for the beleaguered areas. He said Francisco Antonio Pacheco, who will be acting president today, and his brother Rodrigo Arias Sánchez, minister of the Presidencia, would be among those who tour the region today and that a decree of emergency would be signed. The president himself is on his way to Dubai where he will be promoting his international agenda. The hardest hit cantons appear to be Talamanca and Matina in the Provincia de Limón and Sarapiquí in the Provincia de Heredia. The Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias said that 5,310 persons were staying in public shelters, an increase from the day before. The weather forecast does not bring comfort. The Instituto Meteorológico Nacional said the current conditions would continue. The U.S. Hurricane Center in Miami said that the area of disturbed weather would be moving west. The low pressure area is over portions of northern Colombia, Panamá, Nicaragua and eastern Honduras as well as Costa Rica. The low pressure area has not moved much in the last three days. Limón residents are experiencing their ninth day of rain today. Rain let up Tuesday morning along the Caribbean coast but resumed in the afternoon. The transport ministry said that the highway, Ruta 32, had been reopened to Limón. This is the San José-Limón centro road. Slides had bocked the roadway in at least four places. A 32-meter (105-foot) temporary bridge will be erected at Playa Negra in Puerto Viejo de Talamanca where water skewed and opened up a breech in the existing concrete bridge, said the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes. Karla González, the transport minister, said that the Interamerican Sur and Norte, the nation's main road, had not been affected but that there was highway damage in the canton of Turrialba in the Provincia de Cartago and in Guápiles, Guácimo, Matina, Talamanca and Siquirres in the Provincia de Limón. Other damaged bridges were over the Quebrada los Monge in San Pablo de Tres X in Turrialba and over the Río Grande in Orosí, said the ministry. Crews were at work on Ruta 36 clearing slides and other obstructions north of Sixaola, the ministry said. The blockages were in addition to the flooding there. |
 U.S. Hurricane Center graphic
Map of the low pressure area shows the conditions existing at
about 4:30 p.m. Costa Rican time Tuesday.The emergency commission estimated that at least 37 stretches of road were damaged as well as two water lines, two major drains eight bridges and seven dikes. The damaged dikes were in 4 Millas, Placeres and Zent Viejo in Matina, La Lucha in Guácimo, Cimarrores, Siquirres and Puente Viejo in Siquirres, the commission said. A pipeline of the Refinadora Costarricense S.A. was leaking aviation fuel in Matina, and workmen were trying to stop the flow. Some 22 shelters housed 1,820 persons in Talamanca, 22 shelters housed 1,581 in Matina, and 24 shelters housed 800 persons in Siquirres. Some 716 persons were in shelters in Sarapiquí, and 100 were being housed in Valle de la Estrella in the Canton de Limón Lesser numbers were being housed in Pococí (31), Oreanmuno (50) and Zarcero (one familiy. Members of the U.S. military, part of the Southern Command, landed in four helicopters in Limón Tuesday to help with the disaster. They will be assisting in hard-hit Panamá, too. Some 18 servicemen were believed on the ground Tuesday with about 18 more due to arrive. They are based in Honduras. Their main job will be to reach communities that still are cut off and to provide the food and aid that is needed. Little has been heard of the native communities in the high Talamanca where damage is expected to be extensive. Pacheco, who is president of the Asamblea Legislativa, is acting president today because both vice presidents in the Arias administration have resigned. He and others from the central government are expected to visit the flooded communities in the Provincia de Limón and in the northern zone. The decree of emergency is mainly designed to free up government money so it can be applied quickly for areas in need. The flooding in the Caribbean is not unusual, but residents report that this bout is the worst since 2006 when Sixaola was destroyed. Officials promised to relocate the town, but not much ever came of the plan. In addition to the flooding, agriculture had been damaged seriously. Arias spoke Tuesday night about destroyed banana plantations, although he noted correctly that the total damage still is unknown. |
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Tougher traffic law gets
initial approval in legislature
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
The full legislature gave initial approval Tuesday to a rewrite of the nation's traffic laws that contains stronger penalties. One more vote is needed. Among other penalties, the draft provides jailing for six months to a year for persons who refuse to submit to a roadside test for alcohol. The proposed law specifies a fine of three base salaries for someone driving with .5 grams of alcochol in a liter of blood or under the influence of drugs. That is about the same limit as now, but the penalty would be more. Many Latin nations use a standard of .8 grams per liter. |
Drunk drivers also can have their
license suspended for two years. A
repeat offender can lose the license for four years. Those caught
driving while suspended can lose the license for 10 years and have
their vehicle taken out of service. Someone who causes a death while driving drunk or under the influence of drugs can go to prison for four to 10 years with a 10-year license suspension. Those who drive above the limits and put in jeopardy the life or health of another person can go to jail for six months to a year and lose their license for a year. Those driving without a license or when the license is suspended can face 250 hours of community service. |
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Marchers seek to revive
women's law ruled unconstitutional
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By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
For the first time in three years, a demonstration was held in San José Tuesday on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The event was intended to protest the Sala IV constitutional court's ruling that a domestic violence law is unconstitutional. Approximately 2,000 people marched from the Parque Central at noon, culminating with a rally and concert at 2 p.m. in front of the national women's rights organization, the Instituto Nacional de las Mujeres. The last such gathering took place when legislative deputies were considering the law that they eventually passed. “In declaring this law unconstitutional, what this means is a black eye no longer counts as domestic violence,” said Mayrene Sánchez Zamora, who coordinates the institute's domestic violence support programs. “A cut on the arm doesn't count. A kick doesn't count. Bruises on the sides wouldn't count.” Costa Rica has two laws which directly address domestic violence, the Ley de Violencia Domestica, which protects victims and does not penalize abusers, and the Ley de Penalización de la Violencia Contra las Mujeres, which does lay out specific penalties for different acts of abuse. Oct. 17, the constitutional court ruled that Articles 22 and 25 in the Ley de Penalización are unconstitutional for implicitly treating men and women unequally before the law. This violates Article 33 in the constitution, which states all citizens are equal before the law. The Ley de Penalización has 46 articles in total. Article 22 states that those who repeatedly inflict grave physical injuries on a woman, whether in a marriage or some other form of union, can be sentenced between six months to two years in prison. The court found this article to be unconstitutional because the Código Penal already defines what constitutes a grave injury, and thus already protects women who are victims of domestic violence. The Código Penal states in one article that someone who inflicts an injury that incapacitates someone for over a month, can be punished by one to six years in prison. According to Ms. Sánchez, eliminating this article would mean women would no longer be able to prosecute |
 A.M. Costa Rica/Elyssa Pachico
Rock band Malpaís performs during event commemorating
International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women.abusers for certain injuries that last less than a month. “It's like opening a door for men to beat women and have nothing happen to them,” she said. In fact, the penal code calls these injuries grave. Another section provides prison for three months to a year for lesser injuries that keep a victim from working for more than 10 days up to a month. Those who cause injury that causes someone to be out of work for less than 10 days are subject to a fine. Article 25 of the Ley de Penalización sentences those accused of inflicting psychological abuse on a female partner, such as insults, threats or ridicule, to six months to two years in prison. With Tuesday's demonstration, the Instituto Nacional de las Mujeres hopes to pressure magistrates of the Sala Constitutional to order a rewrite for the two articles so they no longer violate the constitution, said Ms. Sánchez. According to Judith Salaz, head of the institute's office of the Delegación de la Mujer, every week on average 600 domestic violence victims visit the office seeking therapeutic, legal or social counsel. The institute's hotline receives between 4,000 and 5,000 phone calls a month regarding physical abuse, she said. “Six out of every 10 women in Costa Rica have suffered at least one incident of physical or sexual abuse,” she said, citing a 2003 survey conducted by the Universidad de Costa Rica, based on the 2002 national census. |
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Foundation planning some
special Christmas parties for communities in need
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Special to A.M. Costa Rica
A local volunteer organization is hosting Christmas parties and a summer camp once again this year with the intention of supporting communities throughout Costa Rica that lack resources. The Cartago-based volunteer organization, Tropical Adventures Foundation, is inviting local residents and international visitors to help them create and support five large events in locations throughout the country. The events will bring together tourists, residents and citizens to help some of Costa Rica's poorer community members in the Cartago, Guanacaste and Limón provinces enjoy some memorable festivities. Volunteers are needed to help organize and donate materials and food for the events The events, which will be taking place throughout the |
Christmas season,
hope to raise awareness of community needs while giving back to the
dedicated and generous people who work alongside the Tropical
Adventures Foundation in supporting their own communities In addition to the Christmas celebrations, there will also be a children's summer camp in the Puerto Viejo de Limón area. Volunteers will be providing arts and crafts workshops, sports, games and environmental education for the children between Dec. 27 and Dec. 30. Tropical Adventures will also be providing the children with lunch for these four days. Supplies in the form of decorations, food, arts and crafts materials and games are needed to ensure all the events are successful. Those seeking a more detailed description of what is needed for the events and how local residents, as well as visitors traveling from abroad, can log on to the Web site: http://Holidays.TropicalAdventures.com. |
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filled five governor chairs By the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez's effort to scrap presidential term limits could face an increased challenge after the opposition made modest gains in Sunday's local elections. Venezuela's electoral agency says Chavez's socialist party won control of 17 of the 22 states, and the opposition won the other five, including the country's two most populous — Miranda and oil-rich Zulia. That is two more than had been reported early Monday from partial returns. The opposition also won the mayor's seat in the capital, Caracas. Political analysts predict the opposition's improved influence will force Chávez to use a new strategy to get enough support for a law that would allow him to run for re-election in 2012 and beyond. A U.S. State Department spokesman, Robert Wood, commented on the Venezuelan political process Tuesday, saying it was "a good thing" to see Venezuelans express themselves freely in a democratic election. Voters rejected ending term limits in a referendum last year. Analysts say opposition gains in Sunday's election might further indicate that voters do not want to end the restrictions. Opposition candidates also won in Maracaibo, Venezuela's second biggest city and in Sucre municipality, once a base of support for Chávez. Hilton opens Liberia hotel Special to A.M. Costa Rica
The new Hilton Garden Inn Liberia Airport in Costa Rica, the brand’s first hotel in Central America, has opened. The event is the firm's fourth hotel opening in Costa Rica this year. “Our Hilton Garden Inn Liberia Airport location will cater to business and leisure travelers seeking quality accommodations,” said Adrian Kurre, senior vice president, brand management for Hilton Garden Inn. The hotel is just two minutes from the airport and 10 minutes from Liberia. The Hilton Garden Inn forms part of the Solarium Technology Park |
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