How Has CAFTA Affected Services Trade?
Region: Costa RicaThe Dominican Republic-Central American Free trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA) remains a controversial treaty five years after its contentious passage, yet many experts believe that the agreement is only just beginning to show its real impact. CAFTA-DR forms one of the largest free trade blocs in the Americas, joining together Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic. Bilateral trad... more
Views: 646Costa Rica's Ex-President Sentenced to 5 Years for Corruption
Region: Costa RicaCosta Ricans who were away from TV sets today at 3pm were able to view online the judgment of ex President Rafael Ángel Calderón when at least 3 different websites decided to present the ruling via online streaming services, a record for the Costa Rican online community. Not only was streaming used, media also uploaded images through twitpic to be used on twitter. All these are recent developm... more
Views: 1247Calderón Corruption Trial May Derail Presidential Aspirations
Region: Costa Rica
In 2004, documents were made public [es] indicating that a company of former Costa Rican president Rafael Ángel Calderón Fournier had received $440,500 from the Fischel Corporation. This amount corresponded to a commission of $8 million dollars paid from the extension of a credit from the Government of Finland for $39.5 million for the modernization of the Costa Rican Social Security Entity (CCSS for its ... more
Views: 1802Mount Arenal, Costa Rica
Region: Costa Rica
A view of Mount Arenal, on the northwestern side of Costa Rica. more
Views: 1689Free Concert Causes Riots in Costa Rica
Region: Costa Rica
Posted by Juliana Rincón Parra to Global Voices Online Composite image by Cristian Cambronero of Fusil de Chispas from citizen videos. Journalist Cristian Cambronero from popular Costa Rican blog Fusil de Chispas posts a recount of Sunday's Concert where youth rioted and destroyed the campus of the Universidad Latina in the capital city of San José. It seems that when around 3000 of them were not all... more
Views: 1902Costa Rican Legislator Resigns, Sparks Debate
Region: Costa RicaAndrea Morales, a deputy from the Citizens Action Party (PAC)in Costa Rica, stormed controversy when she resigned from her political party recently. Many expected her exit, while others feel that she did not decide on her own. The young congresswoman has faced much pressure over the past several days days. Costa Rican bloggers debate: Cambronero once supported the PAC but now regrets hi... more
Views: 942Costa Rica: Cow Parade and Internet Video
Region: Costa Rica
by Juliana Rincón Parra The Cow Parade calls itself the world´s largest public art event, and for tiny Costa Rica´s standards, it certainly is a huge deal that the capital city of San José was selected to host the legion of cows. On AmeliaRueda.com[es] , a series of online videos have been reporting to the website audiences and through YouTube about the comings and goings of the 120 cows and ... more
Views: 1835VIDEO: National Films Gain Positive Review
Region: Costa Rica
An interesting, yet important storm of audiovisual productions is shaking Costa Rica’s attentive eager audience this year. Costa Rican bloggers provide their thoughts to the new cinematic offerings. Miguel Gomez and his film El Cielo Rojo (The Red Sky) debuted at the beginning of August getting favorable reviews from experts and general viewers. Cristian Cambronero of Fusil de Chispas [es] delivers a short, yet ... more
Views: 1344President Arias Asks Dalai Lama to Postpone Visit
Region: Costa Rica
Having to choose between two friends and which one to invite to a party is something awkward. This is what the Costa Rican president and Nobel Peace Prize Winner Oscar Arias Sánchez had to do recently. He asked the Dalai Lama to postpone his scheduled visit until next year, even when his visit was private in nature. Coincidentally, a month after the planned visit, the Chinese President Hu Jin... more
Views: 8016Costa Rica: Political Games
Region: Costa Ricaby Roy Rojas Ever since October 7th, Costa Rica has been falling into a political game, where the government has been facing off with the 2nd political force in the country in the Legislative Assembly. It has become the government vs. Citizen's Action Party (PAC, for its initals in Spanish). Some say that this could be what is in store for the next elections in 2010 and that the PAC would be the big loser... more
Views: 1408