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Former Prostitutes Graduate from Training
Program, Look Toward New Opportunities
By Amanda Roberson
Tico Times Staff
aroberson@ticotimes.net
During a unique graduation ceremony yesterday, 12 women donned black caps and gowns and walked down the aisle of the Judicial Investigation Police (OIJ) building's auditorium to celebrate one year of hard work to change the course of their lives.
The women, all former prostitutes, graduated from an intensive one-year training program at the nonprofit organization Fundación Rahab, whose mission is to help women leave the business of prostitution and transition to a different lifestyle.
To facilitate this change, the foundation provides psychological counseling, health education and vocational training workshops on computer skills, sewing, baking and other income-generating activities, explained director and founder Mariliana Morales (TT, Dec. 24, 2004).
Literacy classes and spiritual counseling, which draw on the foundation's Christian values, are other important parts of the course.
“Many of these women have a very low level of education and don't know how to read and write,” Morales explained.
Grettel Fonseca, 29, who graduated from the program seven years ago and attended the ceremony yesterday, said she decided to stop working as a prostitute 10 years ago but needed some help making the change.
Through Fundación Rahab workshops, she learned how to paint and draw, skills she now uses to make the greeting cards she sells in gift shops in central Pacific town of Quepos.
“Now I know I can do something to make money and I don't have to go back to the streets,” Fonseca said. “If anything happens, I grab the hand of God and know that He will help me.” Fonseca, who now volunteers at Rahab, said she learned about the organization though a TV commercial.
In addition to working with women, the foundation also has a program for adolescents in at-risk situations.
For more information on Fundación Rahab or to make a donation, call 221-4908.
Stagno Meets with Former Foreign Ministers
Foreign Minister Bruno Stagno yesterday had a “working breakfast” with former foreign ministers Roberto Tovar and Fernando Naranjo to discuss recurring foreign policy themes, according to a statement from the Foreign Ministry.
“We talked about their experiences with various current issues concerning relations with neighboring countries,” Stagno said. Specifically, they discussed a Binational Committee meeting between Costa Rica and Nicaragua scheduled for Oct. 19-20. The last Binational Committee meeting was held in 1997, under the ministry of Naranjo (TT, Aug. 11).
Stagno and Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Norman Caldera last month decided to resume meetings of the commission to work on healing the two countries' relationship, which recently came under scrutiny when Nicaragua brought complaints of xenophobia and discrimination against Costa Rica before the Inter-American Human Rights Commission.
The complaints revolve around the case of Natividad Canda -- a Nicaraguan citizen who was attacked by dogs in November 2005 while attempting to enter a Costa Rican warehouse and later died from his wounds (TT, Nov. 10, 2005) – and the lynching of Nicaraguan José Ariel Silva by a group of Costa Ricans last December.
Naranjo called the Binational Committee meetings a “valuable instrument” to improve relations between the two countries.
Stagno said he hopes to continue to meet with former foreign ministers periodically during his term.
Ecstasy Capsules Seized At Juan Santamaría Airport
Police Wednesday seized 2,189 capsules of the drug Ecstasy at Juan Santamaría International Airport, northwest of San Jose, according to a statement released yesterday by the Public Security Ministry.
The capsules were hidden in a “traditional Costa Rican-style” clock inside a package to be flown to the United States, the statement said. No arrests have been made in the case.
This seizure was the second largest confiscation of Ecstasy so far this year; police have seized 5,938 doses of the drug since January.
-Tico Times
ICE Installs Equipment to Improve Cell Phone Coverage
In an effort to improve national cell phone coverage, the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) is installing radio signal transmitters and antennas to 58 sites around the country, according to a statement from the institute.
This equipment, which works with cell phone towers to provide cell phone service, will hopefully improve coverage for users of GSM cell phones in rural communities and along national highways, the statement said.
Signal-transmitting equipment will be installed in the following Central Valley areas: Turrúbares, southwest of San José ; Santa Ana, west of San José ; Alajuela, northwest of San José ; Cartago, north of San José and Heredia, north of San José.
Additionally, ICE plans to install equipment in the northwestern Guanacaste province city of Liberia, the Nicoya Peninsula, the Southern Zone area of Pérez Zeledón, the Limón province to the east, the central Pacific town of Quepos and the Pacific Puntarenas province.
ICE also plans to install new equipment near roads including the Inter-American Highway and highways in the Northern Zone, the Caribbean and the Nicoya Peninsula, the statement said.
In light of poor cell phone service in rural areas, the Public Services Regulatory Authority (ARESEP) recently ordered ICE to increase cell phone signals in rural areas to ensure users in these areas have the same service as those in urban areas, reported the daily La Nación.
-Tico Times
Liability Insurance in Costa Rica
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Webster's defines liability as “the quality or state of being liable.” What does liable mean? According to Webster's, it means “legally obligated; responsible.”
The purpose of a general liability policy is to protect against lawsuits arising from accidents occurring on insured premises or during an insured activity, producing injury, death, property damage or loss to third parties. Anyone can buy a general liability policy: homeowners, tour operators, hotels, restaurants, shops, manufacturers, etc. In addition to general liability, there are also specific liability insurance policies: automobile, product, professional, etc., but those will not be dealt with in this article.
In North America, liability has gone wild, with people suing each other for all sorts of trivial mishaps, judges handing out huge awards and legal eagles obtaining fat fees. In order to limit legal costs, insurance companies are paying liability claims even before they enter the legal system.
Things in Costa Rica are quite different. The National Insurance Institute (INS) never – or almost never – pays a liability claim before there is a court ruling on the matter. The legal system has a backlog – I have heard up to two years – and this tends to discourage trivial claims.
Most judges seem to believe that everyone should exercise reasonable care and look out for him or herself. I remember reading an article in one of the local papers about a man who sued the owner of a building because he had tripped and fallen on the sidewalk. The judge admonished the plaintiff to mind where he was walking, and dismissed the complaint.
In cases where there is clear negligence on the part of the defendant, the award given to the plaintiff is usually based on redress. In other words, the defendant pays for the amount the plaintiff is out of pocket as a result of the mishap. Awards for pain and suffering and punitive damage, if any, are usually insignificant.
In my opinion, in this country liability insurance is not a great priority for a normal homeowner, and businesses engaging in activities where there is liability risk can buy considerably less coverage than a similar business in North America would need.
Within the liability policy, two types of mishap are covered: injury, disability and loss of life or limb; and damage or loss of property. The general liability policy offers a combined limit of the two, whereby INS will pay up to the chosen limit, regardless of the “mix.”
When determining the amount of coverage you want to buy, INS offers two types of limits for you to choose: limit per event, that is, the maximum INS will pay per accident or lawsuit; or aggregate annual limit, the maximum amount INS will pay out, per year, for claims against the policy.
To determine how much insurance to get, visualize a worst-case scenario of what could happen in an accident, and estimate how much it would cost to put things right – that would be the recommended limit.
The liability policy should be in the name of the person or people who could be sued if there were a mishap: the owner of the house, and/or the tenants if the house is rented; or the person or corporation running the business.
The process of getting the insurance is easy, but slow. INS requires an application form with all relevant information, signed by the applicant with a copy of his or her identification attached – you should meet with your agent to do this. Once the application is received, INS will take several days to nominate the inspector, who, usually after a week or two of drinking coffee (and with no advance warning or phone call), will go to inspect the risk, interview the applicant and corroborate the information on the application. After he submits his report (more coffee!), the rate and premium are determined, and the agent will be authorized to collect the premium. The hard copy of the policy will follow about a week later.
The premium for general liability is a percentage of the insured amount, for homeowners usually a bit less than 1% per year. INS fixes the exact rate on a case-by-case basis, according to the perceived risk. When the INS inspector is due to come to your house, don't wax the floors, put away the pit bull, and make sure the yellow paint on the edge of the stairs is bright and shiny.
For more info, contact the author at 233-2455 or david@InsuranceCostaRica.com. The purpose of this column is to give the reader a better understanding of insurance. The opinions and viewpoints expressed are those of the writer, and do not necessarily represent the official position of INS.
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