September 24, 2007

Peace Day: During a celebration of International Peace Day Friday in San José, performers carried banners with the names of famous political refugees. Thunderstorms cut the event short.

Knee Deep: A man and his dog made their way through floodwaters in the northwestern Guanacaste town of Ostional Friday after heavy rains left this and other Guanacaste communities inaccessible by car.

Jeffrey Arguedas | EFE

Vice-President Casas Resigns

By Gillian Gillers
Tico Times Staff | ggillers@ticotimes.net

Kevin Casas stepped down from his posts as Second Vice-President and Planning Minister Saturday.

He has come under fire for a memo he wrote to President Oscar Arias recommending questionable and possibly illegal tactics in the government's campaign for the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA). The memo was leaked to the University of Costa Rica (UCR) weekly newspaper, which broke the story Sept. 6.

The document, co-written by National Liberation Party (PLN) legislator Fernando Sánchez, suggests that the government manipulate voters, blackmail mayors, and improperly use public resources to boost its CAFTA campaign (TT, Sept. 14).

The memo has fallen under a national and political spotlight. The anti-CAFTA Citizen Action Party (PAC) and the pro-CAFTA Libertarian Movement Party have insisted that Casas resign. The Alliance for Yes on CAFTA and the pro-CAFTA Liberation Party have distanced themselves from the memo's authors and rejected their ideas.

Casas decided last week to temporarily leave the Planning Ministry while its Internal Auditing Office investigates whether the state improperly used public money. He had planned to return after the investigation ended. The Supreme Elections Tribunal (TSE) is also looking into whether Casas violated the Electoral Code by becoming involved in party politics.

Arias said in a statement that he accepts Casas' resignation.

“I regret losing one of my best ministers,” Arias said. “In the government we have lost a capable, efficient and very hard-working person.”

Water Rates Increase an Average 6%

Those living in Costa Rica can expect an average 6% increase in their water bills thanks to a price hike approved Friday by the Public Services Regulatory Authority (ARESEP).

The National Water and Sewer Institute (AyA) had asked ARESEP for a 35% price hike this year, a 15% increase next year and a 10% increase for 2009, 2010 and 2011, according to a statement from ARESEP.

ARESEP denied the institute these requests, saying it has a hefty financial surplus from 2006 that it should put toward development and operational costs and that it underestimated its income and overestimated its expenses.

ARESEP instead granted an average 6% price increase and restructured AyA's tariff scale to “encourage the rational use of water, have the least affect as possible on low-income families and charge those who consume more water more,” the statement said.

For example, those who consume less than 40 cubic meters monthly will only see their bill increase 3.6%, while those who consume more than this amount will pay 8.5% more, according to the daily La Nación.

The same idea applies to companies. Those who consume more than 120 cubic meters per month will pay 6.5% more per month, while those who use less than this amount will only see their bills go up 3.6%.

A similar scale has been established for government institutions and “preferential” entities, including schools, prisons and churches.

These price adjustments were published Friday in the official government daily La Gaceta and will apply to water consumed as of Oct. 1, the statement said.

-Tico Times

Stagno Back from Africa Tour

Foreign Minister Bruno Stagno told the press Friday about the fruits of his recent trip around Africa to seek support for Costa Rica in its vie for a non-permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council and build diplomatic relations in the region.

Stagno established diplomatic relations with Botswana, the Congo and Uganda and also visited Burundi, Ethiopia, Lesotho, Namibia, Mozambique, Rwanda and South Africa.

This visit was the first “high level” contact Costa Rica has made with many of these counties in years. It also gave the minister a chance to tout some of President Oscar Arias' pet programs such as the Costa Rica Consensus, a plan to reward developing countries that spend on social works rather than weapons, and “Peace with Nature,” which promotes international cooperation on environmental matters such as global warming and protection of biodiversity.

Stagno called the trip successful but said Costa Rica “still has a significant deficit, a significant debt to recuperate,” with Africa since “for a long time we've been settled into a basically trans-Atlantic and Americanized diplomacy.”

“It's time to break these mental borders and open ourselves to the world,” he said.

Costa Rica is vying with the Dominican Republic for a non-permanent seat on the U.N. Security Council from Jan. 1, 2008 to Dec. 31, 2009. The United Nations will vote on the matter Oct. 16.

Leading up to the vote, Stagno plans to “intensify his efforts with foreign ministers and U.N. representatives,” especially during his visit to the Assembly General next week for a session on climate change.

“Our advantage is that we are a country that has clear and transparent positions that the whole world is familiar with. That's not necessarily something other countries can say,” Stagno said.

Costa Rica Maintains Financial
Surplus for Fifth Consecutive Month

The Costa Rican government maintained a financial surplus for the fifth consecutive month in August, when its surplus reached $115 million thanks to better tax collection and controlled spending, Finance Minister Guillermo Zúñiga reported during a press conference recently.

“We have a very good result for the fifth consecutive month reflecting a surplus with income growing at a rate of 30%,” the minister said.

The $115 million surplus was accumulated during the first eight months of the year, making up for the $67 million deficit registered during this same period in 2006.

From January to August, the government collected a total of approximately $2.4 billion, $941.2 million of which came from Customs taxes, $571.5 million came from income tax and the rest came from other sources.

Spending reached $2.3 billion, divided into payments for workers ($825 million), taxes on debts ($560 million) and other expenses.

The minister said the government is putting this money toward roads, payments to municipalities, education, payments to the Social Security System (Caja) and salary increases.

Zúñiga said it is difficult to predict whether this positive financial trend will continue through the end of the year, but he feels confident the year will finish with “very positive results.”

-ACAN-EFE

Avocado: The Aphrodisiacal Pear

When the conquistadors first gazed upon this pear-shaped fruit, they did not expect to find such an amazing new discovery. A regular in the diet of the Aztecs, Toltecs and Olmecs, Persea americana, the avocado, has been consumed by humans for thousands of years.

Native to Mexico and Central and South America, the Spanish word aguacate comes from the Aztec ahuacuatl, literally meaning “the tree of testicles.” No doubt the name derived from the way the fruit of the tree hangs in pairs, reminding those ancient peoples of the human male anatomy.

Spanish and British shipmen embraced the fruit as a gift sent from the heavens to satiate their longing for the flavor of butter. By the time Cortés entered Tenochtitlán in Mexico, avocado was present in a number of dishes served in the Aztec imperial court, such as the ahuaca-mulli sauce of mashed avocados, onions and fresh cilantro. It is interesting to note that today's humble guacamole was originally a delicacy served in hopes of increasing the male libido.

The conquistadors discovered that avocado seed yields a milky liquid that becomes red when exposed to air. They found that this reddish-brown, or even blackish, indelible liquid could be used as ink; some documents written in this ink are still in existence today. The English living in Jamaica called avocado “alligator pear” for its slightly bumpy skin.

New-World Delicacy: Loaded with “good” fat, avocado is a highly versatile ingredient in tropical cuisine. Pictured here, grilled avocado with curried pejibaye.

Marco González | Tico Times

Throughout the centuries, the popularity of the avocado kept spreading, until the fruit became massively grown in the early 1900s in the southern United States. California postman Rudolf Hass discovered the avocado that bears his name in 1926. His original tree is still growing in La Habra Heights, California. Little did he know that his name would be used for the most popular avocado variety in the world today.

Although the avocado is high in fat, 60% of it is monounsaturated or “good” fat, 20% is polyunsaturated and only 20% is saturated. The edible portion of a nine-ounce Hass avocado yields about one ounce of fat. Nutritionally, the avocado leads all other fruits in beta-carotene content and exceeds even the banana in potassium content.

While other fruits gain sugar as they ripen, the avocado's sugar content decreases as it matures. Avocados are rich in B vitamins, especially niacin, as well as calcium, iron and potassium. In fact, avocados contain more protein, potassium, magnesium, folic acid, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, biotin, pantothenic acid, vitamin E and vitamin K per ounce than any other fruit.

Though the avocado is calorie-dense (one half-cup of pureed flesh contains 204 calories), it packs a protein content of 2.4 grams, with 3.1 grams of fiber and only 8 grams of carbohydrates in a half-cup serving. Though it has numerous nutritional benefits, avocados should be eaten in moderation because of their high fat content.

Recently, avocados have been recognized as a good source of two beneficial compounds: beta-sitosterol and glutathione. Beta-sitosterol is a widely prescribed anti-cholesterol compound that interferes with cholesterol absorption, thus promoting lower cholesterol levels. Glutathione is made up of three amino acids, glutamic acid, cysteine and glycine, which function as antioxidants, therefore improving blood circulation.

Gastronomically speaking, the avocado has transcended all borders to be absorbed by numerous types of cuisines, from its original Mexican table magic to new approaches in French, Italian and even Asian cooking. In many restaurants, it is not uncommon to find dishes ranging from pasta with creamy avocado sauces to tempura-battered avocado.

In Costa Rica, the green-skinned variety (known as “ Florida ” avocado) is most common. Some farmers have begun to cultivate “Hass” varieties with decent results, since Ticos do enjoy the taste of Mexican and Californian cuisine. In typical Tico cuisine, the avocado can be found in salads, accompanying casados or ceviches, or in the quintessential avocado dip, guacamole. Similar in style to its Mexican counterpart, Costa Rican guacamole may include chopped tomatoes and is usually not too spicy.

Few fruits can be so versatile in the savory kitchen as the avocado. Don't be afraid of breaking the rules and using avocado in unorthodox ways; your palate will thank you for experimenting with this exquisite tropical delicacy.

Today's recipe: grilled avocado with curried pejibaye (peach palm) ¡Buen provecho!