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Turbulence ahead? U.S. Ambassador Peter Cianchette yesterday stands in front of his country's gift to Costa Rica's Public Security Ministry, a 1976 Piper Seneca II two-propeller plane. Will it help mend lukewarm relations between the two countries? See this Friday's Tico Times for full story. |
Ronald Reyes / Tico Times |
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| Dengue keeps spreading on Costa Rica’s Pacific |
An outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease dengue in the central Pacific Costa Rican town of Parrita continues to spread. |
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| Costa Rica Housing Ministry sitting on its hands |
| In the first six months of this year, the Housing Ministry spent less than 3 percent of its budget for 2008, according to a recent report by the Comptroller General's Office. |
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| Hail yesterday, more rain today as Costa Rica rainy season peaks |
Meteorologists forecast more downpours this afternoon as Costa Rica heads into the wettest part of its rainy season, September and October. |
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| Nicaraguan death by dog mauling moves toward dismissal |
It appears two National Police officers will not be convicted of manslaughter in the death of Nicaraguan Natividad Canda in 2005. |
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Polideportivos Have
People on the Move |
All over Costa Rica, people are on the move. They're spinning, running, swimming, walking with dogs, walking without dogs, playing tennis, soccer, béisbol and more. People of all ages are becoming health-conscious and keeping fit as well as getting “unstressed.” |
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| Dengue keeps spreading on Costa Rica’s Pacific |
By Nick Wilkinson
Tico Times Staff | nwilkinson@ticotimes.net |
An outbreak of the mosquito-borne disease dengue in the central Pacific Costa Rican town of Parrita continues to spread.
In the past two weeks, reported cases have jumped from 223 to 398, with 17 people requiring hospitalization. One case of hemorrhagic dengue has been reported thus far.
The Social Security System (Caja), Health Ministry and private enterprise have teamed up to educate residents, arm them with repellant and drain containers holding standing water, but so far they haven't managed to put the brakes on the illness' spread.
Dr. Edgar Carrillo of the Max Terán Vals Hospital in nearby Quepos said clinical analysis of the individual cases is still being conducted to try to understand the outbreak better. He said it could be the spread of a new kind of dengue – serotype 3 – one the country hasn't seen before.
According to the daily La Nación, serotype 3 entered the country in December.
The most affected areas in Parrita are Barrio La Inmaculada, Bella Vista Boca Vieja, Barrio Los Angeles, la Pascua, El Cocal Paquita and Naranjito, according to a Caja press release.
While Parrita's dengue numbers are growing, the Health Ministry put out a press release stating that nationwide cases have declined precipitously over the last several years.
Dengue, whose symptoms are fever, vomiting and muscle pain, has no cure aside from bed rest. Hemorrhagic dengue, on the other hand, is a strain of the virus that causes bruising and bleeding from the nose, gums and other orifices that can be fatal. |
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| Costa Rica Housing Ministry sitting on its hands |
By Gillian Gillers
Tico Times Staff | ggillers@ticotimes.net |
In the first six months of this year, the Housing Ministry spent less than 3 percent of its budget for 2008, according to a recent report by the Comptroller General's Office.
As of June 30, the ministry had not spent any of the ¢20,000 million ($36.4 million) that the government allotted for rebuilding shantytowns and helping poor families rebuild their houses.
The ministry received a total of about ¢21,842 million ($39.7 million) in 2008, a nearly five-fold increase from 2007. By the end of June, it had spent just ¢562 million ($1 million), or 2.6 percent.
While no other government institution is in such a state of paralysis, most spent less than half of their budgets in the first six months of the year. Both the Foreign Trade Ministry (COMEX) and the Finance Ministry spent 30 percent of their budgets, while the Supreme Elections Tribunal (TSE) spent 32 percent. |
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Hail yesterday, more rain today
as Costa Rica rainy season peaks |
By Alex Leff
Tico Times Staff | aleff@ticotimes.net |
Meteorologists forecast more downpours this afternoon as Costa Rica heads into the wettest part of its rainy season, September and October.
Hail fell yesterday over Cartago, the old capital, and Turrialba, both east of San José, meteorologist Rebeca Morera said. Hail is not unusual during the rainy season, which is intensifying along the Pacific and Central Valley, Morera said.
Costa Rica's Caribbean side, however, is enjoying a mix of hot sunshine and sporadic rain, she added.
The institute predicts the season to end sometime from Nov. 2 to 6 in the Northern Zone, Dec. 7 to 11 on the Central Pacific, Dec. 12 to 16 in the Southern Zone and Dec. 12 to 21 in the Central Valley.
Early Monday afternoon, the damaging gusts that swept through San José and Alajuela were “strong winds” and not a tornado as initially reported, according to meteorologist José Joaquín Agüero. |
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Nicaraguan death by dog
mauling moves toward dismissal |
By Nick Wilkinson
Tico Times Staff | nwilkinson@ticotimes.net |
It appears two National Police officers will not be convicted of manslaughter in the death of Nicaraguan Natividad Canda in 2005.
Canda was killed by two rottweilers after he broke onto private property with two other men in La Lima in Cartago, east of San José, as officers looked on and did nothing. His death, caught on video, prompted extensive news media coverage, complaints from the Nicaraguan government alleging racism by Tico authorities, a case with the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (IACHR) and criminal proceedings against two officers for manslaughter based on dereliction of duty.
The IACHR case, filed by Nicaragua against Costa Rica, was dropped in March 2007 for lack of proof.
The prosecutor in the criminal case here asked the judge for the acquittal of the two officers – Erick Sánchez and Asdrúbal Luna – last week, citing lack of proof in the case that officers had the training or opportunity to kill the two dogs.
“When analysis was done … it was not possible to establish with certainty that the officers could have gotten shots off to kill the (dogs) without putting in danger the life of (Canda) and other people in the area,” states a prosecutor's office press release. “Prosecutors determined that the officers didn't have sufficient technical preparation to shoot the dogs in an effective way.”
Five other National Police officers who were present the night of Canda's death were not prosecuted.
A judge is expected to absolve the police late tomorrow afternoon. |
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| Polideportivos Have People on the Move |
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All over Costa Rica, people are on the move. They're spinning, running, swimming, walking with dogs, walking without dogs, playing tennis, soccer, béisbol and more. People of all ages are becoming health-conscious and keeping fit as well as getting “unstressed.”
The polideportivo in Alajuela, northwest of San José, is just one of the sport complexes set up by different levels of government to add vim, vigor and fun to our lives. This one, located in Monserrat, an area behind the Mall Internacional, was built in 1987 for the national games held there that year. After the games ended, the playing fields, track, gymnasium and Olympic-size pool remained. The complex is now run by the Alajuela Municipality.
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| Movin': Rosa Isela Salazar, right, leads an outdoor aerobics class at the Alajuela polideportivo. |
Mitzi Stark | Tico Times |
All cantons have sport and recreation committees. Some are more elaborate and some are bare basics, depending on the whims and purses of the committees. Alajuelans are lucky; the Ciruelas River and an avenue of trees on one border make their polideportivo cool and attractive.
The boulevard in front of the gym is for walking, pushing baby strollers, running, exercising dogs, biking, skateboarding and even wheelchair experts doing wheelies. On weekends, families ride bikes together, skate, walk around the perimeter and watch the more daring do tricks on skateboards in the concrete bowl. It's a comfortable and safe place to bring the kids with their scooters, bikes or skates. There is also a play area especially for children.
Also on weekends, sport teams, soccer, speed skating, track and baseball get going, and there are benches for those whose sport activity consists of watching.
But it's inside the gym that we see real action. Weekday mornings from 8 to 9 a.m., Rosa Isela Salazar leads a group of up to 60 people in aerobics. They are all ages and all sizes, mostly women, but a handful of men come regularly.
“Whoever comes joins in,” says Salazar, a certified aerobics teacher.
It's totally free and there are no fancy clothes or tools for this sport, just “tennis shoes and comfortable clothes,” she adds.
A few come in snazzy, matching spandex outfits that stretch with the vigorous movements and are certainly becoming, but anything apart from tight jeans will do.
It's not easy coordinating arms and legs with the rapid salsa, cumbia or merengue music. Just when you think you've got it together, Salazar calls out “ avance, ” and everyone marches forward and out of step until she calls “atrás.” It's a wonder no one gets kicked or tangled up.
Aerobics classes are free. Some people come every day, others when they can.
Swimming in the 50-meter-long pool is inside lanes in one-hour sessions. Trainers are there to give pointers or to teach swimming lessons. A monthly fee of ¢4,000 ($7.30) covers twice-a-week swims; ¢6,000 ($11) a month gets you four times a week.
Sometimes sports centers host special events, such as the international chess tournament held at the Alajuela polideportivo in July. Chess is a sport in Latin America, and this tournament drew players from 17 countries, topnotchers from Europe, the United States, South America, Cuba and Israel. Chess is by far the quietest sport, even with 240 participants ranging in age from 6 to 83; they're all concentrating on their next moves and nobody dares to talk, whistle or even crunch food.
Polideportivos give athletes a place to train and compete, on the track or in the ring, pool or field. At Monserrat, all activities are free except for swimming and classes.
There are sport installations and polideportivos throughout the country. The Palacio de Deportes in Heredia, north of San José, is right next to the soccer stadium. Around the Central Valley, Santo Domingo, San Antonio de Belén, Parque de la Paz and La Sabana Park have polideportivos, as do Cartago, east of the capital, the Southern Zone's Pérez Zeledón, and Cañas, in the northwestern Guanacaste province.
To find out about sports programs near your home or place of work, contact your municipality.
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