The Tico Times Online Daily Page

Daily Edition: San José, Costa Rica, December 06, 2002

GUILTY: pedophiles sentenced to long prison terms. Read TT print edition for story.
TT/ Julio Laínez

Peace Petitions Get 300 Signatures
By Tim Rogers
As an act of solidarity with activists around the globe who will celebrate next Tuesday's International Human-Rights Day, a small group of U.S. expatriates are meeting this morning with representatives of the U.S. Embassy to present some 300 signatures of people opposed to war.
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December 06

A Christmas Carol
The Little Theatre Group marks a return to Charles Dickens’s classic tale, 7:30 p.m. extra show due to sold over on Dec. 11 at the Blanche Brown Theatre in Bello Horizonte. Also at Si Como No, Manuel Antonio, Sun., Dec. 15 and at Club del Mar in Jaco, Tues., Dec. 17. Reservations 289-3910.

Health Fair
Clinica Cátolica Hospital invites everyone to have free or low cost tests through Sat., Dec. 7, Guadalupe. Info: 283-6616, ext. 311.

Posada Mágica
Songs and Poetry about the Sacred Family Journey in Jerusalem to find a place to stay, with actors, and Christmas Carols Concert, Dec. 6, 7 p.m. Info: 221-5205.

Premier Collections Art Clothing
Fashion show, clothes designed by teens J.Collier and Ariel, Sat., Dec. 7, 1:30-5 p.m., Le Petit Paris Restaurant, Heredia.

Teletón
Music marathon to collect ¢180 million ($480,000) to build a intensive care tower for the Children’s Hospital, internationally acclaimed artists and national groups attend to this event. Fri., Dec. 6, 9 a.m. through Sat., Dec. 7 at midnight, organized by Club Activo 20-30. Info: 233-2030.

Yellow Jackets in Concert
Dec. 6-7, 10 p.m., Jazz Café, across from Banco Popular, San Pedro. Info: 253-8933, jazz_cafe@racsa.co.cr

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Peace Petitions Get 300 Signatures
By Tim Rogers
trogers@ticotimes.net

As an act of solidarity with activists around the globe who will celebrate next Tuesday's International Human-Rights Day, a small group of U.S. expatriates are meeting this morning with representatives of the U.S. Embassy to present some 300 signatures of people opposed to war.

The petitions, containing mostly Tico signatures, state that the signatories are opposed to U.S. President George W. Bush "initiating a war to exterminate Iraq under the pretext of the war on terrorism."

The first petition, written in Spanish by the Peace Center and signed by 179 Costa Ricans and 19 organizations questions Bush's "proof" that Iraq is developing weapons of mass destruction or that it has connections to the al-Quaeda terrorist network.

The signatories also take offense to the U.S.' "Plan Colombia" war package, and raise concerns about the U.S.' plans to build an international police school in Costa Rica.

"We cannot remain quiet about these threats to peace," the Peace Center petition reads. "It is urgent to mobilize and denounce the true causes of the unjust wars that President Bush promotes to guarantee a world dominated and exploited by transnational companies. Democracy and human rights will never come from military aggression and oppression."

The peace petition demands the U.S. government act transparently, respect International Law, opt for dialogue and avoid war with Iraq. Signatories also reject that Costa Rica be used for U.S. military or police training.

The second Spanish petition, signed by 83 Ticos, simply expresses signatory opposition to the U.S. war on Iraq.

A third petition, a letter addressed to U.S. Secretary of Colin Powell, is signed by 27 concerned U.S. expatriates, who want to "declare [their] outrage over the threat of war against Iraq."

The group will give the two petitions and the letter to the U.S. Embassy's Cultural Attaché today at 10 a.m.

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Border Development Discussed

More than 50 community leaders and government representatives from both sides of the Costa Rican - Nicaraguan border met yesterday in Liberia, Costa Rica, to discuss ways to better work together and discuss a common strategy to develop the frontier area.

The two-day meeting, called "Challenges and Opportunities of the Border Zone," will focus on cross-border efforts to combat the common problems of poverty and marginalization that affect residents on both sides of the limit.

"We have to remember that borders are just imaginary lines - political conventions that don't make the people on one side better than the people on the other," said Anabelle Lang, director of the National Directorate of Community Development. "We speak the same language, we have the same climate, and, most importantly, we share the same needs."

During the closure of the conference, participants today are expected to present a common development plan for both countries.

Border area leaders and government representatives from both countries held a similar conference almost two years ago, where Costa Rica introduced its now-defunct Triangle of Solidarity community development program to Nicaraguan border communities (TT, Feb. 2001).

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Child Killings Continue in Honduras

Forty-six children and youth under the age of 23 were killed in Honduras during the month of November despite a presidential promise the murders would stop, according to a Casa Alianza press release.

In addition to the new murders, none of the 15 child-murder cases under investigation by the three-month old Child Murder Investigative Unit of the Ministry of Public Security three months ago has been solved, the organization says.

Since the special police unit was formed, another 159 children and youth were murdered.

More than half of the child victims were killed in Tegucigalpa, while San Pedro Sula, the second largest
city, hosted 10 murders.

As in previous months, 90% of the killings were with guns and the rest with knives, said Casa Alianza. More than 60% of the murderers are "unknown" where the cases have not been investigated sufficiently to identify the perpetrators. November, 37% (17) of the killings are attributed to gang members in what is an escalating social problem local authorities have been unable to control.

Forty-two (91%) of the November victims were males and four (9%) females and 59% were 18 years of age or younger, Casa Alianza said. One of the young victims was a National Policeman, but 70% of the children and youth were either students or unemployed.

"The government's efforts to stop the killings of children and youth have, to date, failed", said Bruce Harris, Latin America Director for Casa Alianza. "Whilst there may be some political will, the situation is seemingly out of control and children are the victims."

Since January 1998, when Casa Alianza started keeping records, a total of 1,504 children and youth have been murdered. Less than 4% of the cases have reached the level of conviction.

After the Oct. 7 promise by Honduran President Ricardo Maduro to use "whatever (State) resources are necessary to stop the killing of children," Casa Alianza requested a doubling of the number of police investigators from five to 10. The actual number of investigators has been reduced to four.

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