The Tico Times Online Daily Page

Daily Edition: San José, Costa Rica, January 22, 2003

KEEPING AN EYE OUT FOR TROUBLE: Government investigates crocodile poaching in north. Story below.
-AFP

Pacheco: ICE Not for Sale
President Abel Pacheco denied rumors yesterday that the upcoming free-trade agreement between Central America and the U.S. (CAFTA) would require Costa Rica to privatize the Costa Rican Electricity and Telecom Institution (ICE).
(Click for more)

Street Kids Ousted from Home
After spending only three months on spacious property donated by an anonymous source, five former street kids taken under the wing of the Humanitarian Foundation are once again forced to find new housing this week.
(Click for more)

Government Investigates Crocodile Poachers
Environment Minister Carlos Manuel Rodriguez yesterday announced the government will investigate last week's killing of several dozen crocodiles and turtles on the banks of the Caño Negro River, near the northern border town of Upala, and punish the poachers found responsible.
(Click for more)

January 22

Democrats Abroad Monthly Meeting
Democrats Abroad of Costa Rica will have as their guest speaker Gail Nystrom, founder of the "Costa Rican Humanitarian Foundation" at their monthly meeting, Mon., Jan. 27 (see story below).

The meeting will be held at the Gran Hotel Costa Rica with a business meeting at 11:00 a.m., a buffet lunch at noon and speaker at 12:45 p.m.

For information and required lunch reservations (¢3.000 for members and ¢3.500 for guests) please contact Dorothy Sagel at 249-1856 or Jerry Karl at 232-7048 no later than Thurs., January 23, 2003. All in the community are welcome for the buffet lunch, and speaker.

Those who would like to donate to Gail Nystrom's Humanitarian Foundation may bring canned goods to collect after the meeting.

Reserve Your Seat for the Play
Don’t miss the play "La Pluma Que Araña el Corazón de la Vida," a satire about the dream of unifying the world, Fri.-Sun., Jan. 24-26, 8 p.m., at Laurence Olivier Theater, Av. 2, Ca. 28, 222-1034, 223-1960.

Enjoy the Best of the Amusement Park
Parque de Diversiones offers a promotional fee of ¢2,500. Everyone can use the rights as many times as wished through February 2. Info: 253-5518.

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Pacheco: ICE Not for Sale
By Fabián Borges
Tico Times Staff

President Abel Pacheco denied rumors yesterday that the upcoming free-trade agreement between Central America and the U.S. (CAFTA) would require Costa Rica to privatize the Costa Rican Electricity and Telecom Institution (ICE).

Pacheco stressed he would refuse to sign any agreement requiring privatization.

"I have no intention of selling ICE," Pacheco told reporters following yesterday's Cabinet meeting. "If they require us to sell ICE to be part of the agreement, then we won't take part in it. It's that simple."

The President also sharply criticized groups planning a march in protest of the trade negotiations, reiterating that there's nothing to oppose because nothing has been negotiated yet.

"We're going to negotiate something that could be very good for Costa Rica," Pacheco said. "It won't be bad for the country because if it doesn't work for us, we just won't sign it."

Both Pacheco and Foreign Trade Minister Alberto Trejos repeated what they believe to be the potential benefits of the treaty.

"We're talking about a treaty that could be very positive for the country," Trejos said. "We live in a country where half the workforce is involved in export-related activities, and half of what we export goes to the U.S.

"This is an important matter that needs to be addressed carefully with great attention to detail," he continued. "We're negotiating for all of Costa Rica."

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Street Kids Ousted from Home
By Amanda Schoenberg
aschoenberg@ticotimes.net

After spending only three months on spacious property donated by an anonymous source, five former street kids taken under the wing of the Humanitarian Foundation are once again forced to find new housing this week.

OUT OF A HOME: Former street kids will have to look for new residence.
photo/TT

The property's owner informed foundation director Gail Nystrom this weekend that the children would have to leave as soon as possible, following an incident in which one of the kids allegedly stole a power tool.

Until yesterday, the five children lived in a large two-bedroom house in Ciudad Colón, 25 km west of San José, complete with pool and a manicured backyard. Two couples and their children also lived on the property and cared for the former street kids.

Nystrom's relationship with the maginalized youth, formerly living in a San José Salvation Army shelter, began in 1999. When the shelter was forced to close in 2001 due to financial problems, Nystrom took the displaced kids into her own home, where they lived until the new house became available (TT, "Weekend," Nov. 22).

Despite this week's disappointing news, Nystrom remains confident that she will be able to find another house for the children; but she is asking for assistance from those in a position to help. The ideal setup would be a large property with at least two homes, one for the children and another for the caretakers, she said.

The Humanitarian Foundation is looking for financial help to purchase the home.

"[The situation] was painful at first, but this is the way life works sometimes," said Nystrom. "The kids are handling it well. They know that I am not going to abandon them."

For more information, contact Nystrom at 390-4192 or gnystrom@racsa.co.cr.

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Government Investigates Crocodile Poachers
By Fabián Borges
Tico Times Staff

Environment Minister Carlos Manuel Rodriguez yesterday announced the government will investigate last week's killing of several dozen crocodiles and turtles on the banks of the Caño Negro River, near the northern border town of Upala, and punish the poachers found responsible.

Upala police discovered the reptile graveyard while investigating a recent series of local cattle robberies.

Several witnesses have attested to seeing between four and six armed men roaming the area, as well as two boats carrying trammel nets and harpoons docked at the river mouth.

At the site of the killings, police found bottles of Nicaraguan rum and cigarette packets not sold in Costa Rica, leading them to believe the culprits arrived from Nicaragua.

The exact number of crocodiles killed is still unknown, but officials fear it could be more than 100.

Warm summer weather causes the crocodiles' natural wetland habitat to drain, forcing most of the population to gather near the mouth of the river, where they become easy targets for poachers.

"President Abel Pacheco has personally insisted that we follow through on this matter until we can establish who was responsible," Rodriguez told reporters yesterday. "Additional personnel will be transferred to the area to make sure this doesn't happen again."

Officials have little to go on so far, and say it's likely the poachers are already back in Nicaragua, where they'll make huge profits by selling the crocodile skins to local artisans to make purses, belts, wallets, and boots.

"Nicaragua's irrational use of natural resources has caused crocodiles in the wetlands near Lake Nicaragua to become virtually extinct," Rodriguez charged. "On the other hand, Costa Rica's conservation efforts have caused the crocodile population on this side of the border to increase significantly."

The scarcity of crocodile leather in Nicaragua has increased prices, making poaching an attractive way to make a living.

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Immigration Detains 68

Immigration authorities detained an additional 68 foreigners from 10 different countries Monday night, bringing the number of those rounded up since Dec. 19 to 227, according to a ministry press release.

This week's detainees -- most of whom are Nicaraguan or Colombian -- were found in hotels, nightclubs, bars, "massage" parlors and on the streets of San José and Central Pacific beach towns.

Immigration director Marco Badilla said approximately 25% of those detained will have to be deported, while others later were able to prove they were in the country legally.

Badilla said the Immigration raids will continue.

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