Bus Drivers Threaten to Strike
Due to the hike of international gas prices in recent months, Costa Rican bus drivers are threatening to go on strike staring Wednesday unless the government increases bus fares by 15%, according to union leaders.
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Feminist Group Files Case Against Nica Government
Less than a week after the Nicaraguan Prosecutor's Office announced it would not pursue legal action against family of a 9-year-old rape victim or the doctors who performed her controversial Feb.
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Pacheco Prepares for Road Trip
President Abel Pacheco and his four Central American counterparts will travel to Washington, D.C. April 11 to meet with U.S. President George W. Bush to discuss advances in the negotiating rounds of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA), according to the Casa Presidencial.
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Cooking Classes
Taught by chef Isabel Campabadal March 10, 12, 6:30 p.m.; March 11, 13, 8:30 a.m., 2 p.m. Info: 224-5803, 384-0286.

Ibero-American Digital-Movie Production Festival
Open tonight, at 6 p.m. with the film "Tuve un Sueños Contigo," (I Dreamed about You) by Chilean Gonzálo Justiniano at the José Figueres Ferrer Cultural Center, San Ramón, Alajuela. Info: 447-2178.

Belly Dance Show
Bernal Monestel invites everyone to enjoy the presentation of Canadian group ASHMIRA DANCE THEATER with music by
ARABIKA in Jazz Café, San Pedro. Info: 253-8933.

Bus Drivers Threaten to Strike

Due to the hike of international gas prices in recent months, Costa Rican bus drivers are threatening to go on strike staring Wednesday unless the government increases bus fares by 15%, according to union leaders.

"There is going to come a moment when the buses are going to stop running because we don't have the money to buy gas," said Maritza Hernández, president of the National Transportation Chamber. "We are not asking for a fare increase because we want to, but because we truly need to in order to continue working."

International gas prices have continued to climb in recent months due to the continued crises in Venezuela and the threat of a U.S. war on Iraq. The Costa Rican Oil Refinery (RECOPE) has made several price adjustments at the pump this year, and has announced a National Emergency Plan -- including measures to restrict consumption of gasoline and limited circulation of vehicles -- that will be implemented in the event a war on Iraq shoots international oil prices over $40 a barrel (TT, Jan. 10).

"The only thing we are asking is that the government be aware of the situation that we are in and that it look for quick solution to a problem that will ultimately effect the entire country," said San José bus driver Alex Alvarez.
-AFP

Feminist Group Files Case Against Nica Government

Less than a week after the Nicaraguan Prosecutor's Office announced it would not pursue legal action against family of a 9-year-old rape victim or the doctors who performed her controversial Feb. 20 abortion, the Managua-based feminist organization Women Against Violence announced last Friday it is filing a criminal complaint against the Nicaraguan government for trying to impede the abortion, reported AFP.

The group's announcement is part of the continued international fallout -- including an excommunication movement and accusations of malpractice and government negligence in Costa Rica and Nicaragua-- surrounding the rape, pregnancy and abortion of a Nicaraguan campesinos' daughter known by the pseudonym "Rosa" (TT Daily Page, Jan. 3, 10, 17; Feb. 10, 12, 17, 19, 24; TT Feb. 21, 28; Mar. 7).

The feminist group filed the complaint with the Nicaraguan Attorney General's Office, claiming the government's refusal to support an abortion jeopardized the young rape victim's life. Rosa ultimately had the procedure done in secrecy in a private Managua health clinic.

Meanwhile, in Costa Rica Caribbean-slope town of Turrialba, 20-year-old Tico rape suspect Alex Barquero remains in custody. Turrialba's Public Prosecutor Olga Velasquez told The Tico Times last Friday that a trial date is expected to be set within the next month.