Daily Edition: San José, Costa Rica, September 26, 2005
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Three Killed in Heavy Rains
Three people have died, among them a 10-year old boy, as a result of the heavy rains that inundated the country, particularly the Pacific coast, this weekend. In addition, approximately 700 people have been evacuated.
(Click for more)
SETENA Suspends Approval
of Projects in National Park
The battle over Las Baulas National Marine Park intensified Friday as the Environment Ministry announced no approvals of environmental viability will be given to development projects in the park, effectively halting construction there.
(Click for more)
Legislator Rejects
Insinuations of War Over River
National Liberation Party legislator Luis Ramírez said yesterday Costa Rica rejects any insinuations of war from Nicaragua regarding Costa Rican navigation on the San Juan River, which lies between the two countries.
(Click for more)
September 26
Fotoveritas Talks and Film Forums
Workshop on Pinhole Cameras led by Mexican photographer Carlos Jurado; opens today and ends Sept. 30. Info: 283-4747.
Poetry Presentation
Professor Marta Rojas presents her poetry book, “Inhabit the Treasure House,” tonight at the University of Costa Rica 's School of Modern Languages auditorium, San Pedro Campus.
Icaro Festival
A variety of documentaries, short films, animated films and a full-length movie, Sept. 26-28, 7 p.m. at Cine Variedades, Ca. 5, Av. Ctrl./1, ¢1,000. Info: 222-9329.
Edited By Rebecca Kimitch
Tico Times Staff
rkimitch@ticotimes.net
Three people have died, among them a 10-year old boy, as a result of the heavy rains that inundated the country, particularly the Pacific coast, this weekend. In addition, approximately 700 people have been evacuated.
The victims include Bayron Meléndez, 10, who drowned Saturday when a car he was in fell into a river in Liberia, in the northwest province of Guancaste, according to the Red Cross. Two adults in the car were rescued.
The second victim is Mario Hidalgo, 47, who was swept away by a strong current in the Cañas River in Quepos, on the central Pacific coast.
Rescuers have also found an unidentified body, which reportedly fell Saturday into the Paraíso River, in Tarrazú, 70 kilometers southeast of San José.
In addition, the National Emergency Commission (CNE) has attended to 696 people, in 15 temporary shelters, who were evacuated because of the rain.
The heavy rains have affected a total of 97 communities and damaged 53 stretches of highway and 27 bridges, according to the latest information from the CNE.
The CNE maintained last night a red alert for the canton of Aguirre, in the central Pacific, especially the community of Quepos, where 19 communities flooded.
A yellow alert was maintained for the cantons of Hojancha, Carrillo, Nandayure, Nicoya and Santa Cruz, in Guanacaste, and on the Pacific slope.
At press time, the National Meteorological Institute expected conditions to improve.
President Abel Pacheco announced yesterday he will not go to Nicaragua today to attend a summit between Central American countries and Taiwan in order to visit regions affected by the heavy rains.
“Despite the importance of the summit, it is a larger priority to tend to this situation of our countrymen who are living in anguish in the affected zones,” Pacheco said in an official statement.
Pacheco will visit the southern and northern Pacific region.
Early estimates conclude the damages caused by the strong rains could exceed $20 million, according to the official statement.
– ACAN-EFE
SETENA Suspends Approval
of Projects in National Park
By Rebecca Kimitch
Tico Times Staff
rkimitch@ticotimes.net
The battle over Las Baulas National Marine Park intensified Friday as the Environment Ministry announced no approvals of environmental viability will be given to development projects in the park, effectively halting construction there.
While the coastal park, in the northwest province of Guanacaste, boasts some of the world's most important beaches for leatherback turtle nesting, it is also home to million-dollar houses, hotels and other development, and remains 100% in private hands.
Although the park was made a decade ago, the Environment Ministry (MINAE) only this year started the expropriations process on five properties, seeking to return the lots to their natural state in order to reduce human impact on turtles (TT, July 8).
In April, a case advocating the park's protection and demanding more timely expropriation of properties was filed before the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Sala IV) by international environmental groups. The court said no construction permits could be granted while it studied the case (TT, April 15).
Friday's announcement makes a halt on construction more permanent by suspending the study and approval of environmental viability – necessary for construction – on any projects located in the park.
The ministry claims it is a, “fragile area, necessary for the protection of species in critical danger of extinction, such as the leatherback turtle,” according to the statement released Friday.
According to scientists, during the 1988-1989 nesting season 1,367 females turtles entered the park. That number dropped to 48 female turtles during the 2004-2005 nesting season.
But property owners maintain that their land is not in fact part of the park, and never has been, and that well-planned development will not hurt the turtle population.
While MINAE maintains the park is made up of the 75 meters just beyond the 50-meter public zone – protected by law from development up and down Costa Rica 's coasts – people living in the zone say otherwise.
Discrepancies on how the law creating the park was written have prompted the confusion.
Furthermore, homeowners in the area, along with Universidad Nacional biology professor Freddy Pacheco, say the threat to leatherbacks is not on nesting beaches. Pacheco promotes “low-density” sustainable development, including height and light restrictions that will not affect nesting. He says the tragic decline of the leatherback population has happened at sea, during their migrations, at the hands of longline and net fishermen. Investments should be made on that end, not in expropriations of expensive beach properties, he says.
Despite these arguments, MINAE said Friday their decision will stand, unless the Sala IV rules otherwise.
Meanwhile, Pacheco is lobbying Costa Rica 's ambassador to the United Nations, Bruno Stagno, to take forceful steps to reduce the impact of longline fishing on turtle migrations when the United Nations begins discussion Oct. 6 of marine life protection.
Pacheco maintains that the Pacific leatherback sea turtle cold go extinct in 5-30 years if the threat of longline fishing is not reduced.
Legislator Rejects Insinuations of War Over River
National Liberation Party legislator Luis Ramírez said yesterday Costa Rica rejects any insinuations of war from Nicaragua regarding Costa Rican navigation on the San Juan River, which lies between the two countries.
“They won't frighten us with the soldiers they have on the other side of the river ( San Juan ). Our proposal is to continue dialogue while at the same time turn to the Court in The Hague (the International Court of Justice),” Ramírez told ACAN-EFE.
Ramírez leads a group of 15 Costa Rican legislators from different parties who sent a letter to President Abel Pacheco requesting he take the matter of Costa Rican navigation rights on the San Juan River, which belongs to Nicaragua, to the International Court of Justice.
In response to the letter, Nicaraguan legislator Enrique Quiñónez of the ruling Liberal Constitutionalist Party said his country would apply a “patriotic tax” of 35% on Costa Rican products and would even resort to using arms to “defend the country's sovereignty.”
“These declarations reveal the way they (the Nicaraguans) deal with the issue. There is a problem, but this is blackmail they won't be able to apply” as a result of different international laws that govern trade, Ramírez said. “It's more natural for them to talk about war. We don't accept anything that had to do with armed conflict.”
In 2001, the Nicaragua government prohibited armed Costa Rican police from patrolling the San Juán. The river, which serves as the border between both countries for more than 100 kilometers, belongs to Nicaragua. However, Costa Ricans maintain the right to freely navigate on it for commercial reasons, according to existing border agreements.
The International Court of Justice gave the countries 12 months to reach an agreement. If such an agreement was not reached, the court would resolve the dispute. However, one month before the Sept. 26, 2002 deadline expires, both countries agreed to a truce and opted to continue dialogue on the matter for an additional three years.
The truce expires today.
In the letter addressed to Pacheco, the legislators state that the truce was declared “stepping on the interests of Costa Ricans” and request considering arbitration or any other method of solving the dispute.
In addition, they requested the President “not abandon in any way the defense of Costa Rican rights over the San Juan River ” and set a 30 day deadline for the President to file the dispute before the court.
A spokesman for the Costa Rican Foreign Ministry told ACAN-EFE that the institution would not issue a statement of the matter.
– ACAN-EFE
Daily News | Home | Top Story | Business News | Central American News
Editorial Cartoon | Weekend | Exchange Rates | Fishing | Culture | Classified Ads
Display Ads | Subscribe! | Travel Guide | Archives | Links | About Us | Newsstand Locations
Contact Us