CELEBRATING a National Hero: Schoolchildren yesterday enjoyed a parade in downtown Alajuela, northwest of San José, in honor of Juan Santamaría, a Costa Rican hero who died in battle against William Walker's troops in 1856. President Oscar Arias also paid a visit to Alajuela yesterday to hold his weekly Cabinet meeting and announce plans to build a new university there.

President Oscar Arias and his Cabinet members visited the city of Alajuela, northwest of San José, in honor of Juan Santamaría Day yesterday and announced several plans in the works to improve the province of the same name, according to a statement from Casa Presidencial.

Live Music
BB Zúñiga and Brian Burback perform, 6 p.m., The Crazy Monkey Bar, Tamarindo, and Friday, 6 p.m., Best Western, Tamarindo, northwestern Guanacaste province.

Gala Opera Recital de Gala Lírica
By the Opera de Cámara de Costa Rica, performing works by Bizet, Puccini, Rossini, Verdi and Donizetti, 8 p.m., National Theater, San José . Info: 221-5341, http://www.teatronacional.go.cr/

By Amanda Roberson
Tico Times Staff | aroberson@ticotimes.net

International wildlife conservationists were pleased yesterday to hear that pressuring Nicaragua to oppose commercial whaling paid off. That country's Foreign Ministry announced yesterday that it will join others in voting against Japan's plans to resume the hunting of whales.

Nicaragua “assumes the commitment to hold up the moratorium on the hunting of these marine mammals,” reads a statement posted on its Foreign Ministry's Web site.

Environmental nonprofits allied under the Costa Rican Coalition for Whales are “very pleased” with Nicaragua's decision, said Luis Diego Marín, president of the Association for the Preservation of Wild Flora and Fauna (APREFLOFAS), one of 14 groups belonging to the coalition.

The same activists who earlier this year called for Costa Rica to take action against commercial whaling yesterday gathered outside the Nicaraguan Consulate in San José. Nicaragua is another one of the commission's smaller countries that Japan was wooing to vote in favor of its hunting plans, Marín said.

Carrying black paper signs shaped like whale fins with the letters RIP, protestors chanted “ Nicaragua, vote no to whale hunting!” while a few representatives met with Nicaraguan Ambassador Harold Rivas.

Rivas let them know of his country's decision to vote against whaling, Marín said.

Costa Rica recently squared away debts with the International Whaling Commission to be able to vote against Japan's plans to resume commercial whaling during a critical election the commission plans to hold in May in the U.S. state of Alaska. Private organizations paid the necessary funds to ensure Costa Rica's participation (TT, Feb. 16).

The group now plans to shift its focus to Colombia, which has not yet joined other Latin American countries in announcing plans to oppose whaling. These migratory mammals provide a source of income in communities were tourists go to see them, conservationists say.

By Amanda Roberson
Tico Times Staff | aroberson@ticotimes.net

Officials from the Ministry of Public Works and Transport (MOPT) yesterday discovered 150 meters of stolen cable to be the culprit of about 40 malfunctioning traffic lights around downtown San José, according to MOPT spokesman Omar Segura.

The missing cable caused a short circuit behind the Universal Bookstore on Ave. 1, he said. Workers have repaired this circuit but are still working on fixing lights at several intersections around the city, mostly in the northern and southern areas.

The problem has been causing confusion and traffic jams around the city since last week, with some traffic lights turned off and others flashing the same color to drivers headed different directions at intersections.

The ministry encourages drivers to report lights that are still not functioning properly by calling 523-2000 from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. and 523-2544 after 3:30 p.m. Those with any information about cable theft should report it to 911, according to a statement from MOPT.

President Oscar Arias and his Cabinet members visited the city of Alajuela, northwest of San José, in honor of Juan Santamaría Day yesterday and announced several plans in the works to improve the province of the same name, according to a statement from Casa Presidencial.

The government plans to invest ¢2 billion ($3.8 million) in the creation of a new public Alajuela Technical University, the President said.

“It's time that Alajuela had a university and, more importantly, that it is a technical university,” Arias said during his weekly Cabinet meeting, held at the birthplace of Juan Santamaría in honor of this national hero.

Education Minister Leonardo Garnier said creating a university in Alajuela will generate jobs and development in the province. Additionally, he remarked on the ministry's delegation of ¢430 million ($826,923) for badly needed infrastructure repairs to other schools in Alajuela.

Other members of the President's Cabinet also had things to brag about to the citizens of Alajuela. Vice-Minister of Public Works and Transport Viviana Martín said her ministry is investing ¢5 billion ($9.6 million) in roads, while Public Health Minister María Luisa Avila talked about expansion of the Alajuela hospital and creation of new health centers.

In terms of fighting crime in Alajuela, Public Security Minister Fernando Berrocal said the province recently gained 38 police officers and that he hopes to soon add 30 more.

“It's no secret to anyone that delinquency is one of the problems that must be attacked with the most force by authorities,” he said.

Finally, Culture Minister María Elena Carballo announced plans to create a music school in Alajuela similar to the one in San José that offers classes to more than 800 students.