No protests against President Chinchilla in Guanacaste celebration

No major incidents deterred President Laura Chinchilla from celebrating the 188th anniversary of the annexation of the Northwestern province of Guanacaste.

Nicoya Mayor Marco Antonio Jiménez, who did not participate the celebration, had announced days ago that civil groups would be on the streets“ in protest against government neglect of the province.” But this did not occur.

During the celebration, president Chinchilla signed a decree to declare top priority “a project for the full electrification of the province.”

The only protests were peacefully conducted in the cantons of Cóbano, Paquera and Lepanto, where people are asking the Legislative Assembly to have a referendum, which would allow the communities to choose whether they belonged to the province of Puntarenas or that of Guanacaste.

Chinchilla said that the project is of high interest for her administration, but in order to be more forward, her government  need to negotiate with lawmaker Agnes Gómez (National Liberation Party) to withdraw some 500 motions filed against the project.

On July 25, 1824, the province or “Partido de Nicoya,” residents voted to make the region today known as Guanacaste, part of Costa Rica.