CHANGES coming: Businesses in the capital, such as thesealong Avenida Central, were supposed to comply with new sizeand height limits on signs this week, in accordance with new cityregulations published earlier this year. The goal of the new rule isto beautify the city by minimizing the visual chaos created by thesigns, according the Municipality of San José. The Chamber ofCommerce, although in agreement with the rule, has asked cityofficials for another month to change the signs without being punished.The city has threatened to shut down businesses that donot comply within five working days of receiving a warning.

THE increasing number of new residentialdevelopment projects in theCentral Valley, experts warn, could soonsaturate the country’s real estate market.In recent years, an increasing numberof Colombian and Venezuelan citizenshave invested in Costa Rican residentialprojects, the daily La República reported.The investors say they chose Costa Ricabecause it offers more stability than theirhome countries, and chose real estatedevelopment projects because of the lackof options offered by the country’s financialsystem, according to the report.These projects have had a largeimpact on the country’s real estate market.Traditionally, Costa Rican developershave acted conservatively, developingsmall projects. The new investors havebeen more ambitious, constructing largegated communities and high-rise apartmentcomplexes in the western San Josésuburbs of Escazú and Santa Ana.The increasing number of residentialprojects has resulted in a drop in the priceof residential real estate. Prices at somecomplexes in the western suburbs havedropped 25-30% during the past year.To counter the risk, developers havebegun pre-selling a portion of the homesbefore beginning construction of projects.In recent years, new financing optionshave become available as a result ofincreased competition between banks anda significant drop in home mortgage rates.However, these residential projects remainoff limits to Costa Ricans who earn lessthan $30,000 a year.Only 5% of Costa Rica’s populationcan afford to buy into these complexes,according to estimates. Houses and apartmentsin these communities sell for$75,000-135,000. In addition, owners arerequired to pay maintenance fees, whichcan be as high as $1,000 a month.

AS the country’s air-traffic controllersentered the third week of their strike, thegovernment stood firm and refused to paythe salaries of the country’s 89 controllersand 36 other striking aviation workers,and a San José judge on Wednesdaydeclared the strike illegal.Public Works and Transport MinisterJavier Chaves said Wednesday that noadvances had been made toward resolvingthe strike. He urged the controllers tothink about how the strike will financiallyhurt their families.Costa Rica’s controllers have notworked since June 26, demanding a salaryincrease they say the government promisedthem in 1994. Government officials say thecontrollers are demanding more moneythan they are owed (TT, July 2).The U.S. National Air-TrafficControllers Association (NATCA) thisweek expressed solidarity for Costa Rica’scontrollers.In a written statement, NATCA presidentJohn Carr criticized Costa Rican governmentofficials, claiming the decision touse 28 interim controllers from other LatinAmerican nations to keep the airport runningseriously compromises the safety ofaircraft using the nation’s airports.The striking Costa Rican controllersalso claim using one-third the normalamount of controllers, which left thecountry without the assistance of radarfor more than a week (TT, July 9), putsair traffic in “grave danger.”However, Costa Rican Civil Aviationauthorities insist the interim controllersare fully qualified and using them posesno safety hazard. In the meantime, itappears to be business as usual at thecountry’s main airports, with no flightdisruptions reported.

THE clowns are back in town, andthey mean business.This week more than a hundred clownsconverged on the National Culture Centerin San José to study the finer arts of mime,juggling and the comic fall at the ThirdInternational Clown Convention.“This is a convention with the principalpurpose of teaching clowns. There areclasses on unicycle, makeup, body movementand child psychology,” said OscarFlores, 44, one of the organizers.The clowns spent the week attendingworkshops led by Flores, a professionalclown from Mexico, and other leaders inthe field. The workshops took inexperiencedclowns from their profession’sequivalent of Clowning101 to advanceddegrees in everything from mime to magic.Flores said the 110 clowns at the conferenceare mostly from Latin Americancountries, including Costa Rica, PuertoRico, Mexico and Guatemala.FLORES, who goes by the clownname Timmy Bond (“James Bond’scousin”), can’t contain his enthusiasm forclowning around.“This is a profession in which youenjoy yourself, and you get to be in contactwith children, and children have beautifulenergy,” said Flores, who has been a clownfor 26 years. He describes clowning as adifficult profession.“I’d say that out of a hundred clowns Isee, two are going to be good. Becauseeven if they can apply makeup well, ordress well, they may not have the mostimportant thing, an angel in their heart,”Flores said. “And they have to have anability to develop the art of the clown, andthey have to do it all with grace. This iswhy it’s so difficult to be a good clown.”Marta Cedeño of Alajuelita, south ofSan José, is undaunted. This is her secondconvention, but last year she didn’t haveenough experience to participate in all theevents.“I decided to become a clown ten yearsago, but it’s taken me a lot of time becauseI had to take care of my children,” saidCedeño, 40. Her daughter, 22, and son, 17,are both clowns as well, but couldn’tattend the convention.“I’m taking notes for them,” she said.CEDEÑO said she has been a realclown for a year. Family and friends werenot initially supportive of her decision, butshe said her husband’s assistance allowedher to make an investment in a wide arrayof clown gear.“In Costa Rica, clown shoes are¢30,000 ($68), and it’s ¢5000 ($11.36) fora nose,” Cedeño said. “It’s very expensive.”Now that she has committed herself toa life of laughs, Cedeño is glad to be at theconvention.“We are learning to be better clowns.For me it has been a very enriching experience,”she said.PRESIDENT Abel Pacheco and theMinistry of Culture, Youth and Sportsissued a statement in March in support ofthe convention.“Clown theater constitutes a pleasantand caring form of approaching children,as a healthy alternative of fun and entertainment,”the statement read.Clowning, according to Flores, haslong been an important part of society. Itwas born in the Greek plays, and developedamong royalty’s court jesters. Jesterswho displeased their patrons had theirtongues cut out and – voila! – becamemimes.“That’s why we are brothers, themimes and clowns,” Flores said.Flores added that clowns use their costumesto comically represent their culture.“All of this has a cultural and historicalcontext,” Flores said, explaining that thefine clown with a white face and glovessymbolizes the upper class, the colorfulhappy-go-lucky clown the middle class,and the hobo clown – with his painted-onstubble and ragged clothes – the lowerclass.THOUGH Flores plays the tramp, hecertainly isn’t living a sad life.“I have a college degree, but I wouldn’ttrade my career as a clown for anything,”he said. “I chose to be a clownbecause you can learn more about life. Ina traditional career, you have your collegediploma, you have your title, you haveyour company, you sit at your desk, butI’ve been all over the world.”“And most important is that you givelaughter, you give happiness,” he added.“You walk down the street, and peoplegreet you without knowing you. And childrenstop and take your hand, and hug youand say, ‘Hello, clown!’”The week culminates in makeup, costumeand balloon art competitions.This afternoon, the final day of theconvention, the clowns will perform forthe public at 1 p.m., and there will bemagic, games and clown merchandise forsale until 5 p.m. For more info, contactGerardo Leitón at 362-6357.

NEWLY appointed Women’s AffairsMinister Georgina Vargas is not going tolet the fact she is a replacement impede herambitions for the role she hopes to play inher office.Brought in to replace former MinisterEsmeralda Britton, who resigned in lateJune after the revelation of discrepanciesin the use of her personal spending account(TT, June 25), Vargas was appointed byPresident Abel Pacheco on June 30. Herterm ends with Pacheco’s in early 2006.“I feel very committed, and feel I mustgive the best I have for this short time Iwill be minister,” Vargas, 48, said.As head of the National Women’sInstitute (INAMU), Vargas is charged withensuring that Costa Rica continues on apath toward gender equality.SHE has a direct, sincere manner ofspeech that commands attention, and is nostranger to the fight for gender and opportunityequality.From 1996 until her appointment, shewas the president of the Social ChristianWomen’s Front, and in 2003 she served asthe Technical Secretary of Christian-Democrat Women of America for CentralAmerica and the Caribbean. From 1998until her appointment, she worked as theexecutive director of the Association forIdeological Studies – a sub-division of theCosta Rican Institute for Political Studies –where she led the creation of programsdesigned to strengthen youth and community-level leaders.Faced with a domestic violence epidemicthat President Pacheco said inJanuary (TT, Jan. 30) embarrassed CostaRica “before the world and before God,”Vargas told The Tico Times this week shewould address the problem, but that shewould not let intra-familiar violence defineINAMU. She pointed out almost all ofCosta Rica’s ministries are involved instopping it.“THIS is not an institute that willfocus only on domestic violence,” she said.“That’s a theme that cuts across all sectorsof the state.”She mentioned the recent efforts of thePublic Security Ministry to train policeofficers in dealing with domestic violencesituations.“A knife fight between two men ismuch different than a man hitting awoman,” she said.Vargas said she believes one of thekeys to preventing the domestic violencesituation from spiraling out of control hereis instilling values in children at home andat school early on.“If a child sees problems within thehome dealt with by violence, it’s possiblethat the child can think it’s normal,” shesaid.Vargas mentioned the special interinstitutionalcommission created inJanuary in response to a rash of domesticviolence slayings. The group meets at leastmonthly, she said, and one of its main projectsis the nearly five-year bill to penalizeviolence against women (TT, Jan 30), currentlystalled in the Legislative Assembly.VARGAS, married and mother to fourchildren – the youngest 19 – also pledgedto increase awareness regarding otherpotential influences children may bereceiving while they are out of school andparents are working.“What do we do with our sons anddaughters when we leave for work? Inwhose hands do we leave them?”She said Costa Rican women faceother grave problems such as extra-familiarand sexual violence, harassment andpsychological abuse in the workplace, andsalary and credit inequality.Vargas mentioned credit several times,and pointed out that just one percent of theworld’s private land is owned by women.She said INAMU will work with BancoNacional and the Mixed Institute for SocialAid (IMAS) to improve credit and smallbusiness opportunities for women.VARGAS applauded the work that hadbeen done at INAMU before her arrival,saying it set the stage for action by providinga detailed analysis of the condition ofwomen here.“Now it’s time to roll up our sleevesand get to work,” she said.Vargas said she comes from a familywith a history in journalism and that she isnamed after her uncle Jorge Vargas, forwhom Costa Rica’s national journalismprize, awarded annually by the Journalists’Association, is named.

JUST days after a San José court reinstatedthem, members of the board ofdirectors of the Social Security System(Caja) – Costa Rica’s nationalized healthcaresystem – resigned, citing lack of publicsupport for their tenure.An interim board of directors was chosenlast month to temporarily take the placeof the Caja’s board of directors while prosecutorsinvestigate the Caja’s finances (TT,June 11). This week, they were named theinstitution’s permanent board of directors.Board member Horacio Solano, whowas appointed the Caja’s executive presidenton April 21, was among those whoresigned.During his weekly cabinet meeting,President Abel Pacheco named pediatricianAlberto Sáenz, who since last monthhad been serving as interim executivepresident of the Caja, as Solano’s permanentreplacement.Solano says he aims to return to his oldjob as the Caja’s medical director, and willcontinue to cooperate in any way possiblewith ongoing investigations of the Caja.The Judicial Investigative Police (OIJ)and a special Commission of Notables areinvestigating possible financial crimes andcorruption related to contracts and purchasesof medical equipment and pharmaceuticalsupplies, including those involving privatefirm Corporación Fischel S.A. (TT,April 23, May 14).President Abel Pacheco this weekdenied there is a crisis in the country’shealth-care system.“There is no danger, as some fear, thatthere will be problems,” Pacheco said. “Iguarantee you it will continue functioningnormally. I also guarantee the investigationwill continue until it reaches every corner.Rest assured, we have the capability toresolve this. This is not a crisis.”

“DEMOCRACY is not an antidote forcorruption.”Dr. Jorge Malem, law professor at theUniversitat Pompeu Fabra in Barcelona,made this bold statement at the SecondNational Conference Against Corruption inSan José June 29.There, experts took aim at everyone’sfavorite target, government corruption, andaired their complaints and ideas to an audienceof about 200 politicians, reporters,business executives and others.“Countries that have been democraticfor a long time will have a certain level oftransparency,” Malem said, which explainsthe lack of transparency in CentralAmerica because many countries haveendured long dictatorships, civil war andelection-time violence.ROXANA Salazar, president of CostaRica’s chapter of the non-governmentalorganization Transparency International,and the organization’s vice-presidentMario Carazo, expressed disappointmentwith the country’s current political climate.“The lack of commitment and dedication(to fight corruption) from our authoritiesincreases doubt and fosters indifferencein the population,” Carazo said.Salazar pointed to President AbelPacheco’s recent dismissal of the OmbudsmanJosé Manuel Echandi’s yearly “Stateof the Population” report that decried thelack of government transparency. Echandi’sreport derided the government for violatingthe people’s right to access to information,and Pacheco attempted to discredithim by saying the ombudsman has politicalambitions (TT, June 18).MALEM, the invited speaker, suggestededucation and institutional reform asstrong remedies for dishonesty in government.He endorsed democracy, but not as asolution, rather as a condition in whichsolutions can be found.In the fight against corruption, democracyhas a role, he said. “Citizens have a fundamentalduty to use their votes adequately.There are many cases of very corrupt governmentsthat were elected into office.”The vote, however, is not the decidingfactor.“People learn from their leaders,” hesaid. “When leaders are corrupt, peoplelearn corruption.”Corruption imposes poverty, inefficiencyand injustice, he continued, and itthrives where there is inequality in powerand finances.“THE role of impunity is very important.If the corrupt are not punished, thenbreaking rules doesn’t have a price,” he said.Corruption is not confined to governmentsand the powerful, the conference’sspeakers stressed.Corruption rears its head on familynights at the local soda, for example, whenthe cashier asks whether the customerwould like to pay with or without a receipt.Paying without a receipt saves thebother of paying sales taxes, but, as OmbudsmanEchandi pointed out in his openingaddress at the conference, the governmentis in debt and needs that money.CORRUPTION is not just an aspectof underdeveloped countries, Malem said.It extends around the globe. One of themore corrupt countries, he told The TicoTimes, is the United States.“In the United States there is corruptionin business, in the judicial branch,there is corruption at all levels. Now thatU.S. businesses are entering Iraq, younotice the direct connections between themand the government.”Considering that the United States hasbeen a democracy for more than 200 yearsand there is a strong system of education inplace, what could be the problem?“It is not a good example of a democracy,”Malem said. Leaders are elected by30% of the voting population, and someelections are not quite clean, Malem said,pointing to the past presidential election.“CORPORATIONS control powerat all levels – one has doubts about themagnificent democracy of the UnitedStates,” he said.Transparency International officials andMalem both cited Finland as a model ofhonesty in the public and private sectors.“It is one of the countries that have thesmallest amount of corruption, and it’s notsurprising that it also has the best educationsystem in the world,” Malem said.Education has advantages over traditionalweapons against corruption such asprevention, control and punishment, hesaid, because it is cheaper and has othereffects that are also valuable.Malem said he recommends a kind of moraleducation to supplement traditional technicaltraining, as a way to help quell corruption.

THE Costa Rican economy is in goodshape and has the potential to continuegrowing, but major reforms are necessaryfor that to happen, said Agustín Carstens,deputy managing director of the InternationalMonetary Fund (IMF) during aroutine visit to the country this week.During his visit, Carstens met withPresident Abel Pacheco and members ofthe government’s economic team.Carstens called Costa Rica a “pillar” ofdemocratic tradition and a “role model” forother countries in the region.“Costa Rica has maintained solid economicgrowth despite the recent downturnin the regional and global economy – asymptom of its resistance and great growthpotential,” Carstens said during a pressconference Monday afternoon.“DURING the past decade, the countryhas been successful at diversifying itsexport base and attracting foreign investment.Solid institutions, high educationlevels and a strategy based on exportgrowth constitute important elements inthis effort,” he saidAmong Latin American countries,Carstens said, Costa Rica is the one closestto meeting the United Nation’s MillenniumDevelopment Goals – eradicating extremepoverty and hunger, achieving universal primaryeducation, promoting gender equality,reducing the infant mortality, improving andexpanding basic health care and ensuringenvironmental sustainability.HOWEVER, several crucial reforms,such as the approval of the much-delayedtax reform package being debated by theLegislative Assembly (TT, July 9), theCentral American Free-Trade Agreement(CAFTA) with the United States andreforms aimed at strengthening and furtherliberalizing its financial sector, need to beimplemented, he said.To help the country make the recommendedreforms, the IMF has offered toprovide the country with technical assistanceon tax policy, financial reform andother matters.“Looking ahead, Costa Rica’s perspectivesare favorable. However, there are importantchallenges to face,” Carstensexplained. “Adopting an integral reformagenda is a fundamental step in takingadvantage of Costa Rica’s considerablegrowth potential and making it possible tocontinue with its impressive record ofsocial progress.”The tax reforms would help reduce thecountry’s spiraling fiscal deficit, graduallyreducing the percentage of the government’sbudget used to pay interest on foreigndebt and increasing the amount ofmoney available for the country’s socialwelfare needs. Ultimately, the tax reformwould help reduce inflation and strengthenthe country’s economy, he said.Lower inflation, he added, would benefitto the country’s financial sector. Carstenssaid low inflation would make investors lesslikely to choose dollars over colones wheninvesting. The spontaneous and unregulated“dollarization” of Costa Rica’s economy is asource of concern for both the IMF and theCentral Bank (see separate story).To improve the efficiency of the country’sfinancial system, measures must betaken to “level the playing field” betweenpublic and private banks, he recommended.CARSTENS called CAFTA “a vehicleto attract foreign investment, increaseexports and obtain economic growth” andrecommended the country approve it,despite the negative political climate itfaces in the United States (TT, June 4).In his opinion, if Costa Rica approvesCAFTA soon, it would send a positivemessage to potential investors that it iscommitted to building a better investmentclimate.He cited the example of what happenedin Mexico shortly before the NorthAmerican Free-Trade Agreement (NAFTA).Despite what appeared to be a lack ofsupport for NAFTA in the United States,Mexico moved forward with the trade pact.This prompted several U.S. firms set up shopin Mexico before NAFTA became a reality,and this created thousands of jobs, he said.Carstens, 46, is a Mexican citizen. Heholds a PhD in Economics from theUniversity of Chicago.From 1999-2000, Carstens served asan executive director at the IMF (representingCosta Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala,Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua,Spain and Venezuela).In August 2003, he was named deputymanaging director, the second-highestpost at the IMF.

ANALYSTS say low incentives forinvesting in colones could prompt CostaRican investors to take their money out ofthe country or invested in other currencies.This could reduce the Central Bank’smonetary reserves and threaten the country’seconomic stability, the daily LaNación reported.Investments in bonds and savingaccounts in colones on average onlyaward investors 3.3% a year in interests.The reward for investing is the additionalprofit in percentage points that financialentities award investors who invest incolones, compared to what they wouldreceive if they invest in another currency– in most cases the U.S. dollar.The Central Bank calculates the figurebased on the interest rate of six-monthgovernment or Central Bank colón debtbonds. The devaluation rate of the colónis subtracted and the amount is then comparedto the interest paid by U.S. Treasurybills for the same length of time.Since the beginning of 2003, thereward for investing in colones hasremained low, at an average of 3% duringthe entire year.According to Valentín Fonseca, managerof private bank Banco Cathay, wheninvestors perceive macroeconomic stability,they prefer to invest in colones.However, as a result of uncertainty overthe future of the Central American Free-Trade Agreement (CAFTA) with theUnited States and the Permanent FiscalReform Package, investors are showing apreference for investing in dollars.The economic uncertainty perceivedby investors is made worse by the highinflation rate reported in recent months,Fonseca said. The Consumer Price Indexincreased by 6.26% during the first sixmonths of the year.

FISCAL austerity is critical ifCentral American countries are to avoida crisis caused by their high levels offoreign debt, warned international ratingsagency Fitch Ratings, the daily LaRepública reported.The size of the debt (as a percentage ofthe gross domestic product) is consideredhigh in every Central American countryexcept Guatemala. The amount ofPanamanian foreign debt bonds in circulationis also considered high. Costa Ricanand Salvadoran bonds are increasing.This trend can only be reducedthrough increased tax collection, accordingto Fitch. Fitch also cited the need foradditional structural reforms and investmentin infrastructure as a way toimprove the region’s competitiveness.Strengthened financial sectors were recommendedas a way to improve the efficiencyof issuing of credit.Costa Rica’s debt is expected to beequal to 22.2% of its GDP in 2004, up from19.8% in 2000. Guatemala’s debt is expectedto reach 14.5% of its GDP this year, upfrom 13.7%. Honduras and Nicaragua havethe highest debt rations, 69.8% and 84.9%of their GDPs, respectively.