| COSTA RICA: NEW LEADER, NEW IMAGE |
| Written by Maria Elena Salinas |
| Tuesday, January 31 2006 |
| |
| Costa Rica is often called the Switzerland of Central America. Like Switzerland, it is a small, mountainous country with no military, is at peace with its neighbors and is a magnet for tourists. At one time, Costa Rica even had political integrity and stability. But these similarities to the Swiss began to fade a few years ago, when three former Costa Rican presidents became embroiled in nasty corruption scandals.
Now, Oscar Arias is trying to change the political landscape of Costa Rica. The former Costa Rican president, who served from 1986 to 1990, is hoping to restore his nation's clean-cut political image by running for the presidency once again. Arias is one of 14 presidential candidates running in elections scheduled for Feb. 5.
You might remember Arias as the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for helping find peaceful solutions to bloody conflicts in neighboring Nicaragua and El Salvador. A recent poll shows that Arias, of the opposition National Liberation Party, is heavily favored to win the election, with 45.5 percent of the vote. Ottón Solís, of the Citizen Action party, got 24.1 percent, while Otto Guevara, of the Libertarian Movement, came in third place with 15 percent. The tiny nation has 54 political parties.
Three of Arias' successors have been tarnished by controversy. Rafael Angel Calderon was charged with taking kickbacks from a Finnish government loan that was intended to be used for the purchase of medical supplies. Miguel Angel Rodriguez is accused of demanding a commission for helping in a multimillion-dollar telecommunications deal. The allegations forced him to step down as head of the Organization of American States shortly after assuming the position. Both former presidents are free on bail pending their trials. A third ex-
president, Jose Maria Figueres, confessed to having received money from a French cell-phone company. He is exiled in Switzerland.
The present head of state, Abel Pacheco, has also had his share of problems. He has not only faced a series of protests from public employees, teachers and farmers, as well as those who are against the Central American Free Trade Agreement, but he has also had to respond to a few improprieties, including questionable fundraising practices during his 2002 campaign.
One of the main problems facing the election is the apathy of the electorate. Research data show that only 51 percent of Costa Ricans intend to cast ballots. And while that might sound like a high number in the United States, where low voter turnout is common, in Costa Rica it could be the lowest voter turnout in 50 years. Voter participation has gone down from 80 percent in 1994 to 70 percent in 1998 and 68 percent in 2002. Experts attribute the lack of interest to poor confidence in politicians and confusion about where candidates stand on the issues.
Since leaving the presidency 16 years ago, Arias has been involved in several international peace efforts with his Arias Foundation for Peace and Human Progress. He has had success as a mediator and leader outside Costa Rica's borders. Now, if he can hang on to his lead and win, he may find himself using his skills to bring peace to the political turmoil gripping his own tiny nation.
*** |
