President Arias Still Below 50% in Costa Rica [much lower support for CAFTA]

[arcos]

Sadly, this is the headline that Angus-Reid chose. The really important news about this poll, is the drop in support for CAFTA.
In September 2006, 51% of respondents thought CAFTA would bring positive effects to Costa Rica, but in February, this dropped to just 37%, a huge 14% drop. In the same way, in September 26% thought it would bring "bad" or "really bad" effects, and 30% think so now.
In the same way, 35% say the treaty should be approved, 31% think it should to be discussed, and 26% think it should be rejected, which shows, again, a huge drop in support since previous polls had approval at over 45%.

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President Arias Still Below 50% in Costa Rica

Support for Costa Rican president Óscar Arias remains under the 50 per cent mark, according to a poll by Unimer released by La Nación. 45 per cent of respondents rate the president’s performance as good or very good, down two points since September.

<snip>

Costa Rica belongs to a group of Central American countries plus the Dominican Republic that signed the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) with the United States. However, Costa Rica remains the only nation that has failed to ratify the treaty. The issue is polarizing the Central American country, where numerous demonstrations against the CAFTA take place regularly. Arias himself supports the treaty.

On Mar. 10, former Costa Rican president Rafael Ángel Calderón—who governed from 1990 to 1994—announced he would become a candidate in the 2010 presidential election. Calderón spent a year in preventive prison and house arrest for his alleged involvement in an embezzlement case, but has never been formally accused of wrongdoing.

<snip>

http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/index.cfm/fuseaction/viewItem/itemID/15052

[arcos]

1. kick for CAFTA! (or against, I should say) nt

[Judi Lynn]

2. I wonder how many people only read the headlines, too! Saves a whole lot of time, doesn't it?

You've probably noticed articles in which the headline was misleading, and occassionally had almost nothing at all to do with story.

It's very important people realized Costa Rica has NOT ratified the treaty. Good for Costa Rica. That takes courage for a small country considering the heavy pressure _Bush is able to use against anyone who doesn't grovel for him and his dirty administration.

[arcos]

4. It's amazing...

And that's particularly true when the news story is about Latin America.

In this particular case, the headline was appropiate for the story. But the REAL story was not published in Angus Reid, the juicy CAFTA-related details of the poll that were published in La Nación (right winger as you know). Arias's approval rating is barely unchanged and within the margin of error, but the percentage of people who think CAFTA should be approved dropped, as well as those who think CAFTA will bring mostly positive effects.

Most interesting is, this poll was taken a few days before the huge march 3 weeks ago. Probably by this time, and for the first time ever, most people oppose CAFTA than support it. And right now I'm pretty confident they won't be able to approve it before expiration date: February 28, 2008.

[Judi Lynn]

3. Costa Rica's Last Stand: Widespread Resistance Halts Implementation of CAFTA

Costa Rica's Last Stand: Widespread Resistance Halts Implementation of CAFTA

Thursday Mar 15th, 2007 5:45 AM

While the passage of the Central American Free Trade Area (CAFTA in English, TLC in Spanish) is a distant memory in the public political debate, implementation of the treaty continues to meet organized, spirited opposition in Costa Rica. In the US, activists are standing in solidarity with continued opposition and resistance.

In January 2002, President Bush announced that CAFTA was a priority, giving his administration “Fast Track” authority to negotiate the agreement, which is a treaty under international law between the United States, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic. To be implemented, the treaty has to be ratified into domestic law in each of the seven countries. While relatively small in its economic scope, the agreement is basically NAFTA for this region, and part of a US strategy to implement “free trade” agreements for the entire Western Hemisphere through the eventual passage of the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA).

The US was the first to pass it. Bush signed it into law on August 2, 2005 after a middle of the night 217-215 vote in the House, reportedly including late hour deal making to get the two-vote majority. By mid-2006, six of the seven countries had also passed it, with no public input and against volatile street protests met by heavy-handed government repression in El Salvador and Guatemala.

The Costa Rican government continues to announce its intention to pass the law. While the agreement was passed in a close vote in the International Affairs Committee of the Costa Rican Congress in late 2006, it still has not been debated or voted on in the full Congress. The reason for delay is that the Costa Rican people have made it clear they are ready to actively oppose its passage.

Costa Rica has a markedly different political history and structure than the other countries in that region. An internal struggle after WWII resulted in a government strongly guided by Social Democratic members and policy making. This has resulted in a relatively extensive public sector. A generous retirement package includes a larger set of subsidies than what exists here in the US, and labor is well organized with relatively extensive political clout. The general standard of living is higher than the other regional countries involved. Citizens enjoy free nationalized health care, free and adequately funded public education, and relatively liberal union policies. Costa Ricans – having much to lose with the passage of CAFTA – are not giving in an inch at this point.
(snip/...)

http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2007/03/15/18377028.php

[IndianaGreen]

5. Arias's American backed and CIA financed campaign may have won the election

but this American educated piece of shit is the wrong answer for his country and he will ultimately fail.