Archive for September 23rd, 2008
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
San Jose isn’t just the capital of Costa Rica, it’s also the nation’s largest city. With an estimated population of 1.6 Million people, San Jose is a genuine metropolitan area offering a little something for everybody.
#1 San Jose
Fans of the fine arts will have no shortage of places to go, Costa Rica’s high education level means museums abound. If you’re traveling with the little ones, El Museo de los Niños (The Children’s Museum) offer exhibits about children’s culture, science, music, and geography. Recommended for children up to 12. If anthropology is your thing, be sure to check out El Museo de Oro Pre-Colombiano (The Museum of Pre-Columbian Gold) where you can see how Mayan artisan crafted fine gold before the arrival of the Spanish.
#2 The Central Valley Volcanos
Costa Rica’s Central Valley is home to two of the most spectacular Volcanoes in Central America. Volcan Irazu is only about 20 miles from Cartago, the country’s former capital and is part of Irazu Volcano National Park. Volcan Poas is an hour and half drive from from downtown San Jose and features a main crater 2 kilometers in diameter! The crater creates a beautiful blue-green lake and numerous waterfalls can be found nearby. (more…)
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Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
The Big China and Taiwan Tussle: Dollar Diplomacy Returns to Latin America
On August 19th, 2008, Taiwan’s new president Ma Ying-Jeou concluded his first trip to Latin America, one of the most important geopolitical regions in the world for his island nation. The purpose of the trip was to attend the inaugurations of Dominican Republic president, Leonel Fernandéz, and his Paraguayan counterpart, Fernando Lugo. During his trip, President Ma made a brief refueling stop in Panama, where he received a warm welcome from the Panamanian President Martín Torrijos. On his way from Paraguay to the Dominican Republic, President Ma also met with Honduran President Manuel Zelaya and the Vice President of Guatemala, Rafael Espada.
Ma’s trip carried two flags: one was that he was not to be seen as an exponent for “Transit Diplomacy,” a tactic in which his predecessor, Chen Shui-bien has specialized. “Transit Diplomacy” stands for conducting rapid diplomacy while briefly stopping over in a third country, usually the United States. The second one was Ma’s announcement that he did not intend to hand out any grant money during his trip and that all charitable donations and investments should be processed through government procedures. This announcement suggested that Taipei was terminating its own version of “Dollar Diplomacy.” (more…)
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Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Presidency Minister Rodrigo Arias called on lawmakers yesterday to approve as quickly as possible the last bill required to implement the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA).
The bill, intended to strengthen intellectual property rights, was struck down by the Constitutional Chamber of the Supreme Court (Sala IV) because lawmakers had not consulted the indigenous community on a clause that would affect them.
A congressional committee yesterday voted to delete the problematic clause and pass the bill again. The entire process could take six weeks to three months, said Oscar Núñez, faction head for the National Liberation Party (PLN). The timeline depends on whether the anti-CAFTA Citizen Action Party (PAC) again challenges the bill’s constitutionality before the Sala IV.
Either way, Costa Rica will miss an Oct. 1 deadline for entering the pact, an extension already granted by CAFTA partners from an original February deadline. President Oscar Arias will ask for another extension in a meeting Wednesday in New York City with U.S. President George W. Bush and other Central American presidents.
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Tuesday, September 23rd, 2008
Costa Rica has dedicated a considerable amount of time, human resource and territory to protect its unique biodiversity. Currently, around 25% of Costa Rica’s territory is under a certain protection plan or law.
However, marine life and ecosystems still have quite a few ground to cover in order to have similar benefits as dry land. This is why the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications (Minae) created two new categories which by a law decree will protect selected marine areas within Costa Rican waters.
The first category created by the Minaet is the “Marine Reserve” and will apply to coastal oceanic marine areas which will primarily guarantee the preservation, health and viability of its natural ecosystems. The area appointed as a Marine Reserve will also need to benefit human communities throughout the sustainable use of its natural resources. The use of the natural resources will of course need to be done under strict technical criteria as well as be of low impact to the environment.
The second category created is called the “Management Marine Area”. The Management Marine Area will be a protected region in which professionals will carry out activities that will guarantee the preservation and protection of marine biodiversity for a long term period. The Management Marine Area will also need to provide a sustainable natural resources as well as environmental services to nearby communities.
The first targeted areas to be assigned this new marine protection law will be near Costa Rica’s Coco Island in its Pacific Ocean.
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