2.500 Kilos of Cocaine Seized
Never in the history of Costa Rica have judicial authorities seized such an amount of cocaine - 2.500 kilos, valued at us$40 million dollars.

Union Leaders Soften Their Protest Stand
Heads of the Comisión Nacional de Enlace (CNE) toned down their threats of the last few days and made clear that Costa Ricans should not be worried about a social crisis, rather that their movement will be more of a "public disobedience".

Bus War on the Santa Ana - San José Route
Since 1988, the Empresa de Transportes Santa Ana (Etransa), known for their green and white buses, have been providing service on the Santa Ana - San José route until last Tuesday, when the Ministerio de Obras Públicas y Transportes (MOPT) decided to give the route- temporarily - to the Compañía de Inversiones La Tapachula S. A., who also operates the Escazú - San José route.

Tico Gets Top Grade in GRE
Being deaf was not an obstacle for Costa Rican Alvaro Ramos-Chaves, 21, to get a perfect grade, 800, in the verbal and math areas of the Graduate Record Examinations (GRE) for admission to U.S. universities.

700,000 Marihuana Plants Destroyed
Law-enforcement agents destroyed some 700,000 marihuana plants, most of them 2 meters (6.5 feet) tall, in the Talamanca Range, on the Costa Rican Caribbean.


LATIN AMERICA

Brazil considers recalling ambassador to Ecuador
The Brazilian Foreign Ministry said that Brazil is considering the possibility of recalling the ambassador to Ecuador as he can hardly work under current difficult conditions in the country.

Ousted Ecuadorean president leaves for asylum in Brazil
Ousted Ecuadorean President Lucio Gutierrez left the country early Sunday for political asylum in Brazil on a Brazilian Air Force plane, television reported.

Prosecutor shot dead in Colombia
A prosecutor was shot dead when parking her car outside her house in the city of Medellin, northwest Colombia, the police said Saturday.

Chilean president accepts resignation of minister
Chilean President Ricardo Lagos has accepted the resignation of Labor Minister Ricardo Solari and appointed his deputy Yerko Ljubetic as the successor, local media reported Saturday.

Elian Gonzalez and his Father Grateful to Cuban and US People
Shipwrecked Cuban boy Elian Gonzalez and his father Juan Miguel expressed gratitude to the Cuban and US peoples for their support in his return to Cuba, after being kept by distant relatives in Miami.