|
updated by 7:00 a.m. CST each day
|
ICE Strike: Day 12
•
Conflict without a solution
Although the Defensoría of the Inhabitants and
the Catholic Church held a meeting yesterday to try
to bring the government and the unions of the Costa
Rican Institute of Electricity (ICE), closer to a
solution, there is white smoke in the horizon.
So, the strike which that began Friday the 16th of
May will continue, and Costa Ricans will have to be
patient
At the heart of the problem is still the bond issue
of $100 Million that the Central Bank has approved
only $40 Million. Union leaders feel this is not
enough, since ICE is counting on the full bond
emission to fulfill it's development commitments.
The Banco Nacional - not to be confused with the
Banco Central de Costa Rica (Central Bank) - has
begun a study to if there exists the possibility to
emit the remaining $60 Million locally, through it's
banking network.
Banco Nacional is one of
two state owned banks who provides bank services in
all parts of the country. The other state owned
bank, Banco De Costa Rica, has made no public
commentary yet on the issuance of the bonds or the
stalemate between the government and ICE.
The controversy surrounding the
Dundee Ranch academy Dundee causes the exit of young
foreigners
Before the
ranch, tens of young people were the protagonists of
vandalism at the Dundee Ranch academy, in
Orotina.
The ranch was at the center of the the charges and
denunciations on the part of Patronato Nacional de
la Infancia (PANI) and Casa Alianza and subject of
an investigations by the public prosecutor's office
in Atenas, where up to 200 youths, mainly Americans,
for mistreatment both psychologically and
physically.
The youths were there, sent by their parents and
families, mainly for problems with drugs, alcoholism
or delinquency.
According to representatives of the academy, the
authorities are to be held responsible for the
occurrences, as youths rebelled against staff
members and the ensuing vandalism.
Meanwhile, most of the adolescents left with their
parents or on their own, only 8 are left to still
make contact with their families or some known
relative.
The future for Dundee Ranch and it's owners is not
encouraging. Although he was set free, the owner of
the academy Narvin Lichfield, will have to sign in
at the public prosecutor's office in Atenas every 15
days. In addition it will not be able to leave the
country nor to go near the academy.
He is accused of deprivation of freedom and
violation of the human rights against 200 young
people.
Education
Minister promises today (Tuesday) complete payment
of wages in 99% of the cases
At
the Ministry of Education (MEP), they initiated an
action to declare the teacher's work action illegal
and also announced that they will reduce wages from
paychecks those days that the teachers were on
strike.
The MEP declares that the strike action is unjust,
they hope that teachers will return to their
classrooms.
The MEP has promised that the problem with the
payment of salaries will be improved
substantially.
|
|
WHO
Reinstates Toronto to list of SARS
sites
•
Crisis
effectively closes North York
General
The
quarantine net cast by SARS
widened yesterday and caught up
thousands of health-care workers,
patients and visitors to four
Toronto hospitals as public health
officials scrambled to limit any
further possible spread of the
mystery virus.
North
York General Hospital, the centre
of the latest outbreak, is now
effectively closed after
suspending all services at three
of its sites — the Branson and
Leslie St. sites and the Seniors'
Health Centre.
Public
health officials are now dealing
with eight probable new cases and
26 suspected cases.
Dr.
Richard Schabas, former chief
medical officer of health for
Ontario, charged yesterday that
provincial hospitals let down
their guard against SARS because
of political pressure.
Schabas
said at a time when hospitals
should have been stepping up their
surveillance efforts, many were
instead easing off restrictions
designed to stop the spread of the
potentially fatal virus.
"It's
pretty obvious now, with all the
wisdom of hindsight, that we let
down our guard too soon. I think
we have to ask ourselves why? I
think it's because we felt
political pressure," said
Schabas, chief of staff at York
Central Hospital.
The
World Health Organization has
placed Toronto back onto its SARS-affected
list of places where there has
been recent local transmission.
The
move threatens to further depress
the local tourism industry,
struggling to get back on its feet
after the U.N. body issued a
travel warning on April 23
advising people not to travel to
Toronto. That advisory was lifted
a week later. Toronto is not back
on that list — at this time, WHO
doesn't recommend any restrictions
on travel to Toronto.
Hearing
today in Colombian arms case
While his accused accomplice faces a pre-trial hearing Tuesday in federal court, Woodlands resident Carlos Ali Romero will remain behind bars after pleading guilty to two federal conspiracy charges for his part in a scheme to arm a Colombian paramilitary group.
Romero, a 43-year-old resident of Cochran's Crossing and a Colombian native, entered a plea of guilty in late April to two federal charges of conspiracy to aid a terrorist organization and conspiracy to distribute cocaine.
He was arrested Nov. 5 with two Colombian men in Costa Rica in connection with a conspiracy to swap cocaine and cash for $25 million of Russian weapons to arm the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia.
The revolutionary faction known by their Spanish acronym AUC, is a right-wing Colombian paramilitary group listed on the State Department's list of international terrorist organizations. Federal authorities claim the Colombians arrested with Romero are high-level AUC operatives.
Romero is accused of being the key player locally in the international drug-for-arms conspiracy that is eerily similar to a spy novel. His lawyer, Edward Mallett, said the conspiracy was really a sting operation by federal agents to test the morals of people living in the United States.
"There are no guns ... and there is no cocaine," Mallett said. "He took the bait and has entered a plea of guilty for his particular crimes."
Uwe Jensen, a 66-year-old Denmark native who resides in Fort Bend County near Houston, is accused of helping Romero in the conspiracy. His pre-trial hearing is Tuesday at the federal courthouse in Houston.
Jensen was arrested at his home Nov. 5. He is a former conservative member of the Danish Parliament and the European Parliament. The former Danish statesman was employed at Romero's petroleum shipping tank business, Poseidon Inc., which was based in Houston.
Romero was extradited to the United States in December. All of the suspects were indicted Dec. 4 by a federal grand jury on the conspiracy charges. The other men remain in Costa Rica.
A government complaint alleges the weapons in the case included anti-aircraft missiles, grenade launchers, and thousands of assault rifles.
The government alleges Jensen introduced Romero to an FBI operative in 2001. After several meetings of the FBI operative, Romero, and the suspected AUC members, a deal was struck to make the weapons deal. The weapons were to be transported in seven different petroleum-shipping tanks, the complaint shows.
Federal prosecutors say they are certain about the evidence against the four men, but have remained tight-lipped about details.
Mallett said Romero has never had any connections to Colombia paramilitaries and that he was introduced to the suspected AUC members because of the federal sting operation. And he said the only weapons in the case were produced by the federal agents to show prosecutors what types of weapons would have been shipped.
Romero's sentencing could take place as early as July 17, according to the U.S. Attorney's Houston office. Romero faces up to life in prison.
|
