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Osvaldo
Villalobos Released, Under House Arrest
Osvaldo Villalobos, brother of Enrique Villalobos
Camacho of "The Brothers" operation
has been permitted to return home under house arrest
according to a press release received yesterday from
the UCCR.
In a letter from the UCCR, former Minister Jose
Miguel Villalobos (no relation), the lawyer hired by
the UCCR in their fight against the government to
close the investigation, wrote "We have learned this morning the news that the Penal Judge in charge of the case against Osvaldo Villalobos has modified the preventive prison measure of detention to house arrest. This signifies that Osvaldo may go home, with obligatory restrictions, instead of returning to prison while waiting for the end of the investigation."
Osvaldo had been at the Clinical Catolica for months
under police custody, as part of his preventative
detention placed on him by the courts while the
prosecutor's office completes it's investigation of
The Brothers high interest operation.
The UCCR and investors are hoping that the
investigation will end very soon and see the release
to house of arrest of Osvaldo as a positive sign.
Enrique Villalobos is still being sought by the
Costa Rican authorities for fraud and money
laundering. His brother, Osvaldo, had been in jail
since last November.
In the letter, the UCCR wished to express their sincere joy that Osvaldo may once again be surrounded by his family and close friends in his own
home and included a pledge to re-double their continuing effort to pursue the resolution of
the matter as quickly as possible.
Moody's Issues Annual
Report on Costa Rica
In its annual report on Costa Rica, Moody's Investors Service says the country's Ba1 rating for foreign currency debt and negative outlook reflects the increasing level of dollarization of assets and liabilities in the Central American country's financial system.
The rating for foreign currency deposits is Ba2.
On the upside, the ratings are also supported by a well-diversified export base and by foreign currency earnings, political stability, and relatively strong democratic institutions.
The Costa Rican economy grew by 5.6% in the second quarter for an accumulated expansion of 7.5% in the first half of 2003.
This made it highly likely that the authorities' expectation of 5.3% growth for the whole of 2003 will be achieved. IMAE, a leading indicator of economic activity, was 6% higher in the eight months to August than a year earlier.
Exports expanded by 19%, thanks in part to the recovery of the Costa Rican subsidiary of Intel, the American technology leader. "Those positive features may not fully compensate for the potential additional risk posed by an increasing level of public indebtedness," says Moody's analyst Ernesto Martinez-Alas, author of the report. "Other challenges include limited progress in fiscal consolidation, and a crawling peg in the context of increasing financial dollarization."
The credit risks associated with highly dollarized banking systems prompted Moody's to change the rating outlook to negative from positive for Costa Rica's foreign and domestic currency ratings earlier this year.
The action was part of an ongoing, case-by-case review of countries with highly dollarized banking systems. "The combination of a high level of dollarization and a crawling peg exchange-rate regime may exert downward pressure on the ratings," says Mr. Martinez-Alas.
Other pressures could result from a slow and volatile pace of fiscal consolidation, and if the rate of increase in foreign currency debt is maintained at the current pace.
Government expenditures have been kept under control, but domestic pressures for higher spending are likely to be reflected in a higher fiscal deficit than initially budgeted.
For instance, ICE, the state electrical company, will face a capital expenditures overrun expected to reach at least 0.4% of GDP higher than originally budgeted. The authorities anticipate a self-imposed fiscal deficit target of 4.1% of GDP for 2003 that they hope to partly achieve with further expenditure cuts.
The rating agency's report, "Costa Rica: Global Credit Research," is a yearly update to the markets and is not a formal action to alter the credit rating of the issuer.
Man Accused of
Raping Six Year Old Girl
Police
arrested a man on Tuesday in San Ramon, north of San
José, for molesting a six year old girl. The
man was the girl's uncle who had come to spend a few
days with the family and took advantage of the
little girl.
The violation was discovered by the girl's mother
who notice signs of sexual attack on the little one.
The mother made the "denuncia" or filed
criminal charges against the man and then took part
in the capture of the man, leading police where the
man worked.
According to police the man had a drug problem. The
man was placed in custody and is now to appear
before the courts for a trial. The name of the man
was withheld by police authorities.
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Annan expects US to end embargo on Cuba
The United Nations expects the
United States to lift the economic sanctions against Cuba, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said here on Tuesday.
Annan, who started a two-day official visit to Peru on Tuesday, told reporters that the UN General Assembly "has been very active on the need to lift the embargo against Cuba."
"The US government knows our position on the issue and we look forward to the lifting of the economic sanctions against Cuba," added Annan during the joint conference with Peruvian President Alejandro Toledo.
Last week, the UN General Assembly approved a resolution calling for an end of the economic, financial and trade embargo kept by the United States against Cuba since 1960.
In regard to Iraq, Annan said the international community has to find the way to stabilize the situation of the Middle Eastern country, which is currently "difficult and dangerous."
Annan considered it necessary to have the cooperation of everyone in efforts to tackle international instability because "one single party cannot solve the problems, or contain terrorism."
The stability in Iraq requires joint endeavor between the international community and the Iraqis themselves, said the general secretary.
After his visit to Peru, Annan will head for Bolivia, where he will take part in the 13th Latin American and Iberian Summit of Santa Cruz de la Sierra on Friday.
Political novices to serve as ministers in Colombia
Two businessmen with little political experience were named Colombia's defense and interior ministers in the wake of abrupt resignations of two ministers within a week.
Martha Lucia Ramirez, Colombia's first female defense minister, resigned late on Sunday. In her resignation statement on Monday, she made no explanation for the sudden departure.
She was the second cabinet minister to resign from President Alvaro Uribe's government within four days.
Last Thursday, Interior and Justice Minister Fernando Londono announced his resignation amid disputes with congress.
Pressed with the cabinet shake-up, President Alvaro Uribe wasted no time in bringing in new ministers.
Jorge Alberto Uribe, a US-educated businessman who has no military experience, was named to head the Defense Ministry,
while Sabas Pretelt, head of the National Federation of Retailers, was nominated for the seat of the Interior and Justice Minister.
Both ministers will face a tough job in preventing the administration from further faltering.
Three dead in clashes during general strike in Dominican Republic
At least three people died and 37 more were injured in clashes between demonstrators and law-enforcement personnel in the Dominican Republic on Tuesday during a general strike to demand changes to the economic policy.
According to reports from Santo Domingo, capital of the Dominican Republic, the clashes occurred in San Francisco, San Pedro de Macoris, Barahona and Azua as well as in the Capotillo district of the Dominican capital.
Police and military personnel were deployed last weekend, and President Hipolito Mejia warned that he would not allow disturbances during the strike.
Since the first hours of Tuesday, Santo Domingo and other important cities of the Caribbean country have been affected by the strike, with businesses closed, a scarce movement of vehicles and a notable presence of armed military personnel.
This is the first nationwide strike faced by the Mejia administration since he came into office over three years ago.
More than 100 activists have been arrested all over the country in an attempt to neutralize the stoppage.
Former coup leader loses, runoff likely in Guatemalan elections
Election results released Tuesday in Guatemala confirmed former coup leader Jose Efrain
Rios Montt's loss while the two front-runners, Oscar Berger and Alvaro Colom, may face a runoff scheduled for December.
Of the nearly 83 percent of the votes counted, Berger, of the right-wing opposition party, Grand National Alliance (GANA), gained 35.5 percent. He was followed by Colom of the center-left opposition party, National Unity for Hope (UNE), who got 26.7 percent. Former coup leader Rios Montt got only 18.4 percent.
The two front-runners have already launched campaigns for a new round of voting. The runoff will be held on Dec. 28 if neither of them pocket 50 percent of the votes.
Rios Montt has conceded defeat. His running mate, Edin Barrientos, said Tuesday in a radio interview that his party had lost the presidential election.
Many had feared that Rios Montt, the retired general, might not accept the result. But by now, there are no reports of
large-scale violence. Only sporadic protests occurred in the country.
The Guatemalans voted on Sunday to elect president, vice president, Congress representatives, legislators for the Central American Parliament and mayors.
More than 5,000 observers led by delegations from the Organization of American States and the European Union monitored the elections. Foreign observers said they were generally satisfied with the results of the elections.
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