Costa Rica Still Wonders About TLC
Many adults in Costa Rica believe their lawmakers should endorse a pending commercial agreement, according to a poll by Universidad de Costa Rica.

39 per cent of respondents support the ratification of the Tratado Libre de Comercio (TLC) - Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) - while 32.7 per cent are opposed.

In May 2004, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua agreed to the CAFTA with the United States. The Dominican Republic followed suit in August. The agreement -which would reduce or eliminate taxes and tariffs on imports -must be approved by each country’s legislative branch.

To date, Costa Rica remains the only country that has not ratified CAFTA. Former Costa Rican president Abel Pacheco postponed debate on the trade deal, hoping that the Legislative Assembly would approve a series of bills related to the country’s fiscal system.

Óscar Arias -a member of the National Liberation Party (PLN) -  won the February 2006 presidential election with 40.92 per cent of all cast ballots. Arias headed the government from 1986 to 1990, and was able to run again after the Costa Rican Legislative Assembly opted to bring back presidential re-election in 2003. He was sworn in for the second time in May 2006. Arias supports the CAFTA and expects to have it ratified by the end of 2007.

On Mar. 25, PLN lawmaker Ofelia Taitelbaum discussed the current state of affairs, saying, "It is impossible to introduce changes because the text is clear. The deal is what it is, period. It might contain things that are not so positive, but unfortunately in a negotiation not everything can end up being what one wants."

Polling Data
Do you support or oppose the ratification of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA)?

Source: Universidad de Costa Rica
Methodology: Interviews with 414 Costa Rican adults, conducted from Mar. 7 to Mar. 11, 2007. Margin of error is 5 per cent.