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Tuesday 8 April 2003
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Police for Drug Control stop a Spaniard who tried to leave the country with 12 kilos of heroin
According to the Ministerio de Seguridad Publica, the arrest was possible due to the suspicious attitude of the foreigner when it he was getting ready to board a flight to Miami.

Heroin is a much more difficult drug to obtain than cocaine and marijuana, reason for which its price is very high in the market.

This is the third most important drug seizure in the last four years.

Pregnancy of 14 year old in Heredia
A school in San Joaquin de Flores in Heredia, takes measures to not repeat the pregnancy of a 14 year old girl attending the school.

She is student in the school 'United States of America', in San Joaquin de Flores. Her teacher was her 'confidente' or confidant of what had happened.

The father of the baby, is a 20 year old Nicaraguan, a neighbor of the minor. The family of girl 'Ana' assures that, he was warned not to come near the girl.

Ana is two months of pregnant. She says she wants to continue to attend classes until her stomach allows it, and hopefully complete the year.

Authorities try to regulate informal sales
Take the bag for a thousand colones... Four mangos at ¢100 each... they are some of the words heard every day in the streets of downtown San José; nevertheless, the informal sales represent one of the main problems for the Municipal Police because some vendors fail to fulfill with the permissions and evade to the state treasury.

The mayor of the Municipality of San José, Johnny Araya, commented that he has already participated in a series of meetings with the street vendors, but, stressed, it is a very complex subject.

The sanctions for the street vendors are: the seizure of the merchandise and a fine, but cannot be jailed.

"the seasonal sales have been during years a problem for the city council of San jOse, but we hoped, making joint efforts between all the involved sectors, more regulation", reiterated.

Where there is greatest activity by the street vendors is in the area of the Cathedral, Second Avenue and  the Boulevard, places where the Municipal Police carry out operatives to regulate this activity.

The authorities make an average of 130 merchandise seizures per month.Seizures do not necessarily solve problem, because the number of street vendors have increased.

Approximately 85% of the street vendors are Nicaraguan and Colombian.

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Brazil willing to participate in UN-led Iraqi reconstruction

Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said on Monday Brazil is ready to participate in the reconstruction of Iraq, but only if it is led by the United Nations.

"Our participation will depend on the sort of reconstruction" to be undertaken, Amorim told the local press. "If it is a process headed by the UN, then there is no reason why we should not be involved," he affirmed.

If the process is headed by occupation forces, Brazil would reconsider this matter, said the minister.

In regard to the trip of US Secretary of State Colin Powell to Europe last week, Amorim said it is a positive sign that there is more dialogue between the United States and the European leaders.

"Despite differences, the visit of secretary Powell is a sign that there is no arrogant attitude," he added.

7 injured in Mig-21 crash in north India

A Mig-21 fighter belonging to the Indian Air Force (IAF) crashed into the ground of a milk processing plant in the north state of Haryana on Monday, injuring seven people.

"The plane crashed into the lawn of the milk plant complex in Ambala near a row of houses where workers lived," an IAF official said.

IAF spokesman R.K. Dhingra told the media here earlier that the aircraft crashed immediately after taking off from its base in Ambala, some 200 kilometers north of here.

The crash was the second involving the Russian-designed plane since last Friday, when a MiG-23 hit houses in a village in neighboring Punjab state, killing five people and injuring 24 others.

The pilot of the Mig-21 fighter ejected safely but seven people were injured, two seriously, when debris from the combat plane hit their house, the official said, adding that two children who were injured were treated in hospital and let go.

Local television channels reported earlier that the aircraft crashed into a residential area in Ambala town and the cause of the crash was not immediately known.

India's air force, the fourth largest in the world, has drawn criticism for a dismal safety record. At least 170 Migs, the backbone of the air force, have crashed over the past decade, many of the accidents were blamed on inadequate pilot training.

 

Mexico seeks "resumption of peace" in Iraq

Mexico is maintaining its firm stance for peace in Iraq and supports multilateral humanitarian operations and postwar reconstruction of Iraq, President Vicente Fox said on Monday.

In addition, it favors a central role for the United Nations in the postwar reconstruction of Iraq, he said.

"We'll be searching, through dialogue and the participation of every country, for a solution of diversity and the resumption of peace," the president said in an interview, via satellite, with the TV program in Boca del Rio, in the eastern state of Veracruz.

"These are the tasks we're working on," and which will remain on Mexico's agenda, Fox said.

On April 1, Mexico took over the presidency of the United Nations Security Council, on which the Latin American country is anon-permanent member.

Mexico is against the United States-led war on Iraq, which broke out on March 20.