Economy on faulty compass
It is like sailing a ship with a faulty compass. That is the way Costa Rican economy authorities operate. They perceive the problems, but lack the tools to properly address them. 

For example, the estimate of the Gross Domestic Product is based on the structure of the economy in 1991. Another, the consumer price index is based on the spending trends of Tico families in 1988. 

The coordinator of the economic team of the Pacheco Administration, Ronulfo Jiménez, pointed out that there is no way but managing with the resources available, therefore the need to be very careful with figures. 

Economist Hermann Hess pointed out the need to have reliable statistics if the country is to develop the way everybody wishes. For the time being, officials admitted, the situation will remain; that is, that plotting the course of Costa Rican economy will continue being mainly guesswork.

Costa Rican stance praised
The independent world organization Human Rights Watch praised Costa Rica for its stance in face of the violations of basic rights in Cuba. 

Joanna Weschler, a representative of the organization, congratulated Costa Rica, Canada, Mexico, New Zealand, and Switzerland as nations that keep a straight line in many issues related to human rights. 

The Costa Rican Minister of Foreign Affairs, Roberto Tovar, said that the acknowledgement is encouraging for a nation that is a world leader in human rights. Costa Rica strove at the United Nations to appoint a commission that would review the observation of human rights in Cuba, but failed in getting the support of enough nations for approval. 

At the UN, Costa Rica demanded that Cuba immediately release 78 dissidents who have been sentenced to terms of up to 28 years and condemned the summary execution by fire squad of three men who attempted to hijack a boat.

Devastation in wildlife refuge
Some 4,000 hectares (9,884 acres) of the 9,940 hectares (24,561 acres) of the Caño Negro Wildlife Refuge in northern Costa Rica fell victim to a spontaneous fire.

Wetlands, forests, a wide variety of animals, and other elements of the protected area are listed among the casualties, in spite of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers, firemen, and Ministry of the Environment officials who, for weeks, fought the raging fire. 

According to official sources, it will take 40 years for Caño Negro to recover from the damage. The Refuge is one of the leading tourist attractions and sources of employment in northern Costa Rica. The wetlands in the area are considered of international importance because they host migrating birds and are home to several endangered species.

Fidel’s message to the world and to the people of the United States
ON behalf of the one million people gathered in José Martí Revolution Square on May Day, Cuban President Fidel Castro sent the following message to the world and to the U.S. people at the end of his speech in the central event marking International Workers’ Day, likewise celebrated in more than 200 Cuban cities, towns, villages and communities.

"We do not want Cuban or U.S. blood to be shed in a war, we do not want an incalculable number of lives of persons who could be friends lost in any battle. But never did a people have such sacred things to defend, or such profound convictions for which to fight.

"In any case, Cuba would prefer to vanish off the face of the Earth rather than renounce the noble and generous work for which many generations of Cubans have paid the elevated cost of the many lives of their finest sons and daughters. We are accompanied by the most profound conviction that ideas can do more than weapons, however sophisticated and powerful they might be.  Complete Story

HK breathes easier on SARS news
Hong Kong has reported its lowest number of new SARS cases since mid-March -- an indication the Chinese territory may have seen the worst of the viral outbreak.

Eight new cases were reported Sunday along with five deaths from the disease. There have been a total of 1,629 cases in the former British colony while 184 people have died from SARS.

Sunday's announcement comes amid fears mutations of the virus and relapses among patients could complicate efforts to develop a diagnosis and vaccine.

Hong Kong scientists say there have been two forms of SARS present in the territory and more research is being done to determine if the virus has become more infectious or deadly.

Meanwhile, 10 crewmembers from a Malaysian ship were rushed to a Hong Kong hospital on Sunday after the vessel made an emergency stop in the territory.

The ship was allowed to dock in the territory after 10 of the 24 crew developed symptoms of the disease. 

Across the border in mainland China, the situation remained bleak.

Elementary and primary schools in Beijing were ordered to remain closed for a further two weeks as the outbreak of the deadly SARS virus there shows no signs of easing. Schools have been shut in the city for the past fortnight.

The communist nation reported seven new deaths from the disease and 163 new cases on Sunday -- 69 of them in Beijing. Four of the deaths occurred in the Chinese capital.

That brings the total SARS toll in China to almost 200 while more than 4,100 have been infected in the country of more than one billion people.

The outbreak has hit China hard, forcing the cancellation of the week-long May Day holiday, forcing the postponement or abandonment of sporting, business and cultural events and has turned Beijing into a virtual ghost town.

More than 10,000 people in the capital city of 14 million are now under quarantine and numbers of new SARS cases there have been at least 50 a day in the past week.

On Saturday, organizers of the women's football World Cup in September said they have moved the event from China to another, unnamed country due to SARS fears.

In other developments:

• The World Health Organization has sent a team to Taiwan to investigate a sharp rise in probable SARS cases of severe acute respiratory syndrome. Taiwan says it now has at least 100 probable cases -- almost triple the number reported 10 days earlier. At least eight people on the island have died of SARS.

• Singaporean authorities have arrested a man who repeatedly flouted home quarantine. The man, who skipped quarantine and went out drinking on two occasions, was jailed in isolation on Friday. Singapore has put in place strict control measures and has recorded 25 deaths out of 203 cases.

• A Qantas Airways flight attendant has been placed in isolation in a Sydney hospital and is being treated as a probable SARS case, after a flight from Singapore. The woman flew from Singapore to Sydney and all passengers and crew on board flight QF 32, which landed on April 27, are being contacted.