Rodríguez, 64, the first Central American to hold the top post in the OAS in over 50 years, is also the first OAS secretary-general forced to stepp down, as he faces accusations of corruption in his Costa Rica.

José Antonio Lobo, a former cabinet minister and adviser to Rodríguez, who is also a former Legislative Deputy and was a member of the Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad (ICE) board of directors accused him of accepting part of a bribe during his 1998-2002 presidential term.

Lobo was one of the board members who voted in favour of awarding the French telecommunications firm, Alcatel, the us$149 million dollar contract to install 400.000 GSM cellular telephone lines.

Costa Rican President Abel Pacheco called for Rodríguez to resign as OAS chief, which he did on Friday, just 23 days after he was sworn in. The resignation takes effect on Oct. 15.

Costa Rican Fiscalía (prosecutor's office)immediately issued an order for his capture, which also goes into effect on Oct. 15, as soon as Rodríguez  steps down and loses his diplomatic immunity.

Besides causing a commotion in the 34 OAS member states - which includes every country in the hemisphere with the exception of Cuba - and especially among those that sponsored his candidacy, the scandal will bring "only short-term instability in the inter-American system," said foreign policy analyst Luis Guillermo Solís, a professor at the University of Costa Rica.

Solís, a member of the Foundation for Peace and Democracy, said that the scandal will not inflict "permanent damage on the image of the OAS and Costa Rica."

President Pacheco stated that he was "totally satisfied" with Rodríguez's resignation, which he said was necessary to "avoid causing the country more shame." But, he told reporters, "he should have done it sooner, because he is accused of serious crimes and must come and answer for them."

The Pacheco administration withdrew its support from Rodríguez on Oct. 2, just two days after the Alcatel-ICE scandal broke out.

According to Lobo, a former ICE director, Alcatel paid those who helped it win the "prize" contract a kickback of us$9.6 million dollars, us$2.4 million of which went into accounts in the name of Lobo's wife.

Rodríguez demanded 60%  Lobo told prosecutors. He told them that he called on Rodríguez following his receiving a call from Alcatel and asked the president what he should do. Rodríguez responded that "we should be partners, I get 60%", according to the Lobo statement.

Lobo, who is under house arrest and cannot leave Costa Rica, also provided details of transfers of money from his wife's accounts to Rodríguez's wife's bank accounts.

Rodríguez denies the accusations of corruption, and alleges that he merely asked Lobo, an old friend, for a loan of us$140,000 dollars to help finance his campaign for the post of OAS secretary-general.

However, a television station news team found that part of the money was still sitting in a Costa Rican investment fund, earning interest and that a witdrawl was only made days after the scandal came to light.

Pressure on Rodríguez to step down continued to mount. One of the countries, other than Costa Rica, that pressed hard was Argentina, whose support played a key role in Rodríguez's election as head of the OAS in June.  Argentina's ambassador to the OAS, Rodolfo Gil, said "Miguel Angel's excuses are not solid."

In his letter of resignation, Rodríguez said he wished to "avoid costs" to his family and the OAS, and said he would voluntarily travel to Costa Rica to face the legal charges against him, however, critics say that he should have stepped down immediately, to save the OAS and Costa Rica from more shame.

In the face of this and other scandals, universities in Costa Rica, with the support of the government and president Pacheco, have called a nationwide demonstration Tuesday to protest public corruption,

At the OAS assistant secretary-general Luigi Einaudi (from the U.S.) will replace Rodríguez temporarily while the OAS decides what to do.

The international capture warrant for Rodríguez was delivered to the U.S. Embassy in San José, because OAS headquarters are based in Washington, D.C.

Chief prosecutor (Fiscal) Francisco Dall'Anese said the warrant is to ensure that Rodríguez comes to Costa Rica, peacefully or by force.

Dall'Anese was recently appointed to the position and has played a key role in taking a tough position against corruption and corrupt officials, which includes another former president, Rafael Angel Calderón, who is accused in the Fischel-Caja corruption scandal, that has seen several public functionaries and businessmen behind bars waiting that investigation.

When Rodríguez is expected to arrive in Costa Rica is anyone's guess. Some day that Rodríguez would make his way to Costa Rica after leaving his post, while others are firm in the belief that the man would not risk being arrested, travelling to Costa Rica after losing his immunity.

Another camp believes that Rodríguez will not come to Costa Rica and may find refuge (asylum) in another country.