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Heightened Security Around
Legislature as TLC Discussions
Commence
Ottón Solís, leader of Partido
Acción Ciudadana (PAC), said
that today the supporters of the
Tratado Libre de COmercio (TLC),
violate the "institutionality"
of the country, as the Comisión
de Asuntos Internacionales
prepares to make a decision on
the trade agreement with the
United States.
The former presidential
candidate bases his comment on
the fact that the commission
does not know the
interpretations of all of the
clauses inn the agreement.
"The Costa Rican legislation
obligates the discussion of all
motions presented by the
legislative deputies. The
commission began discussion on
the contents of the TLC before
it came to know how the project
would turn out", said Solís.
The PAC leader is referring to
the request by the Ministerio de
la Presidencia to suspend all
legislative projects to make way
for the trade agreement, with
the hope of receiving a positive
approval and instituting it by
the end of February next year.
The president of the legislative
Assembly, Francisco Antonio
Pacheco, gave his firm support
to the presidential request and
clearing the legislative agenda
to deal exclusively with the
TLC. Pacheco is a member of the
Partido Liberación Nacional (PLN),
the same party as president
Oscar Arias and an Arias
appointee.
"It seems like we are in Cuba.
They close off the halls of
democracy and prohibit protests
by the unions, except when they
are in favour of the
government", said Solís.
Yesterday, security around the
Legislative Assembly building
was heightened, as members of
the Fuerza Pública (police)
surrounded the area around the
legislature.
Antonio Ayales, executive
director of the legislature,
said that the heightened
security is in the face of
possible protests that were
expected in the late evening and
during the night. "It is an
preventive measure. Our
responsibility is to guarantee
the security of the legislators,
workers and visitors. Our
internal security people do not
have police authority", said
Ayalaes.
Ayales refused to give the
number of police officers the
Fuerza Pública has assigned to
protect the surroundings of the
Legislative Assembly.
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