TLC
Vote Divided
The latest report by
Angus Reid monitor says
that fewer people in
Costa Rica support the
signing of a commerce
deal with other
neighbouring nations,
the Dominican Republic
and the United States,
according to a poll by
Unimer published by La
Nación. 49.1 per cent of
respondents would vote
in favour of the Tratado
de Libre Comercio (TLC)
- Central American Free
Trade Agreement (CAFTA)
- in an upcoming
referendum, down 6.9
points since August.
Conversely, 46.3 per
cent of respondents
would reject the deal in
the ballot box, up 10.3
points in a month.
In May 2004, Costa Rica,
El Salvador, Guatemala,
Honduras and Nicaragua
agreed to the CAFTA with
the U.S. The Dominican
Republic followed suit
in August. The trade
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 the deal.
Óscar Arias - a member
of the Partido
Liberacion Nacional (PLN)
- won the February 2006
presidential election
with 40.92 per cent of
all cast ballots. He was
sworn in as president
for the second time in
May 2006. Arias supports
the TLC but promised to
put its ratification to
a nationwide vote. The
plebiscite - which can
only be binding if at
least 40 per cent of all
registered voters take
part - is scheduled for
Oct. 7.
On Sept. 24, Adolfo
Pérez Esquivel, a Nobel
Peace Prize laureate
from Argentina, called
on Costa Ricans to
reject the TLC, claiming
the negotiations
preceding the draft were
unequal and unfair, and
declaring, "Slaves are
not able to negotiate,
but rather forced to
yield: only free
countries are entitled
to negotiate."
Polling Data
How would you vote on
the referendum to ratify
the Tratado de Libre
Comercio (TLC - Central
American Free Trade
Agreement (CAFTA)?
(Decided Voters)
| |
Sept. 2007 |
Aug. 2007 |
Jul. 2007 |
|
Yes |
49.1% |
56% |
51.5% |
|
No |
46.3% |
36% |
42.1% |
|
No reply |
4.6% |
8% |
6.4% |
| |
|
|
|
Source: Unimer / La
Nación
Methodology: Interviews
with 1,238 Costa Rican
adults, conducted from
Sept. 12 to Sept. 18,
2007. Margin of error is
3.4 per cent. |
