Put Down The
“Yanqui
Imperialist Go
Home” Signs
By John Holtz*
Having received
emails and
comments from
readers of
www.Insidecostarica.com,
not to mention
serious
questions from
my CSM clients,
we want for you
to know that we
do take all of
them seriously.
Pro or con!
Over the last
several weeks
many readers
have expressed a
deep sense of
frustration that
foreigners who
live in Costa
Rica, legally,
run into a brick
wall when
attempting to
effect change.
That is except
for Steven
Seagal who can´t
seem to demand
enough attention
and our
government who
can´t seem to
provide enough.
How
embarrassing!
Can you imagine
if Sarah Palin
came to town?
Let me be clear
on this
sensitive
subject. I do
not promote, nor
have any of the
emails received
promoted
imposing a
change of
culture or of
the sovereign
status of Costa
Rica. So put
down the “Yanqui
Imperialist Go
Home” signs and
please read on
with an open
mind; pretty
please.
Presidenta,
Laura Chinchilla
and indeed Oscar
Arias both want
Costa Rica to be
the first Latin
American country
to become a
member of the so
called developed
nations club.
With few
exceptions,
(Russia coming
to mind) a
common
characteristic
of developed
nations such as
those in Canada,
Europe and the
United States,
legal and many
times illegal
residents can
and do have a
voice to effect
both social and
political
change. It is an
intrinsic part
of a true
democracy.
However, here at
home only
citizens of
Costa Rica may
support a
political party,
candidate, voice
an opinion or
legally donate
money to an
election.
Put this
together with
Costa Rica´s
liberal
defamation laws
making the libel
claim pretty
easy to charge,
then taking on a
real or
perceived
injustice or
cause can get
very dicey,
especially for a
foreigner. Never
forget there was
once a
defamation
lawsuit brought
against the
magazine “US
News and World
Report”, because
it was written
that Costa Rica
was tacitly
supporting the
Sandinista
revolution in
1978.
Last year there
was a threat
against one of
my personal
favorites,
“South Park”.
Those vulgar
little kids said
on one show that
the losers of
their contrived
contest would
need to spend
one full week
living in
downtown San
Jose, Costa
Rica. The
lawsuit did not
happen.
Keep in mind
that Costa Rica
is managed by a
highly
centralized type
of government
where laws,
regulations and
policy are
almost always
national in
scope and almost
always top-down
from the
president,
assembly, or a
ministry to the
provinces and
municipalities
leaving them
with limited
powers and are
charged with
carrying out
what the feds
say.
While it is
possible to
influence
decisions on a
local level, it
seems as if the
national
government has
no interest at
all to receive
policy input
from expats who
live and
contribute to
our communities.
That is unless
the expat is
someone like
police expert
Steven Seagal.
But for the most
part the foreign
born residents
who call Costa
Rica home are
pretty much
average people
but who do have
issues requiring
change. However,
our words fall
on ambivalent
ears. We can be
listened to, the
heads nod
agreement, the
sympathetic
smile are there,
the words are
“por supuesto”
but nobody
really cares.
There are
probably many
reasons why 40%
of the people
who come to
Costa Rica to
live return home
within two
years. One of
those reasons is
the sense of
being powerless
and not having a
voice on a
national scale
and I argue that
is the only
scale that
counts.
For example,
take the new
immigration law.
I have asked and
asked and I have
not found a
single foreign
resident nor an
embassy or
consulate that
was invited to
render an
opinion or
suggestion on
that law.
As a result
renewing a
simple tourism
visa is such a
nightmare of
convoluted paper
work that it is
not worth the
bother and
therefore, say
good bye to the
snowbird people
who would like
to spend the
winter under our
tropical sun and
who would spend
lots of money to
be here. And, at
first reading,
as absurd as it
might sound, it
does say the
$100 visa
renewal
procedure
applies only to
tourist visas
issued for less
than ninety
days. So most
Europeans,
Gringos,
Canadians do not
qualify because
their visas are
for a single
ninety day
period. Duh!
Not good
business when
the income for
our country
could be doubled
or tripled.
If the
omnipotent
government and
ICT (Costa
Rica´s official
tourism agency)
would not seek
advice from
those who they
wish to lure as
paid in
tourists, we can
hardly expect to
effect any
meaningful
change regarding
social issues,
including but
certainly not
limited to
crime,
sanitation and
the environment.
The first rule
of good
management is
find out what
the client or
customer wants,
right?
What is it about
foreigners being
second class not
only in Costa
Rica, but in
almost all
countries? I can
live with being
perceived as
second class but
I do want a
voice in the
state of affairs
because I am a
legal resident,
this is where I
have invested,
this is where I
pay taxes, where
my family calls
home and I bet,
like most
expats, I can
effect a
positive change
in many ways if
given the
opportunity and
not blocked by a
chronic case of
xenophobia.
What has been
getting
government eyes
to open with a
sense of
seriousness are
the complaints,
disappointments,
suggestions and
even threats
vividly
published on
Internet social
platforms such
as Facebook,
Twitter, various
blogs and most
important; You
Tube videos. I
am aware that
ICT is very
sensitive about
what is being
said and shown,
most of the
deputies keep an
eye of what is
being said as
well as seen and
even the
executive
branch. They
know that these
sites capture
millions of
visitors each
day and do
influence travel
and investment
behavior very
much.
Another way to
effect change
and be heard is
either join or
form a specific
cause group.
They do tend to
get Spanish
language media
attention. And
these groups
have
accomplished a
lot. You do not
need many
people, but the
cause should be
specific,
understandable
and the desired
outcome made
clear.
I know, this is
a disappointing
report , also I
too would like
to effect change
and have a voice
on policy. If
anyone has a
suggestion on
having our
voices heard,
please write
them in the
comment section
below.
*John Holtz is the Executive Director of
the Center for
the Studies of
Modern
Management
www.modernmanagement.org and can
be reached at:
[email protected].
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