The money that the State of Costa Rica will lose in the dispute over the failed concession of the Crucitas mine will come from taxpayer's pockets.
Editorial
During the 20 year period of the soap opera that is Crucitas gold mine, none of the individuals who are involved in one way or another have suffered any financial loss and many, on the contrary, have seen an increase in their income and their bank accounts.
The Salvadoran president has a 72% approval rating, while Martinelli has 65%, Lobo 51%, Chinchilla 45%, Colom 41% and Ortega 40%.
Mauricio Funes, although still in second place in Latin America, falls three percentage points from a previous survey and now has 72% approval rating, topping the list of presidents in Central America with high evaluation.
While the people of Honduras continue to suffer from international isolation, the political and diplomatic corporation of Latin America and the Caribbean will discuss its fate in Cancún.
The Rio Group (an OAS alternative), will become the next stage in which the representatives of the region’s governments will promote their own political and personal projects, as they discuss the future of a theoretically sovereign country.
Martinelli and Funes lead in Latin America with 91% and 88% approval ratings. In Central America, they are followed by Colom with 46%, Arias 44% and Ortega with 38%.
Mauricio Funes from El Salvador and Ricardo Martinelli from Panama share, together with Brazilian President Lula Da Silva, the privilege of being in the group of "Outstanding Evaluation", composed of those heads of state with approval ratings above 75%.
"Not recognizing the elections nor the future president would be hurting the Honduran people, who have already suffered enough, and don't deserve it", Oscar Arias, President of Costa Rica.
At a press conference during the XIX Iberoamerican Summit of Heads of State, the president of Costa Rica remarked the "double standards" of the international community with regards to the Honduran political crisis.
President Oscar Arias, who mediated in the Honduran political crisis, assured he will recognize the outcome of the upcoming elections.
In an interview with CNN on Friday, Arias stated he would recognize the result of Sunday's elections, given they develop without incidents.
"'... if everything goes right', in Sunday's elections, 'most of the world's countries should recognize the outcome', requested the Nobel prize winner", according to Laprensagrafica.com.
Prior to negotiations between the parties, president Micheletti lifted the decree suspending civil rights.
"The decision was taken shortly before a negotiation round between spokespersons of Micheletti and Zelaya, who will discuss an agenda based on Oscar Arias' plan, centered around the restitution of the ousted president", reported Mipunto.com.
Micheletti's Government decree was enacted a week ago, and imposed restrictions on free movement, meetings and media.
The opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange was rang today by Ricardo Martinelli, President of Panama.
The General Assembly of the United Nations is now the stand for all the Presidents of the world, who have a unique opportunity to address a highly exclusive and qualified audience, and whose words could be heard around the world.
What do Central American Presidents say in those speeches?
"If elections undertaken in Latin America by dictatorial regimes had been invalid, there wouldn't have been transitions to democracy".
In declarations to Brazilian newspaper "Folha", the president of Costa Rica, and mediator in the Honduran crisis affirmed that the elections called for November could end the crisis, even though the international community has warned they won't recognize its results.
The presidents of El Salvador, Mauricio Funes, and Panama, Ricardo Martinelly, have 86% popularity.
According to the regional survey by Cid-Gallup, which interviewed 1.200 people, Oscar Arias from Costa Rica is in the third place, with a 70% popularity.
He is followed by Alvaro Colom, from Guatemala, with 55%; Leonel Fernández, from Dominican Republic with 47%; deposed Honduran president Manuel Zelaya with 46% and Daniel Ortega, Nicaraguan president, with 42%.
Mario Vargas Llosa writes on the serious political situation in Honduras, with his renowned objectivity and analytic capacity.
The Peruvian writer brings us a critical vision of the positions of the two battling sides, drafting a solution similar to the one proposed by Costa Rican president Oscar Arias.
"Awakening a constitutionally elected president with bayonets, and sending him to exile without giving him even a chance of changing his pajamas, as was done by the Honduran military to Manuel Zelaya, is an act of political barbarism..."
State Secretary Hillary Clinton announced that the President of Costa Rica, Oscar Arias, will serve as international mediator in the Honduran political crisis.
The announcement was made after a private meeting with Manuel Zelaya, Honduras ousted president, exiled from the country on June 28.
Clinton said that both Zelaya and appointed president Roberto Micheletti accept the designation of Oscar Arias as mediator.
Costa Rica will import raw alcohol from Brazil to dehydrate it and re-export it to the US with zero-tariff, in accordance with DR-CAFTA rules.
The Brazilian president's visit to Costa Rica formalized at the government level what was already in the works between businesses in both countries.
In his article in Nacion.com, Juan Fernando Lara S. stated: "Recently, the Agro-Industrial Sugar Cane League (LAICA) obtained a contract from a Brazilian firm that will bring raw alcohol to the country. It will be dehydrated in Punta Morales and then it will be placed as ethanol in the United States."
In Central America, Antonio Saca is first (66%), followed by Oscar Arias (49%), Martín Torrijos (48%), Álvaro Colom (45%), Daniel Ortega (38%), Manuel Zelaya (25%).
A ranking by Consulta Mitofsky compares the approval ratings of 18 presidents of the Americas, led by Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva with a 70% approval rating, followed by Alvaro Uribe of Colombia (69%), and Felipe Calderón of Mexico (68%).