Crucitas gold mine controversy: a lopsided roundtable
Jessica Barran reports on the Crucitas gold mine roundtable, recently held on UPEACE campus. Representatives from Industrias Infinito, the Costa Rican government, two environmental NGOs (FECON and AIDA), and the University of Costa Rica, were all given a chance to clarify their positions and field questions on this controversial issue.
Free Trade and the Debate Deficit in Costa Rica
Cost Rica is poised on the precipice of historic political action. The Costa Rican people, about 4 million strong, will vote on whether their country should sign the Dominican Republic – Central America – United States Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA). To date this agreement has been ratified by the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua. Neither Belize nor Panama were involved in negotiations. Costa Rica is the only outstanding signatory.
It Doesn’t Rain, It Pours
Catherine Cheweza reflects on her experiences as a woman from Malawi travelling to Costa Rica.
A Load of Old Cobblestones
A Load of Old Cobblestones Author: Simon Stander Originally Published at Peace and Conflict Monitor on: 04/05/2006 Category: Editorial The University of Peace is based in Costa Rica where businesses, government, police and unions are positioning themselves in the event of street demonstrations. Costa Rica is going to enter CAFTA. That will be mean private […]
El Salvador’s Democracy
In the early 1990s, peace negotiations in El Salvador’s civil war were made possible by a military stalemate. Now, a decade later, a political stalemate might make real negotiations possible yet again. A look at El Salvador’s past, with a view to its future.
Empathy Education
Sympathy and pity come naturally. But truly understanding a person or group of people may require you to put yourself in their shoes, and that requires empathy. A careful process of teaching and field trips can lead students toward this frame of mind, and a greater understanding of the people around them.
Gangs in Central America: the Salvadorian Case
Key words: youth violence – gangs – maras – anti-maras law – plan Mano Dura – sustainable peacebuilding – La Cordinadora
Has the Moment of Truth Arrived?
Nation’s First Referendum Expected
to Decide Fate of U.S. Free-Trade Pact
Honduras: the coup and the constitution
It is clear that what happened in Honduras last week was not a straightforward military coup; Mr Zelaya is not just against the military, but also the congress (minus some minority representatives) and the rest of the “ruling class”, who control business and media, and to which he and his family belong.
Despite the rhetoric of heroism and patriotism from ideologues on either side, this is a relatively simple dispute between elites, who have characteristically sidelined peace and democracy in pursuit of their own interests.
The Meaning of DR-CAFTA
The Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement is near completion. It has been ratified by all parties except for Costa Rica, who most analysts agree is likely to sign the agreement sooner or later. Meanwhile, a ferocious debate has sprung up of the future affects of this agreement, and both sides have their narratives: One, that the agreement will cause growth and prosperity, the other that the agreement will plunge impoverished peoples further into the depths. So which is it? The narratives obscure the truth.