NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs articles from February 2001

NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs archives from February 2001

CUBAN ECONOMY CONTINUED SLOW RECOVERY IN 2000.
February 1, 2001... Continuing its slow recovery from the economic collapse of the early 1990s, the Cuban economy grew by 5.5% of GDP in 2000. Government officials are using the growth figure as proof that socialism can survive the US embargo. After the...

REGION'S ECONOMIES STAGNATE DESPITE AREAS OF GROWTH.
February 1, 2001... High oil prices and low world prices for Central American exports combined to kept the region stuck in the economic doldrums during 2000 despite generally low inflation and modest economic growth. Low prices for bananas hurt Costa Rica,...

HONDURAS: POLITICAL PARTIES CHOSE PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATES WHILE ELECTORAL CRISIS CONTINUES.
February 8, 2001... As the major political parties choose presidential candidates for the next general election, the electoral process remains in crisis because of attempts by the governing Partido Liberal (PL) to block its most dangerous adversary in the Partido...

NICARAGUA: ELECTION CAMPAIGN BEGINS UNOFFICIALLY WITH PRESIDENT ARNOLDO ALEMAN'S ANNUAL REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.
February 8, 2001... President Arnoldo Aleman unofficially kicked off the presidential election campaign in January delivering an attack on the opposition and calling for a united front to keep former President Daniel Ortega (1979-1990) out of office. In his final...

NICARAGUA: PRESIDENT ARNOLDO ALEMAN UNDER PRESSURE TO DROP DEPORTATION PROCEEDINGS AGAINST US CITIZEN DOROTHY GRANADA.
February 8, 2001... During his Jan. 10 address to the National Assembly on the state of the nation, President Arnoldo Aleman praised his administration for not having imprisoned anyone on political charges and for carefully guarding absolute freedom of the press....

HAITI: JEAN-BERTRAND ARISTIDE BEGINS SECOND ADMINISTRATION AS OPPOSITION NAMES PRESIDENT OF PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT.
February 15, 2001... Jean-Bertrand Aristide was sworn in Feb. 7 as president of Haiti for the second time, promising to work with the opposition alliance and to repair relations with the US. Last-minute negotiations between his governing Fanmi Lavalas party and the...

GUATEMALA: LEGAL MANEUVERS BY GOVERNING PARTY STALL EFFORTS TO TRY 22 LEGISLATORS IN GUATEGATE SCANDAL.
February 15, 2001... The legislative scandal known as Guategate remains unresolved after six months as the governing Frente Republicano Guatemalteco (FRG) uses legal maneuvers to prevent 22 of its legislators from facing trial. In June 2000, the FRG-led...

PANAMA: STATE DEPARTMENT BARS FORMER PRESIDENT ERNESTO PEREZ BALLADARES FROM ENTERING THE U.S.
February 15, 2001... The US State Department has revoked the visa of former President Ernesto Perez Balladares (1994-1999) and several other former officials in his administration. So far, neither the Panamanian government, the legislature, nor his own Partido...

ARREST OF TWO CZECH CITIZENS STRAINS CUBA-CZECH RELATIONS.
February 22, 2001... The arrest in January of two Czech citizens on charges of contacting Cuban dissidents for subversive purposes strained already difficult relations between Cuba and the Czech Republic. The incident focused attention on the activities of the...

COSTA RICA'S PRESS FREEDOM IN DOUBT.
February 22, 2001... By Lauren Wolkoff [The following article is reprinted with permission of The Tico Times, San Jose, Costa Rica. It first appeared in the Feb. 2, 2001, edition of The Tico Times.] In an ironic and coincidental coupling of events, Costa...