NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs articles from May 2001

NotiCen: Central American & Caribbean Affairs archives from May 2001

CUBAN GOVERNMENT SAYS US PRESSURE SECURED HUMAN RIGHTS RESOLUTION AT GENEVA.
May 3, 2001... The UN Human Rights Commission voted April 18 in Geneva to condemn Cuba for human rights violations. The US lobbied hard to line up votes for the Czech-sponsored resolution. Cuban President Fidel Castro also lobbied hard for support from Latin...

COSTA RICA SIGNS FREE-TRADE PACT WITH CANADA.
May 3, 2001... On April 23, Canada and Costa Rica signed a free-trade agreement (Tratado de Libre Comercio, TLC) in Ottawa, the first trade pact Costa Rica has negotiated with a member of the G-7 group of industrialized nations. The pact allows for the...

PANAMA: PRESIDENT MIREYA MOSCOSO MAY CONSIDER PARDONS, BUT PROSECUTION OF JOURNALISTS CONTINUES.
May 3, 2001... In April, the Comite para la Proteccion de Periodistas (CPP) issued a report critical of the state of press freedom in Panama. The report said that the government failed to fulfill its promise to rescind its harsh press laws, took new steps to...

GUATEMALA: FIVE SUSPECTS GO ON TRIAL IN BISHOP JUAN GERARDI MURDER CASE.
May 10, 2001... After lengthy delays, five suspects accused in the bludgeoning murder of Bishop Juan Gerardi went on trial in Guatemala City on March 22. The murder took place in April 1998 and the defendants were jailed in January 2000. Legal delays and...

NICARAGUA: PRESIDENT ARNOLDO ALEMAN ACCUSES SANDINISTAS OF COMPLICITY IN MURDERS ATTRIBUTED TO CRIMINAL BAND IN NORTH.
May 10, 2001... At the end of April, as the November presidential election campaign was about to begin, Nicaraguan President Arnoldo Aleman said there was a plot to assassinate him, and he accused the Frente Sandinista de Liberacion Nacional (FSLN) of...

COSTA RICA: PRESIDENT MIGUEL ANGEL RODRIGUEZ CALLS FOR RADICAL CHANGE IN GOVERNMENT DURING REPORT TO LEGISLATURE.
May 10, 2001... During his annual report to the Legislative Assembly on May 1, Costa Rican President Miguel Angel Rodriguez surprised the nation by recommending scrapping the presidential system in favor of a "semiparliamentary" or "semipresidential" system....

NICARAGUA: COMPTROLLER GENERAL & PRESIDENT ARNOLDO ALEMAN LOCKED IN NEW STRUGGLE REGARDING CORRUPTION ALLEGATIONS.
May 17, 2001... President Arnoldo Aleman has renewed his resistance to investigation by the state comptroller (Contraloria General de la Republica, CGR) of allegations against himself and his administration. Aleman's current battle with the CGR regarding the...

GUATEMALA: CONGRESS PASSES CONTROVERSIAL LABOR-REFORM BILL.
May 17, 2001... At the end of April, Congress approved a weak labor-reform bill that was criticized by all sides. Business said it was not adequately consulted, and labor said important protections were left out. In May, Congress added another batch of...

REGION: U.S. MILITARY TAKES AIM AT ENVIRONMENT.
May 17, 2001... By Tim Rogers [The following article is reprinted by permission. It first appeared in the May 11, 2001, edition of the Costa Rican weekly newspaper Tico Times.] Once revered as the "work of God" and feared for the awesome power to...

GUATEMALA: ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL FIRED IN INTERNAL CLASH OVER HUMAN RIGHTS VOTE AGAINST CUBA.
May 31, 2001... Guatemala's vote condemning Cuba at the April meeting in Geneva of the UN Human Rights Commission has had serious repercussions both in Cuba-Guatemala relations and within the governing Frente Republicano Guatemalteco (FRG). The vote...

NICARAGUA: DANIEL ORTEGA LEADING IN PRESIDENTIAL POLLS; U.S. IS WORRIED.
May 31, 2001... Preference polls show former President Daniel Ortega (1979-1990) ahead of his rivals in the presidential race. The possibility that the Frente Sandinista de Liberacion Nacional (FSLN) could return to power has focused attention on how the US...