The peace movement in Costa Rica has to be considered against the broader backdrop of partisan politics.

As with everything related to relations with the United States, public posturing is designed for internal consumption.

War protestors are aligned with the political parties that oppose President Abel Pacheco, and the prize is the next presidential election.

The combination of the proposed free trade treaty among the complaints is no accident. It may be that the Iraq war has been a big boost to those who oppose the international treaty that is supposed to be finalized this year.

Whenever the United States is involved, politicians are polarized. That was seen when the United States sought approval from the Asamblea National to use Costa Rican ports for brief visits by U.S. Navy ships. The boats are patrolling for drug shipments off the coast.

Lost in the current controversy is the International Law Enforcement Academy. The U.S. wants to fortify anti-drug law enforcement in Latin America by providing a school where modern techniques can be taught. Some of the administration and faculty will be U.S. citizens, but many will be from Costa Rica and other Latin nations.

Opponents suggested that the law enforcement academy is a clone of the U.S. School of the Americas where selected Latin military officers were encouraged to use torture and worse for stemming revolt.

The U.S. spotty human rights record in Latin America does not help sell the school project, but U.S. officials claim that sufficient checks are in place to prevent misuse of the school. In any event, the school is directed more to police methods than counterterrorism. 

The school might be a victim of local sentiment about the Iraq war.

The free trade treaty with the United States causes fear in the public sector of Costa Rican society. From the electric company to the monopoly insurance giant to the government banks employees fear competition from more efficient international firms.

President Abel Pacheco said that Costa Rica’s state ownership of such entities is not on the negotiating table, but treaties have a way of effecting big changes over time. So some of the biggest opponents of free trade are the employee unions for the state entities. 

Another area of irritation for Costa Rica is agricultural imports. Some 154,000 tons of U.S. rice

 now ride in a cargo ship in Caldera harbor. Such products are cheaper than Costa Rican agricultural products. Some say this is because Costa Rica’s farmers are inefficient. Others say U.S. exports are heavily subsidized. Some politicians think that Costa Rica should only import basic commodities when production here cannot meet the demand. Agriculture will be a big component of a free trade treaty.

Opposed on general principles are the Communist and similarly-oriented political groups that will fight anything connected with the United States.

President Pacheco infuriated his political foes when he seemed to side with the United states in its war against terrorism.

Some pragmatic Costa Ricans recognize that U.S. force is the only counterweight to Panamá and Nicaragua, two neighboring countries that at various times have coveted Costa Rica.

But many youngsters and even some U.S. expats are believers in Costa Rica as some kind of island of peace in a troubled world. The army was abolished in 1948, and politicians since have encouraged this belief. Former President Oscar Arias furthered this belief when he won the Nobel Prize for Peace for his role in ending the Nicaraguan war.

Secondary school students and university undergraduates are being urged strongly by their teachers and administrations to demonstrate for peace.

At the University of Costa Rica such encouragement goes so far as to be an official Feb. 25 resolution of the university council.

Marta Zamora, head of Partido Acción Ciudadana, Friday in the Asemblea Nacional, expressed total indignation toward Pacheco’s stand, seemingly in support of the United States. At the same time Federico Malavassi, head of the Movimiento Libertario deputies, expressed concern for the effect on the economy by the war. He was particularly concerned with increases in fuel prices and an estimated 5 percent dip in tourism.

The Partido Liberación Nacional, the party of former President Arias, also opposes the war and actively supports the war protests, along with Acción Ciudadana.

Pacheco is a member of Partido Unidad Social Cristiana, and his party controls the assembly. However, yet to be seen is the internal tension within the party caused by the president’s position on the war. The future of initiatives such as the free trade treaty and the law enforcement academy hang on the degree of such inter-party tensions.

The Organization of American States, the Inter-American Development Bank, Argentina’s White Helmets Commission and the government of Panama are joining forces to help raise the quality of life of Panama’s Ngobe Bugle indigenous community under a program set to begin at the end of the month, according to the Organization of American States.

Around $253,600 is being contributed, said the organization.

The White Helmets Initiative Support for healthcare and nutritional education training is intended to help improve the quality of life for indigenous communities in the provinces of Boca del Toro, Chiriquí and Veraguas. 

The assistance involves training, public awareness and education programs in healthcare and nutrition. The programs will also help the community to better utilize its resources.

The project will benefit the communities’ residents — in particular students at educational facilities, as well as teachers and families, said the organization. Each educational center will establish groups of agents to conduct quality control of health and nutrition conditions as the basis of subsequent recommendations.

Twelve volunteers — five Argentineans and seven Panamanians — with the relevant experience will conduct the program, working directly with the beneficiaries, said the organization. They will plan, make policy recommendations and devise strategies and practical approaches to achieve objectives.

BUENOS ARIES, Argentina — Authorities here say a woman has received treatment for symptoms that may be related to a mysterious pneumonia-like illness that is causing concern around the world. 

Health officials said the unnamed woman arrived here Friday on an Air France flight from Paris. The 37-year-old Argentine woman was being treated in isolation at a hospital in the nation's capital. 

If confirmed, the woman could have the first Latin American case of a virus that has killed at least five people in Asia. 

Officials for the World Health Organization said Friday the illness - known as severe acute respiratory syndrome — appears to have originated in southern China and has spread to 300 people in at least a dozen countries.

Brazilian leader launches
racial equality office

BRASILIA — President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva has inaugurated the Secretariat for the Promotion of Racial Equality, as part of an effort to end racial discrimination in the South American nation. The move is part of an overall effort to promote racial equality and harmony.

In creating this new government office, President da Silva says he hopes to not only promote racial equality, but to strengthen democracy. He says democracy requires the participation of all citizens regardless of their racial background.

Da Silva, known to most people here by his nickname "Lula," has made the fight against discrimination a priority since he took office on Jan. 1. The government is promoting affirmative action plans to give people of African or Indian descent help in entering universities and in finding government jobs. 

But the Brazilian president says the problem goes well beyond legal remedies.

He says this problem is much greater than something that can be solved by creating a new government office. He says racial discrimination has its roots in the history of the nation and that it will take many years to change attitudes.

The country is considered to have the largest black population outside Africa, but the terms used for racial groups here make it difficult to determine the exact number of people who claim African descent. There are more than 300 terms used here to designate skin color. 

In the last Brazilian census, conducted last year, only six percent of people identified themselves as "black." Some 40 percent, however, described themselves as "mulato," "mestico" or some other term indicating a mixture of European and African ancestry.

Mexican police arrest
Iraqi asylum seekers

MEXICO CITY, Mexico — Police here say they have arrested two Iraqi men planning to cross into the United States, apparently to seek political asylum. 

Immigration officials at a bus terminal in the border city of Tijuana detained the two men late Friday because their immigration papers were not in order. Police said the two men, who are brothers, are not suspected of terrorist activity. 

Authorities also detained the men's guide, who is a U.S. national born in Iraq. 

Police say the three planned to cross the border near the U.S. city of San Diego. 

Earlier this week, Mexico announced the start of a massive security effort, called the Sentry Plan, at Mexico's borders and other strategic locations to coincide with the U.S.-led war in Iraq.

Haiti prompted to create 
peaceful elections

WASHINGTON, D.C. — An international delegation has urged Haiti to work toward creating a peaceful environment so elections can be held later this year. 

The delegation led by the Organization of American States and Caribbean Community pressed Haitian officials on the issue Thursday, during a visit to the Caribbean nation.

Delegates in the group urged the country to create a provisional electoral council in the next 10 days to open the door to future legislative and local elections. 

Representatives of the organization and Caricom called on Haiti to make long-needed reforms to improve public security and human rights. The reforms were among proposals that the groups presented to Haiti in September. 

Delegates met with Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide, other top officials and leading political opponents during a visit that ended Thursday. 

Honduran policeman 
gets 20 years, says group

A Honduran policeman was sentenced this week to twenty years in prison for the massacre of three children in August 1999, according to Casa Alianza, a child advocacy group that has a location in the country.

The group said policeman Victor Manuel Velasquez was found guilty of the murder of three children: Angel Gabriel Bonilla, 13, Esteban Varela Perez, 15, and Gerson Edgardo Canales, 16, who were murdered less than three blocks from a police station.

The war in Iraq has ignited anti-American protests in Latin America and renewed fears of a powerful northern neighbor who some believe already exerts too much influence over smaller, less developed nations. 

But, many people in the region also hope the war will end quickly so as to avoid economic repercussions on their countries.

From Santiago and Sao Paulo to Mexico City, protesters have taken to the streets in the past few days to denounce the United States for its war in Iraq. Political commentators and newspaper columnists across the region have condemned the military action as illegal. 

One group of legislators in the capital of Brasilia called for boycotts of U.S. products like Coca Cola and McDonald's hamburgers to protest the war and then chanted an anti-war statement in unison.

Meanwhile, Brazilian President Luis Inacio Lula da Silva condemned the U.S.-led war in Iraq, saying that the effort to rid Iraq of weapons of mass destruction did not, in his words, "give the United States the right to decide unilaterally what is good and what is bad for the world." 

Other regional leaders including some who have been seen as friendly toward the United States echoed this point of view in statements. 

Mexican President Vicente Fox said that his country shares many values, goals and proposals with the United States, Great Britain and Spain, but that he cannot agree with those countries on the issue of war. He says all diplomatic efforts to find a solution should have been exhausted before undertaking military action.

Still, most political observers in Latin America expect little damage to U.S. relations with countries

Most of the Latin American protesters have been the same people seen at other demonstrations, opposing globalization, the U.S. war against terrorism, or focusing on any number of local issues. 

In Mexico City Friday, some 400 peasant farmers marched to the U.S. Embassy to condemn the war. Many of them have been on the streets in recent months condemning the North American Free Trade Agreement as unfair to small farm operations.

According to public opinion polls, the average Latin American citizen is against the war, but not motivated to do much about it. Here in Brazil, for example, the call to boycott Coca Cola and McDonald's does not seem to have had much impact. 

People can be seen eating hamburgers and drinking cokes at the many McDonald's restaurants in Rio de Janeiro and shopping areas are crowded with people who seemed little concerned about the conflict on the other side of the world. 

Pacheco explains stand

President Abel Pacheco went on television again Sunday night to stress his position that when faced with terrorism even Costa Rica cannot be neutral.

Pacheco has become the local focal point of war protestors, and some called at Casa Presidencial Saturday to voice their concern. He gave a special television broadcast Friday evening, too.

This newspaper seeks the prompt return of two men who ran high-interest investment operations that have gone out of business.

Luis Enrique Villalobos Camacho, 62, was associated with Ofinter S.A., a money exchange house, and with his own private investment business that had about $1 billion in other people’s money on the books.

Villalobos closed his business Oct. 14 and vanished.

Louis Milanes operated Savings Unlimited and several casinos in San José. He left the country with other members of his firm the weekend of Nov. 23. He may have as much as $260 million in his possession. Both operations catered to North Americans.

Villalobos and Milanes are the subjects of international arrest warrants.  Associates of both men have been jailed.

A.M. Costa Rica has posted a $500 reward for information leading to the detention of either man with the hopes that others will make similar pledges. The newspaper believes that investors only will see some of their money when the two men are in custody.

Milanes has few supporters in San José. On the other hand, as the letters frequently on this page show, Villalobos still has supporters who believe that he will reappear and settle his debts. They believe he is in hiding because of a predatory Costa Rican government.

As we approach the six month date of the disappearance of Enrique Villalobos and, of course, the money, allow me to proffer a modest proposal. 

A large number of investors seem to be losing hope of ever recovering their money and believe they were the victims of a fraud. Another group continues to believe that "Enrique is your friend" and that he is the victim of a shadowy but unnamed conspiracy.

One group is clearly wrong.

What I propose is this: Those of you who represent that you have a back channel to Villaobos, tell him it is time for a dramatic and meaningful demonstration of good faith on his part. The time for talk and bravado is over. Mysterious E-mails will no longer do. Speculation accomplishes nothing.

It is time for dramatic action. It is time for him to demonstrate his Christian compassion. To stand like a man, stop hiding like a coward, and begin the end of the suffering his disappearance has caused for thousands of people.

To demonstrate to the world that he is not a crook, Villalobos must transfer at once an amount equal to a flat $5,000 for each investor at once. These funds can be transferred anonymously and wired directly into his lawyers’ account. The beauty of this plan is its simplicity:

— It is easy to administer. A flat payment of $5,000  regardless of investment to each investor of record, including Keith Nash.

— The money would be credited against the current interest due to the investors, which is compounding at a rate of 3 percent per month, thus relieving a growing future obligation.

— If the back channel group is to be believed, Villalobos is still investing almost $1 billion and receiving income. He therefore owes compounded interest to his "Friends." The total payment proposed would only amount to one months interest. One-sixth of what will be due on the sixth month.

— The money would not only be a dramatic demonstration of goodwill on Villalobos' part, but would have the result of rallying public opinion against the government. It would start the process of getting his brother released (who was, after all, abandoned by Enrique). It would clearly set the stage for a quick and fair negotiated settlement of the whole matter. And, it would vindicate his supporters who are, frankly, starting to look just plain silly and naive.

— Most importantly it would provide financial relief for the many people who find themselves in perilous shape. There has already been one suicide because of financial ruination. Only action on Villaobos' part can prevent more loss of life. If he fails to act from this point on, the blood would simply, and demonstrably be on the Brothers’ hands.

The time for talk is over. The time for action is at hand. It is time for Villalobos to stand and deliver. To end the suffering and anxiety, or be exposed for a fraud, and a con artist.

It is up to him to take action. Not lawyers. 

Dear A.M. Costa Rica:

In 1948 the vast majority of Americans cheered the establishment of the new country of Israel. The U.S. was the first country in the U.N. to recognize Israel. When the first pictures of concentration camps in Poland, and Germany were published in this country showing the tens of thousands of murdered Jews, the ovens used to burn them, and the skeleton-like prisioners that had survived, Americans were naturally sympathetic to the Jews and happy to see a "homeland" established for them in Palestine. Against great odds, they defeated the Arab armies that poured into their territory from all the countries surrounding them.

Hundreds of books were published about the travails of the Jews before WW II, during and after the war, the migration to Israel, the war with the Arabs, and the subsequent wars. Fortunately for the Jewish people and the new state of Israel, these books portrayed the Jews as an almost superhumanly moral people doing battle with evil and darkness, the Arab. The most successful writers of this genre were Jewish. My favorite was Leon Uris. I never hated an Arab until I read his books.

In subsequent decades, Israel has continued to receive the accolades of the American newspapers, TV, books, movies, journals, and the U.S. government. In addition to accolades, they receive billions of our tax dollars each year to spend as they wish, and billions of military aid to maintain and increase their arsenal, which for many years has included nuclear weapons.

We occasionally ask them to make concessions to the Palestinians, such as to stop creating "settlements" in occupied Palestine, to stop bulldozing Arab houses and government infrastructure buildings, to pull back occupation forces as ordered by the United Nations decades ago. It is a strange love affair we have with Israel. It is a one-sided love affair, and yet we persist by lavishing them with taxpaper money and military might. I don't believe they can be bribed into loving Americans and reciprocating by making concessions that MIGHT lead to better world relations. I believe they are so certain of American support that they will thumb their noses at us forever.

My questions are: 

l. Why do we continue to give our wealth to one of the most feared military nations in the world? 

2. What does America gain, except alienation of over a billion Muslims, for its Israeli largesse? 

3. Is the Jewish lobby in Washington so strong that we must give in perpetuity? 

4. Isn't it time to end the multi-billion bribes we pay annually to both Egypt and Israel? 

5. Couldn't this money be better spent by those who earn it? 

6. If Washington's answer to question 5 is NO, couldn't we spend the money on famine, disease, food production, and natural disasters whereever they occur?

Experience teaches that there are two sides to every conflict. For the past 55 years, we have been getting one side. I have read enough of the other side that I don't hate Arabs any more, and I no longer love Jews. Both are just people, very much like us. Some time in the future it is my dream that the people of the world will say about Americans, "They are capitalists, but evenhanded, fair, and even generous, capitalists."

Dear A.M. Costa Rica: 

Just a short note, so I may share with you and your readers the pride that’s swelling inside me because of the courage, conviction and fortitude exhibited this morning by my wife, Maida. 

Maida often attends church services at a small Catholic church located across the street from where we live. This morning, the priest’s message had to do with his and the Catholic Church’s opposition to America, Australia and Britain’s liberation of Iraq. 

Maida listened respectfully to his (and the church’s) opinion, and when he was through, she got up and walked out. She was sitting near the front of the church, and she said all eyes were on her and not a word was said as she left. 

I’m so proud of her. I truly wish that all of us who feel strongly about America and our right to protect the whole World from the potential devastation that could be our reality if not squelched had the opportunity to display our convictions in a similar very quiet, yet very positive way. 

God bless America.  God bless President Bush. 

Dear A.M. Costa Rica:

If the U.S. is going into Iraq to "free the people" of Iraq, then it would be hypocritical not to support an independent Kurdistan. Moreover, will the U.S. actively REPRESS Kurdish independence?

From my understanding, the Kurds will declare independence once Saddam Hussein is deposed.