A political asylum seeker from Venezuela was welcomed into Costa Rica Thursday where the government is protecting him for humanitarian reasons.

Carlos Ortega, president of the Confederación de Trabajadores de Venezuela, left the Costa Rican Embassy in Venezuela under heavy police protection en route to the airport, according to reports. He had been in the embassy since March 13 seeking asylum to leave Venezuela where he said he was not safe from political persecution.

Ortega was one of the leaders responsible for organizing the two-month strike that attempted to dislodge Hugo Chavez, president of Venezuela, from power. The strikes toward that aim were unsuccessful.

He went into hiding last month after the Venezuelan government sought his arrest on treason and rebellion charges for his role in the strike. Ortega later took refuge at the embassy, saying he feared for his safety.

The Costa Rican government granted the opposition leader asylum because it is convinced of Ortega’s claims that he is not safe in Venezuela where he may be a target of violence, according to the executive order allowing the asylum signed by Abel Pacheco, president of Costa Rica.

The friendship between the governments of Costa Rica and Venezuela will not be affected by this

incident, said Roberto Tovar, Costa Rica’s foreign minister. The Venezuelan authorities were cooperative in the effort to transfer Ortega from the country, Tovar said.

Tovar and Ortega met here in the Casa Amarilla upon the Venezuelan’s arrival. Tovar welcomed Ortega on behalf of the Costa Rican people and then Ortega thanked them.

The union leader is here to work and not vacation, he said. Ortega said he could make plans to go to the United States or Spain. Other opponents of Chavez have been granted asylum in other nations.

Jack Caine, who heads Villalobos investor group the Class Action Center, has issued a rebuttal to claims lawyers have made about the group’s chances of success in bringing international arbitration against the Costa Rican government.

Caine’s comments come after an article appeared in A.M. Costa Rica Thursday revealing the group’s contact with the Canadian Foreign Office regarding the arbitration. In the article, lawyers were quoted questioning how the Class Action Center could succeed with its goal. 

Caine, 40, said: "When an attorney criticizes the strategy to go to the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes arbitration, you have to ask a couple of things: What is the attorneys motivation for saying this? . . . Has the attorney ever had experience in international arbitration cases? Has the attorney read the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes Convention?"

Arbitration would be before the International Centre for the Settlement of Investment Disputes, an organization operated by the World Bank. Caine's strategy claims the Costa Rican government had an obligation to protect investors but did not do so.

Among the problems lawyers suggested with the group’s case is that investors accepted post-dated checks from the Mall San Pedro operation. The checks were the only evidence of the debt. Lawyers pursuing investor cases in Costa Rican courts say that their first big hurdle will be to get the courts to accept the checks as promissory notes. 

Another was that the Villalobos high-interest operation was not licensed by the government. An adjacent money changing operation, Ofinter S.A., was licensed but the personal deals done by Villalobos were characterized as transactions among friends. Such friendly transactions may not meet the requirements for arbitration under a 1999 agreement between Canada and Costa Rica.

Meanwhile, Caine said he intends to assemble 

So far the only country the group has approached is Canada. An e-mail was sent to the Canadian Embassy here March 20. Officials at the embassy, though, could not confirm Thursday the e-mail had been received. The e-mail outlined the steps the group is likely to take in arbritration.

The group has hired a law firm in Canada and the lawyers from there have had dialogue with ministers within the Canadian government, said Caine.

Caine said in his e-mail to the embassy that he expected the Canadian government to reject his group’s request for support, but it did not. Instead the government officials sought more information, said Caine. But Caine said Thursday although the Canadian government has not yet indicated whether it will lend its support, he expects they will eventually say no. 

A British investor who is in the process of joining the group recently approached the British Embassy for help, said Caine. He said Britain is one of the countries with a two-way investment protection agreement with Costa Rica.

Georgina Butler, British ambassador to Costa Rica, however said the agreement between Britain and Costa Rica is not in force.

"There is a basic disagreement between Britain and Costa Rica," said Ms. Butler in reference to the agreement between the two countries. When asked if Britain would support its subjects, she said she was not prepared to say. She said only that lawyers are dealing with the two countries’ disagreement. 

Luis Enrique Villalobos Camacho, the man who operated the investment firm in question, defaulted on loans he has accepted from about 6,500 persons last October. He has been a fugitive since and faces allegations of money laundering and fraud.

The third round of free trade negotiations between the United States and Central America starts Monday in San Salvador.

Representatives from the five Central American countries involved — Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua — will take part in negotiations with trade representatives of the U.S. government toward making a free trade agreement between the two parties a reality.

The last round of talks took place in Cincinnati in the United States at the end of February.

The parties involved have made it their goal to complete negotiations by the end of the year.

Analysts say the Bush administration is using the proposed free trade agreement with Central America to show to the Americas as a whole the benefits of free trade. The U.S. government hopes to have a Free Trade Agreement of the Americas in place by 2005.

Critics of the Central American Free Trade Agreement in Costa Rica say it could have detrimental affects on agriculture here. They cite the example of Mexico, which experienced problems agriculturally after it signed the North American Free Trade Agreement with the United States and Canada.

Others say Costa Rica has not made it clear what it is it wants from the agreement. Rodrigo Carazo, a former Costa Rican president, said in a recent debate that while the United States has said what it wants from the agreement, Costa Rica has not. 

Linda Solar, a spokeswoman for the Costa Rican-American Chamber of Commerce, said recently the reason Costa Rica has not said much about what it wants is because of its differing position from the United States.

"They don’t want to show their hand," said Ms. Solar. "They have to consolidate their position with four other countries.

"I would say there are a lot of people who have interests in manipulating public opinion in the negative," she added, referring to union leaders and Carazo as examples.

On Mexico’s problems, she said: "Certainly, there have been problems in Mexico. But they had 10 years. They did nothing."

She said a lot of Costa Rica’s problems are due to a lack of competitiveness. But, she said, Costa Rica is in the best position of all Central American countries to exploit the proposed agreement. 

The free trade negotiations in San Salvador will take place from Monday through next Friday.

Anti-war protesters
hit American targets

BOGOTA, Colombia — Police here have fired rubber bullets and tear gas to disperse hundreds of university students who tried to march on the U.S. Embassy here to protest the war on Iraq. 

The clashes happened Thursday as the demonstrators shouted anti-American slogans, burned a U.S. flag and waved banners near the diplomatic mission. 

Several people were injured, including a photographer for a French news agency, who was hit in the leg by a rubber bullet. 

News reports say the demonstrators were challenging Colombia's diplomatic alliance with the United States over the war in Iraq. 

Meanwhile, in Chile, no one has claimed responsibility for a bomb that exploded late Wednesday outside a Santiago branch of the U.S-based Bank Boston. 

The explosion blew out windows and destroyed a cash machine. No injuries were reported. Police at the scene found fliers denouncing the U.S.-led assault on Iraq. 

Thursday, an explosion in Quito, Ecuador, caused property damage at a U.S. based business in that country. The attack at the McDonald's fast food restaurant came amid anti-war protests there. 

Elsewhere, Mexican President Vicente Fox said Thursday that Mexico's economy will feel the effects of the war but does not think any downturn in the economy will be serious. 

He said that depending on the war's duration, the global economy will slow down to one extent or another.

Haiti takes steps
toward security

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti — A longtime supporter of President Jean-Bertrand Aristide has been named the country's new national police chief. 

Jean-Claude Jean-Baptiste took office Wednesday here, but his appointment must still be confirmed by the senate. 

Jean-Baptiste replaces Jean-Nesny Lucien, who resigned one year before his three-year term expired. 

Jean-Baptiste's appointment comes ahead of a March 30 deadline set by the Organization of American States for the government here to take concrete steps to improve public security. 

The organization said in a statement Wednesday that the Aristide government is responsible for establishing a climate of security that is conducive to holding free and fair elections this year. 

Security has been a condition set by the opposition and other groups to ensure their participation in the electoral process. 

Aristide is mired in a long-running dispute over legislative elections held in 2000, and has lost foreign aid as a result. 

The U.S. Embassy here will be closed today because of planned protests against the war in Iraq.

The embassy will suspend its duties and services it provides for the citizens of the United States including visa services, according to a press release issued by the embassy Thursday.

The protest is set to take place in front of the embassy. If the protest does not occur or ends before 4:30 p.m. then the embassy will resume its normal services, according to the press release.

The embassy said citizens looking for assistance today can call 220-3939.

More protests are planned for Saturday.
 

Professional Directory A.M. Costa Rica's professional directory is where business people who wish to reach the English-speaking community may invite responses. If you are interested in being represented here, please contact the editor. Psychiatrists Dr. Luis Carlos Sancho Torres   bilingual psychiatrist (UCR) • consulting • depression  • schizophrenia  • psychiatric disability VA Affairs • evaluations for gun permits   • bipolar disorders • addictions  • methadone Available 24-hour a day children and adults office: 233-7782 beeper: 233-3333 lucasancho@yahoo.com Lawyers INVESTMENT RECOVERY CENTER Learn how to best protect your interests in the Villalobos case. Explore your options at http://www.irccr.net Also, we invite you to join one of the most active discussion groups on the case.  Find out what people who care are saying. Join at irccr-subscribe@yahoogroups.com 232-8/16/03 Lic. Arcelio Alberto Hernández Mussio Attorney at Law, Notary Public Official Translator Corporate, Criminal, Constitutional, Family Practice. Property title searches and transfers. Official English/Spanish translation & interpretation We also offer the following services in association with Morning Star Investments CRI, S.A.: *Real Estate Investment opportunities *Money Management *Accounting Services e-mail: legalxpt@racsa.co.cr           Web: www.forovial.com Cell: 365-3088  132-5/29/ KEARNEY-LAWSON & Asoc.       Lic. Gregory Kearney Lawson, attorney at law Villalobos and Savings Unlimited Collections *Investments  *Corporations  *Real Estate Sales in Costa Rica *Tax Shelters  *Immigration *Intellectual Property     *Business procedures *Family and Labor Law     *Locate People *Private Investigations        Ph/Fax: 221-9462, 394-7007 gkearney_lawson@hotmail.com attorneykearney@yahoo.com Real estate agents MARGARET SOHN  of Carico 15 years Costa Rican real estate experience Member of the Costa Rican Real Estate Association, Lic. #1000  Member, Costa Rican-American Chamber of Commerce margaret@caricohenderson.com www.realtorcostarica.com (506) 232-5016 home   (506) 233-8057 office  (506) 382-7399 cell  229-8/9/03 Investments Investigators Empresa de Investigadores Internacionales S.A. Telephone (506) 280-5217  FAX (506) 280-5120 P.O. Box 297-2100 Costa Rica Cédula Juridica #3-101-097681-32 investigators@prodigy.net johnniechaverri@policeone.com 112-5/18/03 Web Design Personalized Web Design •Hosting •Promotion •Logo Design Prices so reasonable they will astound you Call for a quote:  220-4602 www.alegria-webdesign.com We have over 12 years international experience 214-7/14/03

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.