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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 11, 2013, Vol. 13, No. 71 | |||||||||
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Government
purchasing systems
are being unified by decree By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
President Laura Chinchilla has designed Mer-link as the preferred online purchasing system for government agencies. The existing Compra Red will be merged, said Casa Presidencial. Mer-link has been touted as a highly transparent system for making purchases. All the requests for bids and the specifications are placed online. Those who have businesses may receive an email that an offer for bids exists. Once the contract is awarded, the results also are displayed online. Vendors who seek to become part of the system have to submit documents showing that they have no hidden owners or links to government officials. Casa Presidencial said that Mer-link already has made 2,000 transactions for a $76.3 million. Any other purchasing systems that exist in the governmental bureaucracy also will be merged, said the announcement. The president took the action by decree. The decree said that only Mer-link will exist by the second half of the year. The Ministerio de Hacienda supervises Mer-link. Finger pointing rules in reports over Ruta 1856 By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
Wednesday was finger-pointing day at the legislature. Three separate reports came from a commission that investigated the troubled Ruta 1856 along the Río San Juan in northern Costa Rica. The road was put in to provide transport for police to counter any effort by Nicaragua soldiers to further invade the country. But the job is a mess and there are complaints that the work only served to provide tons of silt into the adjacent river. The road was built under a decree of emergency. Contractors subsequently have been removed from the site and the work progresses under government employees. The Comisión de Ingreso y Gasto Público studied the case and it is from this body that three reports came forth Wednesday. Opposition party members called for the firing of top government officials. The ruling Partido Liberación Nacional put the blame on the Consejo Nacional de Vialidad, the road agency, as did most every other player. The Comisión Nacional de Prevención de Riesgos y Atención de Emergencias issued another statement saying it had nothing to do with the job. Various low-level rod inspectors have been identified as targets of investigation. And it will be prosecutors and not lawmakers who have the final say on who did what and when. Chemical in coffee cited as way to control diabetes By
the American Chemical Society news service
Scientists have described evidence that natural substances extracted from unroasted coffee beans can help control the elevated blood sugar levels and body weight that underpin type 2 diabetes. Their presentation on chlorogenic acids ― widely available as a dietary supplement ― was part of the 245th National Meeting & Exposition of the American Chemical Society in New Orleans. Joe Vinson, who led the research, pointed out that type 2 diabetes, the most common form of diabetes, is an increasing global health problem. In the United States alone, almost 26 million have the disease, in which the pancreas does not produce enough of the insulin that enables the body to use sugar, or cells resist the effects of that insulin. Blood sugar levels rise, increasing the risk of heart attacks, stroke and other health problems. Current treatments focus on oral medications that stimulate insulin secretions and/or reduce insulin resistance, dietary changes that control blood sugar levels and weight loss that reduces insulin resistance. “A simple natural pill or capsule that would both help control blood sugar and foster weight loss at the same time would be a major advance in the treatment of type 2 diabetes,” Vinson said. “Our own research and studies published by other scientists suggest that such a treatment may, indeed, exist. There is significant epidemiological and other evidence that coffee consumption reduces the risk of type 2 diabetes. “One large study indicated a 50 percent risk reduction for people who drank seven cups of coffee a day compared to those who drank only two cups a day. I am trying to make the coffee and diabetes story as clear as possible for the public. The evidence points to chlorogenic acids as the active ingredients in coffee that both prevent diabetes and improve glucose control in normal, pre-diabetic and diabetic people.” Chlorogenic acids are a family of substances that occur naturally in apples, cherries, plums, dried plums and other fruits and vegetables. Vinson, who is with the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania, pointed out that coffee ― due to its popularity as a beverage ― is a major dietary source of these substances. Large amounts of chlorogenic acids exist in green, or unroasted, coffee beans. However, the high temperatures used to roast coffee beans to make them suitable for use in coffee breaks down much of the chlorogenic acids. Thus, the focus has been on using concentrated extracts of green coffee beans, which contain higher amounts of chlorogenic acids. In a previous study, Vinson found that overweight or obese people who took such an extract lost about 10 percent of their body weight in 22 weeks. The new study sought to document the effects of various doses of a commercial green coffee extract on the blood sugar levels of 56 men and women with normal blood sugar levels. They got a glucose tolerance test to see how their bodies responded to the sugar. Then over a period of time, they took 100, 200, 300 or 400 milligrams (mg) of the extract in a capsule with water. Follow-up glucose tolerance tests showed how the green coffee extract affected their responses. “There was a significant dose-response effect of the green coffee extract and no apparent gastrointestinal side effects,” Vinson said. “All doses of green coffee extract produced a significant reduction in blood sugar relative to the original blank glucose challenge. The maximum blood glucose occurred at 30 minutes and was 24 percent lower than the original with the 400 mgs of green coffee extract and the blood glucose at 120 minutes was 31 percent lower.” Ad rates to be increased By the A.M. Costa Rica staff
A.M. Costa Rica will be instituting a small display advertising rate increase Monday. Classified advertising rates will remain unchanged. The increases are made necessary by increases in costs that the newspaper must pay. This includes higher utility costs, mandatory increases in employee salaries, higher rents and higher costs for editorial and professional services. Existing advertising agreements will not be affected, and the advertising staff will continue to accept business at the old rate until Monday.
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 11, 2013, Vol. 13, No. 71 | |
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| President going to Alajuela bearing news
of rail line link |
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By
the A.M. Costa Rica staff
President Laura Chinchilla will be going to Alajuela this morning for the annual Juan Santamaría day speech. She is almost certain to make mention of plans to bring passenger rail service back to the community in another expansion of the service. The president said Tuesday that the government would spend 3 billion colons, about $600,000 to clear the 11 kilometers of rail right-of-way that separates Alajuela from the existing Heredia train line. The work will be done by the Instituto Costarricense de Ferrocarriles and comes on the heels of the announced expansion of passenger service into Cartago. Among the sites that will be served by the Alajuela line will be |
the Coyol de Alajuela area
where there are free trade zones and industries. There was no timetable given for the expansion. In the past, these jobs ended up costing much more and taking much more time than expected. The Alajuela line has been encroached by dwellings and other structures and has even been asphalted over by road crews. Railroad supervisors said they think that all of the right-of-way will have to be graded and all new track put down.The central government is trying to entice commuters to use the rails to cut down on vehicle pollution and congestion. Ms. Chinchilla is expected to participate in a Juan Santamaría day ceremony at 7:30 a.m. and then enjoy a parade made up mostly of school children. Today is a legal holiday in Costa Rica. |
| Country honors its overseas citizens with
a special day |
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By
Kayla Pearson
of the A.M. Costa Rica staff The Dirección General de Migración y Extranjería, the Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores, and the Tribunal Supremo de Elecciones celebrated national day abroad Wednesday. The purpose is to recognize Costa Rican citizens who live outside the country. Sindy Chaves, winner of the Jorge Manuel Dengo 2012 Award, and scientist and former U.S. astronaut Franklin Chang Diaz were special guests at the event. The celebration corresponded with the commemoration of the historic battle against William Walker. Soldier Juan Santamaría was seen as an iconic figure during this fight, and today is a national holiday in his honor. Vice Chancellor Carlos Roverssi highlighted the achievements of Santamaría and connected the day to the fact that the country stands for both those who live inside and outside the country. "Today we are very clear that Costa Rica is not only a host country for migrants, but also a country that has a strong representation of Costa Rican citizens living abroad," he said. According to the foreign ministry, Costa Rica has 52 consulates, and is working to improve foreign assistance. |
"The Convención de Vienna
sobre Relaciones Consulares provides a clear mandate for the states to
protect the interests of their nationals abroad," said Roverssi. Immigration data shows that 250,000 Costa Ricans live in different parts of the world with a high concentration in the United States. Around 56 percent of these persons, mainly those who have lived overseas for five or more years, send money to Costa Rica. In 2010, they sent $526 million. In contrast, foreigners here sent $227 million to their homelands, according to Banco Central. "The contribution of this emigration reflects not only in the countries in which our fellow citizens reside, but also in our own national soil, making this an important support for many families in Costa Rica", said Freddy Montero, interim immigration director. With so many living abroad, concern was expressed over the tensions in Korea. Roverssi expressed a commitment to assist citizens in that region should anything happen following the government emergency protocol. "We should already start thinking about a sort of solidarity fund for direct actions, and it is not possible for us to be so limited," he said. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
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| A.M. Costa Rica's Fourth News page | |||||
| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 11, 2013, Vol. 13, No. 71 | |||||
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| Research in Belize showed how Mayan villagers managed to
save water |
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By
the University of Cincinnati news service
Research at the ancient Maya site of Medicinal Trail in northwestern Belize is revealing how populations in more remote areas built reservoirs to conserve water and turned to nature to purify their water supply. Jeffrey Brewer, a doctoral student in the University of Cincinnati’s Department of Geography, will present his findings today at the Association of American Geographers’ annual meeting in Los Angeles. Brewer’s research continues a University of Cincinnati exploration of the ancient Maya civilization that has spanned decades. The site for Brewer’s research, which was primarily occupied during the Classic Period (AD 250-900), functioned as a rural architectural community on the periphery of the major ancient Maya site of La Milpa. Brewer says this smaller, remote settlement lacks the monumental architecture and population density typically associated with the major Maya sites but shows similar, smaller-scale slopes, artificial terraces and water reservoirs that would have been utilized for farming and water management. Brewer discovered artificial reservoirs, depressions in the ground that were lined with clay to make a water-tight basin. These showed how the Maya conserved water from the heavy rainfall from December to spring, which got them through the region’s extreme dry spells. “They also controlled the vegetation directly around these reservoirs at this hinterland settlement,” said Brewer. “The types of lily pads and water-borne plants found within these basins helped naturally purify the water. They knew this, and they managed the vegetation by these water sources that were used for six months when there was virtually no rainfall.” Without that system, Brewer says the smaller, more remote settlement would have been more dependent on the larger Maya sites that ran a larger water conservation system. |
 University of Cincinnati/Jason
Whitaker
Jeffrey Brewer screens soil for
stone, ceramics or bone.Brewer has conducted research at the site since 2006, including spending two years of intensive surveying and mapping of the region. Future research on the project will involve the completion of computerized mapping of up to 2,000 points of topography – distances and elevations of the region in relation to water sources, population and structures. Brewer said he also wants to continue exploring the construction and management of these hinterland water systems and, if possible, gain a better understanding of what knowledge about them might have passed back and forth between settlements. |
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| A.M.
Costa Rica's Fifth news page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 11, 2013, Vol. 13, No. 71 | |||||||||
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| White House budget has Social Security COLA cuts By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The White House released a new budget plan Wednesday that would reduce entitlement benefits for retired Americans. The budget proposal seeks to limit cost of living adjustments known as COLA to Social Security by using a less generous formula to measure inflation for computing future benefit increases. Called "Chained CPI," some conservatives say the plan would save the government billions of dollars. But others say the proposed changes also place an unfair burden on people who can least afford it. About 58 million Americans receive social security benefits. Many live day-to-day on fixed incomes. Kay Dennison works part time at a retirement center in Maryland. She worries she could lose everything if her monthly checks don't keep up with inflation. "Probably my home, because everything is so tight and so high, and the mortgage rates. We've been in our home 40 years and we still owe," Dennison said. The proposed changes to annual cost-of-living adjustments would save the government an estimated $130 billion over 10 years. But a seniors' advocacy group, says under the new formula the average retiree would get $220 less a year after five years and $862 less annually after 20 years. Economist Monique Morrissey at the Economic Policy Institute says reducing already meager benefits on average about $1,200 a month, unfairly targets the most vulnerable Americans. "Poverty rates for the oldest are higher, incomes are lower. They've often used up other resources. They have more out of pocket expenses for health care. They're the last group you would ever want to target to take the brunt of these cuts," Ms. Morrissey said. With the U.S. population aging, Social Security now takes in less revenue than it spends. Conservative economists say more cuts may be necessary to keep the program solvent. Charles Konigsberg at the Federal Budget Group says Americans have a choice: Increase their contributions or face reduced benefits. "The good news is that these problems can be solved if they're addressed now. The longer we wait, the more difficult it is to fix the problem because the growth in spending accumulates over time," Konigsberg said. Retired educator Virginia Levy is more fortunate. Her monthly social security checks help supplement her teacher's pension. "I'm worried more about future generations, what it's going to do to them. My children are 40 and what's going to happen to them when they are retiring? Their Social Security is going to be a fraction of what ours is," Ms. Levy said. Indeed, Monique Morrissey says the proposed changes will affect all Americans. "People think Social Security is for old people. They don't realize that the benefits that are being cut are really for young people who will be old at that point. This one form of cut, by cutting the COLA, doing it immediately, affects both young and old people," Ms. Morrissey said. The president's proposed budget includes additional cuts to Medicare, and eliminates loopholes for wealthier Americans. But with a mid-term election next year, analysts say it's unlikely Congress will approve the budget without making changes. Adults called less healthy than previous generations By
the European Society of Cardiology news staff
Despite their greater life expectancy, the adults of today are less metabolically healthy than their counterparts of previous generations. That's the conclusion of a large cohort study from the Netherlands which compared generational shifts in a range of well established metabolic risk factors for cardiovascular disease. Assessing the trends, the investigators concluded that "the more recently born generations are doing worse" and warn "that the prevalence of metabolic risk factors and the lifelong exposure to them have increased and probably will continue to increase". The study, reported in the European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, analyzed data on more than 6,000 individuals in the Doetinchem Cohort Study, which began in 1987 with follow-up examinations after six, 11, and 16 years. The principal risk factors measured were body weight, blood pressure, total cholesterol levels and levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which is considered "protective". The subjects were stratified by sex and generation at baseline into 10-year age groups. The follow-up analyzes aimed to determine whether one generation had a different risk profile from a generation born 10 years earlier, what the investigators called a "generation shift". Results showed that the prevalence of overweight, obesity, and hypertension increased with age in all generations, but in general the more recently born generations had a higher prevalence of these risk factors than generations born 10 years earlier. For example, 40 percent of the males who were in their 30s at baseline were classified as overweight. 11 years later the prevalence of overweight among the second generation of men in their 30s had increased to 52 percent (a statistically significant generational shift). In women these unfavorable changes in weight were only evident between the most recently born generations, in which the prevalence of obesity doubled in just 10 years. Other findings from the study included: * Unfavorable (and statistically significant) generation shifts in hypertension in both sexes between every consecutive generation (except for the two most recently born generations of men). * Unfavorable generation shifts in diabetes between three of the four generations of men, but not of women. * No generation shifts for hypercholesterolaemia, although favorable shifts in HDL cholesterol were only observed between the oldest two generations. As for the overall picture and based on the evidence of a clear shift in the prevalence of overweight and hypertension, the investigators emphasize that "the more recently born adult generations are doing worse than their predecessors." Evidence to explain the changes is not clear, they add, but note studies reporting an increase in physical inactivity. What do the findings mean for public health? First author Gerben Hulsegge from the Dutch National Institute for Public Health and the Environment emphasizes the impact of obesity at a younger age. "For example," he explained, "the prevalence of obesity in our youngest generation of men and women at the mean age of 40 is similar to that of our oldest generation at the mean age of 55. This means that this younger generation is 15 years ahead of the older generation and will be exposed to their obesity for a longer time. So our study firstly highlights the need for a healthy body weight by encouraging increased physical activity and balanced diet, particularly among the younger generations. "The findings also mean that, because the prevalence of smoking in high-income countries is decreasing, we are likely to see a shift in non-communicable disease from smoking-related diseases such as lung cancer to obesity-related diseases such as diabetes. This decrease in smoking prevalence and improved quality of health care are now important driving forces behind the greater life expectancy of younger generations, and it's likely that in the near future life expectancy will continue to rise - but it's also possible that in the more distant future, as a result of our current trends in obesity, the rate of increase in life expectancy may well slow down, although it's difficult to speculate about that." Thousands rally in D.C. seeking immigrant rights By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Thousands of people rallied outside the U.S. Capitol Wednesday, pushing Congress to help legalize the millions of foreigners living in the country illegally, while lawmakers inside reportedly neared a consensus on an immigration reform bill. Concerned U.S. citizens, illegal immigrants and their children spent hours traveling across the country on hundreds of buses for the “All in for Citizenship” rally. Under a sweltering sun, they chanted “Now is the time,” while waving American flags and holding signs demanding equal rights for equal work. The decades-long push to overhaul the U.S. immigration system appears closer than it’s ever been to seeing actual success in Congress. Despite that, the legislative process could still be thwarted by differences of opinion on how to secure the borders while also addressing the illegal migrants. The bipartisan group of eight senators working on a reform bill has largely agreed on its shape, The New York Times reported Wednesday. Several people familiar with the legislation told the newspaper the bill would give $3 billion to the Department of Homeland Security to implement a five-year plan to boost border security. No illegal immigrants could begin the legalization process until the plan is in place, the sources said. It is seen as a compromise between Republican lawmakers focused on tightening the borders and Democrats dedicated to a pathway to citizenship. Both political parties, courting the powerful Hispanic vote, are pushing for a deal to happen before the next round of elections. The activists outside the Capitol building said they’re tired of waiting. Hispanics made up most of the crowd, but Asians, Arabs, Africans and countless others joined in the chants for change and sharing stories, food and water bottles. Bangladesh-born Farzana Morshed, a U.S. citizen and community organizer, traveled to Washington from New York out of respect for the Bangladeshis she’s seen deported from the United States. “When I read the newspaper, I see a lot of people who are being deported. They’re scared all the time. It hurts me,” she said, adding that the people able to stay in the U.S. often face abuses at work because they have no rights. Sigifredo Pizaña’s family has experienced both plights, deportation and exploitation. The 21-year-old was brought to the U.S. from Mexico a decade ago. He said his parents were seeking a better life. It didn’t work out. “My dad was deported two years ago. My older brother was deported last year. My mom went back to Mexico. I’m here by myself,” he said. “I wasn’t prepared for this. I had to drop out of college.” Pizaña, a resident of Grand Rapids, Michigan, qualified for deferred action, an Obama administration initiative that postpones deportation for undocumented immigrants who are younger than 30, and who came to the U.S. before they were 16. Under the program Pizaña can get a driver’s license and a work permit. He’s relieved. “Before, I had a job working at a horse farm, seven days a week. I had to walk two hours to get there,” he said, adding that he wants to pay taxes and get the same benefits as full-fledged citizens. The story of Pizaña’s family being forced out of the U.S. is appealing to opponents of the pro-reform movement. Jim Macdonald of the New Yorkers for Immigration Control and Enforcement group said he’s seething over the issue. “I think they should go back to their own country. They can be sent back in as humane a way as possible, but the first thing is they should be sent back,” he said. Macdonald stood across from the pro-immigration rally holding a sign that said, “Secure Our Borders.” Beside him, Thomas Bowie of Maryland clung to a poster that said, “No Amnesty for Illegals.” He lamented that the pro-reform group “understands practical politics better than most Americans.” “If we had the percentage of Americans who were against granting anything like amnesty come out that our opponents have had come out, Congress would sit up and take notice,” he said. “But at the moment, they’re just noticing our opponents.” It wasn’t always that way. Congress rejected another comprehensive immigration reform bill in 2007 that would have addressed illegal immigrants. It failed after a successful push by the conservative movement. Times have changed, though. The Hispanic vote punished conservatives in last year’s elections, and the pro-reform movement is more organized than ever before. Labor unions have worked for months organizing the bus loads of people who rallied at the Capitol. Lena Bembery, a representative of the United Auto Workers’ Union from Detroit, Michigan, said she came to Washington because “workers’ rights and immigration rights are inseparable.” “When workers are treated impeccable in terms of immigrant rights, then it translates to all the struggles we’ve had and fights for equality and justice for working people, for people of color, for women,” she said. Bembery, who is not an immigrant, said she’s ecstatic that many members of the movement are so young. “When young people take on that battle, it shifts it to a place where it becomes a way that we live, and not a way that we imagine,” she said. A 20-year-old Maryland resident born in Guatemala said he’s grateful Ms. Bembery and others like her are standing behind undocumented immigrants like him. “We feel like we’re not alone over here. We’re all fighting for the same cause. So let’s hope it works,” he said. Speaking behind mirrored sunglasses, he asked to remain anonymous because he said he doesn’t quite feel safe telling the world he’s in the United States illegally. Monetary Fund chief sees three levels of economies By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
The head of the International Monetary Fund says financial conditions are improving in much of the world, but that differences are starker than ever between prospering and struggling economies. Christine Lagarde, speaking Wednesday in New York, said improvements in financial markets have not translated in some regions "into improvements in the real economy and in the lives of people." In her speech at the Economic Club of New York, Ms. Lagarde described the emergence of a three-speed global economy in which some countries, particularly in East Asia, are doing well. She referred to the United States, Sweden and Switzerland as economies on the mend, and said Europe and Japan belong to a third group that still has some distance to travel before recovering from the global economic crisis. Ms. Lagarde noted rapid and substantial progress by U.S. policy makers in repairing the world's largest economy, pointing to steady growth supported by solid financial demand. But she also warned of growing U.S. government debt, and called for a medium-term road map to reduce it. Ms. Lagarde said many banks in the 17-member eurozone were still operating with "not enough capital and too many bad loans on the books." Consequently, she said lower regional interest rates were not benefiting the wider economy. She also urged European authorities to close some banks, if necessary, as part of a push to step up banking reforms. Japanese car manufacturers issue recall over airbags By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Four major Japanese automakers are recalling about 3.4 million cars worldwide because of possible airbag problems. Toyota, Nissan, Honda and Mazda said separately today that abnormal inflation of passenger-side airbags was the reason for the recall. The companies said the defective airbags, which were made by Japanese auto parts maker Takata Corp, could burst or cause a fire. No injuries or deaths have been reported. Honda is recalling 1.1 million vehicles, including the Civic and Odyssey models. Toyota is recalling 1.7 million vehicles, including the Tundra and the Corolla. Nissan says the defective airbags were found in 480,000 cars made in Japan between 2000 and 2004. Mazda is recalling 45,000 units worldwide. |
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| What we published this week: | Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Earlier |
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| A.M. Costa
Rica's sixth news page |
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| San José, Costa Rica, Thursday, April 11, 2013, Vol. 13, No. 71 | |||||||||
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Some
see Venezuelan vote as capitalism vs. socialism By
the A.M. Costa Rica wire services
Many Venezuelan voters see the coming presidential election that will replace the late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chávez as a sharp choice between socialism and capitalism that will affect their lives in very real ways. Business has not been good for Rotzen Villabon, who owns a gift shop called Viqiu. He needs dollars to import products made in China but he can't find any at the official exchange rate of 6.5 bolivares per U.S. dollar. He says the supply is even limited on the black market at a much higher exchange rate. “It has been really hard to find dollars, and we can find some at an exchange rate of 25 per dollar but not the amount that we want. So that is the reason that business is down,” said Villabon. The strict controls on foreign currency are fueling the country's soaring inflation and causing scarcity of needed items from food to beauty products. Villabon said he will vote for Henrique Capriles, who has promised to open up the economy to foreign investment and make Venezuela more business friendly. “I think if Capriles wins there will be change. Not overnight. We have to be clear, because the conditions are really complicated. We don't have liquidity in this country and, whoever wins the election, it's going to be a hard time,” he said. For many supporters of interim President Nicolas Maduro, the election is about preserving social programs like free housing, education and health care put in place by Chávez, who died last month after a long battle with cancer. Jose Antonio Silva and his brother just received free treatment at a local health clinic. “And if Maduro, God willing, wins the election, this will continue because this is a project the president wanted for the poor people,” he said. The candidates agree that Venezuela needs to curb double-digit inflation and both support social programs for the poor. But many voters see stark ideological differences in the candidates and President Maduro currently holds a significant lead over Capriles in the polls. The election takes place this coming Sunday. Elsewhere in the capital a group of students has gone on a hunger strike to protest what they say is an unfair election process. About 25 university students have set up camp in downtown Caracas and have have vowed not to eat until the election. Tugomir Yepez says they are there to protest what they say is the ruling socialist party's unfair advantages over the opposition Unity party in the campaign and election. “To be triumphant, different parameters for the Unity candidate should exist and for this reason we are protesting and fighting for the enforcement of these just conditions,” Yepez said. In recent polls, Maduro is leading Capriles by a significant margin. But the students say the process is not fair because Maduro has unlimited access to state media while Capriles is limited to three minutes per day of paid campaign advertising. Venezuela also is not accepting election monitors from the Organization of American States. President Maduro, like his predecessor Chávez, they say, also uses government resources and workers for campaign purposes. They see officials at the national electoral council, who were selected by the Chavista-dominated National Assembly, as biased. Some international election monitoring groups like the Carter Center have voiced concerns in the past about some of these issues such as unequal media access for candidates but have also praised the work of the national electoral council and have called the actual voting system in place free and fair. |
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