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Published on Monday, November 29,
2021
By the A.M. Costa Rica staff On Wednesday, Dec. 1, Costa Rica will celebrate Army Abolition Day. However, the enjoyment of the holiday was moved up this year to today, Monday, Nov. 29. The move was to motivate residents to take a short vacation during the long weekend, from Friday to Monday, travel to the beaches or countryside and boost tourism. According to the Ministry of Labor, today's observed holiday is applied to all people working in Costa Rica. "No person is obliged to work this holiday, only if they reach an agreement with their boss," the ministry said in their statement. "If a person refuses to work on that date, he/she cannot be fired for that cause." In observance of the Costa Rican holiday, most public institutions, such as schools or ministries, are closed today. The U.S. Embassy and Consular Section will remain closed today. The diplomatic headquarters will reopen to the public again on Tuesday for normal hours from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.  The holiday recognizes how then-president, Gen. José Figueres Ferrer abolished the army on December 1, 1948. Figueres served as President of Costa Rica for three terms: from 1948 to 1949, 1953 to 1958 and 1970 to 1974. The dissolution happened on the tails of a civil war that Ferrer’s forces won. Until then, the Army had been a legal institution with economic resources and support from the national budget since the nation’s founding, according to the Ministry of Education. Figueres, after becoming president, demolished a wall of the Bellavista barracks - then the Army headquarters - in a symbolic ceremony. Today it is part of the National Museum. "On Dec. 1, 1948, I gave some blows on a wall of the Bellavista Barracks to symbolize the elimination of the remains of the military spirit of Costa Rica at another time," Figueres said in 1948. In 1949, the elimination of the army was incorporated into the political constitution of the reformed Costa Rican Republic. "This allowed us to use the budgets previously assigned to the army in the development of the public education system," the ministry said in its statement. Although it is a national holiday, for this long weekend, the National System of Conservation Areas, SINAC, will remain open including their national parks and wild areas to increase tourism. ------------------------------- How else should authorities boost tourism? We would like to know your thoughts on this story. Send your comments to news@amcostarica.com             |
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