I had previously commented that the result of the Costa Rican elections was close. After a recount of the votes, it seems like pro-CAFTA candidate and 1989 Nobel Peace prize winner Oscar Arias has won the election with a 1.1% margin. The final result has not been announced due to legal challenges about irregularities in some precincts, but it is almost a foregone conclusion that Arias has won.
Arias still faces a tremendous challenge to pass CAFTA ratification in congress, as he will not have complete majority in the legislative. Costa Rica is the only country not to have ratified CAFTA.
I am split in this. On the one hand I think that Arias is definitely the best candidate and should be president, and I think that CAFTA could be beneficial to the Costa Rican economy, but I am against the IP provisions in CAFTA, as I think that they will affect the generic market in Costa Rica and affect the public health system.
1 Comment
Herodito · March 2, 2006 at 2:25 pm
I'm actually worry about the environmental issues that will arrive due the involvement of international courts in claims.Like Bush's Harken, or Canadian Gold mining companies.