Government of Costa Rica
Background:
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Costa Rica has been part of New Spain since the Spanish had arrived in 1522. The capitol of New Spain, Mexico City, was also the capitol of the Province of Costa Rica. Due to the fact that Mexico City was over 2,000 miles away, Costa Rica was neglected and was hardly an issue for New Spain. The reason why, most likely, was that there was a lack of precious metals such as gold and silver.
When Mexico gained independence from Spain in in 1821, Costa Rica joined the newly established First Mexican Empire, as did many other neighboring Central American nations. This Mexican Empire dissolved in 1823, Costa Rica then joined the loosely governed Federal Republic of Central America. In 1839, Costa Rica formerly declared itself sovereign and moved its capitol to present day San Jose.
When Mexico gained independence from Spain in in 1821, Costa Rica joined the newly established First Mexican Empire, as did many other neighboring Central American nations. This Mexican Empire dissolved in 1823, Costa Rica then joined the loosely governed Federal Republic of Central America. In 1839, Costa Rica formerly declared itself sovereign and moved its capitol to present day San Jose.
Government Today:
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Today Costa Rica is formally known as the Republic of Costa Rica. It is a democratic republic with its capital in San Jose. Costa Rica consists of 7 provinces, which include: Alajuela, Cartago, Guanacaste, Heredia, Limon, Puntarenas, San Jose. The current constitution of Costa Rica was ratified on November 7th, 1949.
The Costa Rican government is split into three distinct branches, the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive.
The Legislative branch of government consists of 57 unicameral members who serve one four-year term. The Judicial branch consists of 22 members in the Supreme Court of Justice. They serve eight year terms and are eligible for renewal. The Executive branch is led by the President of Costa Rica. The President serves one term of four years. The current President of Costa Rica is Laura Chinchilla. She serves as the head of government and the chief of state.
The Costa Rican government is split into three distinct branches, the Legislative, Judicial, and Executive.
The Legislative branch of government consists of 57 unicameral members who serve one four-year term. The Judicial branch consists of 22 members in the Supreme Court of Justice. They serve eight year terms and are eligible for renewal. The Executive branch is led by the President of Costa Rica. The President serves one term of four years. The current President of Costa Rica is Laura Chinchilla. She serves as the head of government and the chief of state.
Legislative Branch:
The Legislative Assembly is composed of 57 deputies (diputados), who are elected by direct, universal, popular vote on a proportional representation basis, by provinces, for four-year terms. A 1949 constitutional amendment prevents deputies from serving for two successive terms; however, a deputy may run again for an Assembly seat after sitting out a term.
Executive Branch:
Executive responsibilities are vested in a president, who is elected directly by the voters, not by the National Assembly as it would be in a parliamentary system. There also are two vice presidents and the president's cabinet composed of his ministers.
The President of Costa Rica has limited powers, particularly in comparison to other Latin American Presidents. For example, he or she cannot veto the legislative budget, and thus Congress is sovereign over the year's single most important piece of legislation. On the other hand, they can appoint anyone to their cabinet without any approval from Congress. This provides the single most important power versus Congress that any Costa Rican President has.
The President of Costa Rica has limited powers, particularly in comparison to other Latin American Presidents. For example, he or she cannot veto the legislative budget, and thus Congress is sovereign over the year's single most important piece of legislation. On the other hand, they can appoint anyone to their cabinet without any approval from Congress. This provides the single most important power versus Congress that any Costa Rican President has.
Judicial Branch:
The Costa Rican court system is split of three court levels: district courts, appellate courts, and supreme courts.
When it comes to the criminal court system in Costa Rica there are definitely some major differences compared to the North American legal system.
Differences: First there is no bond system, although the court in some case will allow it but this is usually only for clients who can afford higher end lawyers. Also prosecutors have the ability to request preventative detention (jail) for a suspect while they work to build a case against the accused. As you can imagine in a country not known for its speed of resolution these “preventative detentions” commonly last from 3 – 12 month’s , and while rare can last even longer. It is also said the prosecutors are heavily favored in most cases, leaving many with a sense of guilty unless proven innocent beyond a reasonable doubt.
Similarities: While the differences can seem a bit drastic there are some areas of the Costa Rican criminal system that are very familiar. One of the most important is that a lawyer is provided to a defendant if he/she can not afford one. Costa Rica also holds preliminary hearing to determine whether the prosecutor has presented enough evidence to take the case to trial.
When it comes to the criminal court system in Costa Rica there are definitely some major differences compared to the North American legal system.
Differences: First there is no bond system, although the court in some case will allow it but this is usually only for clients who can afford higher end lawyers. Also prosecutors have the ability to request preventative detention (jail) for a suspect while they work to build a case against the accused. As you can imagine in a country not known for its speed of resolution these “preventative detentions” commonly last from 3 – 12 month’s , and while rare can last even longer. It is also said the prosecutors are heavily favored in most cases, leaving many with a sense of guilty unless proven innocent beyond a reasonable doubt.
Similarities: While the differences can seem a bit drastic there are some areas of the Costa Rican criminal system that are very familiar. One of the most important is that a lawyer is provided to a defendant if he/she can not afford one. Costa Rica also holds preliminary hearing to determine whether the prosecutor has presented enough evidence to take the case to trial.
Foreign Relations:
Costa Rica is an active member of the international community and proclaimed its permanent neutrality in 1993. Its record on the environment and human rights and advocacy of peaceful settlement of disputes give it a weight in world affairs far beyond its size. The country lobbied aggressively for the establishment of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and became the first nation to recognize the jurisdiction of the Inter-American Human Rights Court, based in San Jose. Costa Rica has been a strong proponent of regional arms limitation agreements. In 2009, Costa Rica completed its third term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.
References:
- https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html
- http://costarica-connection.com/costa-rica-legal-system/
- http://globaledge.msu.edu/countries/costa-rica/government
Current Event Summary: Governmental
It was announced that the President of Costa Rica, Laura Chinchilla, will be attending the Summit of Heads of State and Government (TCRN). The summit will be held on October 18th and 19th in Panama and the main topic of the summit will be business and economic development for Central America (TCRN). According to organizers, it is expected that the Summit of Panama will debate on the political, economic, social and cultural development of the Latin American community in the context of the new world (TCRN).
References:
- The Costa Rican News, (TCRN). "Costa Rica President Chinchilla confirms attendance to Summit in Panama | The Costa Rica News." The Costa Rican News | English Online Newspaper. N.p., 8 Oct. 2013. Web. 10 Oct. 2013.
Current Event Summary: Economic
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The housing market for luxury homes in Costa Rica is getter larger and larger. According to John Weisel, the president of Coldwell Banker Costa Rica, the "demand for luxury homes in the San José area is getting stronger" (McGuire). Many foreigners buy real estate in Costa Rica. Most property buyers come from Panama, Colombia, Venezuela and other neighboring Latin countries. However, "The No. 1 [buyer] is still the United States. You’re still getting a lot of people wanting to come and settle down here in Costa Rica” according to Federico Vega, a commercial manager at Secure Title of Latin America, a title insurance company in San José (McGuire). This is good news for Costa Rica, for having been hit hard by the 2008 financial crisis, the nation has be rebounding and home buying is at an all time high since then.
References:
- McGuire, Virginia C.. "Real Estate in Costa Rica - NYTimes.com." The New York Times - Breaking News, World News & Multimedia. N.p., 17 Apr. 2013. Web. 10 Oct. 2013.
Oil and Petroleum
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Statistics:
1. Crude Oil:
Production: 0 bbl/day
Exports: 0 bbl/day
Imports: 7,361 bbl/day
2. Petroleum:
Consumption: 50, 200 bbl/day
Production: 12,090 bbl/day
Exports: 737.1 bbl/day
Imports: 39,200 bbl/day
Analysis: With the information provided in the CIA World Fact Book and the US Energy Information Administration, Costa Rica is not a world leader in crude oil production. In fact, Costa Rica imports all of its crude oil it needs to sustain the energy needs of motorized vehicles and transportation. The importation of crude oil (7,361 barrels per day) is very low compared to nations like the United States (9.013 million barrels per day). Petroleum consumption is relatively small compared to other larger countries. This is most likely due to the fact that Costa Rica is more environmentally conscious than most countries in the world.
Questions:
1. Is Costa Rica a leader in alternative fuels?
2. Can Costa Rica be totally independent from importation of crude oil?
Resources:
1. Crude Oil:
Production: 0 bbl/day
Exports: 0 bbl/day
Imports: 7,361 bbl/day
2. Petroleum:
Consumption: 50, 200 bbl/day
Production: 12,090 bbl/day
Exports: 737.1 bbl/day
Imports: 39,200 bbl/day
Analysis: With the information provided in the CIA World Fact Book and the US Energy Information Administration, Costa Rica is not a world leader in crude oil production. In fact, Costa Rica imports all of its crude oil it needs to sustain the energy needs of motorized vehicles and transportation. The importation of crude oil (7,361 barrels per day) is very low compared to nations like the United States (9.013 million barrels per day). Petroleum consumption is relatively small compared to other larger countries. This is most likely due to the fact that Costa Rica is more environmentally conscious than most countries in the world.
Questions:
1. Is Costa Rica a leader in alternative fuels?
2. Can Costa Rica be totally independent from importation of crude oil?
Resources:
- https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/cs.html
- https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/us.html
- http://205.254.135.7/countries/country-data.cfm?fips=CS&trk=m
Economic System of Costa Rica
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History of Economic Systems: Costa Rica has been a mostly agricultural based economy since the Spanish came to Middle America. Since Costa Rica was so remote and did not provide vast mineral resources, Costa Rica remained relatively agricultural based all the way through present time (cia.gov).
Current Economic System: Costa Rica's current economic system can be compared to that of the United States. It is a mixed economy with the state controlling many aspects of the free-market. This can especially be seen when the government intervenes in business that may harm the environment. Costa Rica also has a safety net in the form of social security and welfare for those who are too old, disabled, or can't find employment. This system has been stressed in recent years because of the large amount of documented and undocumented immigrants from neighboring Nicaragua and Panama (cia.gov).
Compared to Other Regional Nations:
(Labor Force)
Costa Rica- 2.182 million
Nicaragua- 2.961 million
El Salvador- 2.593 million
Panama- 1.517 million
(Unemployment Rate)
Costa Rica - 7.8%
Nicaragua- 7.4%
El Salvador- 6.9% (much underemployment)
Panama- 4.4%
The numbers listed above indicate that Costa Rica has been hit relatively hard by the global recession of 2008-2009. Since a large portion of Costa Rica's economy relies on tourism, much of unemployment comes from the loss of jobs in that market. Even though Costa Rica has a higher unemployment rate, it still has a low underemployment rate compared to its neighbors. This is why there is a great number of immigrants that come to Costa Rica to find jobs that require little to no skills (cia.gov).
GDP: The current GDP of Costa Rica as of 2012 is $45.13 billion (US dollars).
Citation: www.cia.gov/worldfactbook.com
Current Economic System: Costa Rica's current economic system can be compared to that of the United States. It is a mixed economy with the state controlling many aspects of the free-market. This can especially be seen when the government intervenes in business that may harm the environment. Costa Rica also has a safety net in the form of social security and welfare for those who are too old, disabled, or can't find employment. This system has been stressed in recent years because of the large amount of documented and undocumented immigrants from neighboring Nicaragua and Panama (cia.gov).
Compared to Other Regional Nations:
(Labor Force)
Costa Rica- 2.182 million
Nicaragua- 2.961 million
El Salvador- 2.593 million
Panama- 1.517 million
(Unemployment Rate)
Costa Rica - 7.8%
Nicaragua- 7.4%
El Salvador- 6.9% (much underemployment)
Panama- 4.4%
The numbers listed above indicate that Costa Rica has been hit relatively hard by the global recession of 2008-2009. Since a large portion of Costa Rica's economy relies on tourism, much of unemployment comes from the loss of jobs in that market. Even though Costa Rica has a higher unemployment rate, it still has a low underemployment rate compared to its neighbors. This is why there is a great number of immigrants that come to Costa Rica to find jobs that require little to no skills (cia.gov).
GDP: The current GDP of Costa Rica as of 2012 is $45.13 billion (US dollars).
Citation: www.cia.gov/worldfactbook.com