ISDS Case Map
CAFTA
US - Central America Free Trade Agreement
Even if Costa Ricans vote not to adopt CAFTA on Oct 7, they may still suffer economically from it.
For the first time in the history of world, a voting population will have the opportunity to vote on a free trade agreement in a referendum.
CAFTA is a legal instrument that favors multinational expansion without limits, leaving the most underprivileged sectors of Costa Rica totally unprotected, among them women and the poor. The strong movement against ratification of CAFTA will not end with the approval or rejection of the agreement on 7 October 2007, but could well be the seed of broader social transformation.
Nobel Peace Prize winner Argentine Adolfo Perez Esquivel (1980) called on Costa Ricans to reject the free trade agreement with the United States or submit themselves to the US market.
With just over two weeks to go before Costa Ricans head to the polls to vote on a free-trade agreement with the United States and six other countries, Alfredo Volio should be a happy man. As head of the "yes" campaign championing the pact, known as CAFTA, he has watched public support climb in recent months. But that was before a memo written by CAFTA advocates was leaked to the public this month, fueling outrage here.
Unable to gain public and legislative support for CAFTA amidst broad-based public opposition, the Costa Rican government has set up a referendum vote on CAFTA on October 7. It will be a "yes" or "no" vote. Hear a 28 minute audio piece, a segment of the video documentary, "Costa Rica, Inc." for an indepth analysis of why opposition is so strong in that country.
Ortega continues to condemn the destabilization plans on the part of the government in Washington, and in the last few weeks has attacked the Free Trade Agreement signed by his country with the United States
The Costa Rican Human Rights Association denounced the increase of the police repression against local citizens, students and social leaders opposed to the Free Trade Agreement with US in their Sunday statement.
UNI Telecom Americas President told the Minister of Labour and Deputies from the Costa Rica National Assembly that the country should look to lessons from other free trade agreements, including from his country Mexico, where poverty had not decreased and the minimum wage was in effect lower than before the 43 trade agreements signed by Mexico.
Students from the University of Costa Rica and National University organized the protest against a Supreme Elections Tribunal resolution of July 12 which said that university personnel, like other public officials, cannot use public resources to campaign for or against the Central American Free-Trade Agreement with the United States (CAFTA).
