San José, Costa Rica - Friday 16 July 2004

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A US Senate committee has accused Riggs Bank of helping former Chilean leader August Pinochet hide money away. The bank have done this even after Pinochet was arrested. Click for larger image!

Miami tops 'foreign-born' cities Miami has a big Cuban contingent Miami has the largest foreign-born population of any city in the world, a United Nations report says.

Mistake in Prostitution Issue
The Christian organization World Vision blamed a misinterpretation by the Associated Press (AP) for the claim regarding that 80 percent of the prostitutes in Costa Rica were minors, which prompted a heated reaction by local authorities. 

Fugitive Priest Suspect Released in Nicaragua
A man suspected of being a fugitive Costa Rican priest fleeing child sex abuse charges turned out to be an uninvolved man from Venezuela, the National Police said today. 

Joint Study of Earthquakes
Nicaragua, the United States and Costa Rica will work jointly on an analysis of the volcano chains and their relation to the Cocos and Caribe tectonic plates, the Seismology and Volcanology Observatory (OVSICORI in Spanish) announced.
 

IMF Director Concludes Visit to Costa Rica
For the first time in Costa Rican history, the Sub-Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF)  visited Costa Rica and held meetings with President Ablel Pacheco, Finance Minister Alberto Dent, Central Bank President Francisco de Paula Gutiérrez, and coordinator of the economic team Ronulfo Jiménez.

Baltimore National Aquarium Provides Tracking For Leatherback Turtle
The National Aquarium in Baltimore is keeping a satellite eye on a leatherback sea turtle that nested on Gandoca, a remote beach in Costa Rica.

COPA AMERICA
Colombia Coach Wary of Compatriot
Colombia coach Reinaldo Rueda warned his team on Thursday not to underestimate Copa America quarter-final opponents Costa Rica and especially their coach Jorge Luis Pinto, who is also Colombian.

News Briefs
Riteve SyC, the company authorized to conduct vehicular inspections in the country, affirmed that it will begin charging ¢4.400 colones for the re-inspection of vehicles as of today. Riteve ignored a request by Transport Minister, Javier Chaves, to hold off the re-inspection charge for a month, while the two bodies dialogue. 

Chile may probe ex-dictator's possible secret accounts Chilean President Ricardo Lagos warned Thursday that Chile might investigate possible secret bank accounts of former dictator Augusto Pinochet should the existence of these bank accounts be proved. Mexico ranks 53rd place in UNDP list Mexico was ranked in the 53rd place in a UN Development Program (UNDP) list of the 55 countries with the highest human development. US backs dialogue between govt, paramilitaries in Colombia The United States on Thursday voiced support for dialogues between the Colombian government and the right-wing armed organization United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC) but insisted on the extradition of the chiefs of this group. Colombian ex-senator defends paying ransom A former Colombian senator defended his decision to pay a ransom to kidnappers holding his sons for three years, saying Thursday he could not bear to see them "slowly die in the jungle." International News from the New York Times

SPECIAL REPORTS TECHNOLOGY: Latin America Lags in R&D, Despite a Few Success Stories Captopril is a hypertension medication that brings in billions of dollars a year for the pharmaceutical industry. Bristol-Myers Squibb holds the patent, but it was Brazilian doctor Mauricio Rocha e Silva who in 1948 isolated its basic ingredient, bradicinine, from the venom of the Bothrops jararaca snake. Researchers at the Autonomous National University of Mexico (UNAM) discovered that the saliva of the vampire bat is a better blood-coagulating agent than those existing on the market at the time.   TRAVEL New destination in Costa Rica attracts eco-tourists worldwide Turning in the direction of the rustling leaves, we saw the troop of howler monkeys pause to stare at us before leaping away single file onto the branches of some ceiba and tamarind trees. Now it was our turn. Clipped into a climbing harness and hooked to a cable strung through a Costa Rican forest, first my 22-year-old daughter, Alissa, and then I hesitantly inched off a 20-foot-high platform to zip through the treetops. THE TAKE: DOUBLE TAKE In an attempt to surpass an already extraordinary 97% literacy rate, the Costa Rican government now requires cattle to attend school. [Photo by Stephen Bauer]

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