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Political Stance
Nature of Political Relationship with the United States
Bilateral relations between the United States and Costa Rica remain excellent; reflecting shared democratic values and traditions. Although some irritants exist, these differences are relatively minor. Most disputes involve trade (particularly in textiles and bananas), expropriations, and squatters on properties owned by U.S. citizens. The extradition of fugitives has also been an occasionally troublesome issue, though this issue has arisen less since a December 1996 ruling by Costa Rica's Supreme Court reinstated application of the bilateral Extradition Treaty between the United States and Costa Rica.


Major Political Issues Affecting the Political Climate
Foreign investors generally consider Costa Rica a friendly environment, except for certain sectors specifically reserved for the State. For example, in 1995, the Costa Rican Supreme Court determined that officials had unconstitutionally granted Millicom, a U.S. telephone company, the concession to provide cellular telephone services. Legislative changes to permit greater access to sectors reserved for the state have been proposed by the Rodriguez Administration but remain controversial within the legislature and Costa Rican society as a whole.

Another issue affecting both U.S. and Costa Rican individuals and businesses has been the expropriation of private land by the government without prompt or adequate compensation. Often these cases involve land expropriated to create national parks or indigenous reserves, and some of them date back more than twenty years. However, significant progress has been made in recent years toward resolving many of the outstanding cases, including one submitted to international arbitration. A new expropriation law, enacted in 1995, was designed to help prevent new disputes by explicitly requiring the Government to provide owners with adequate compensation before seizing properties.

A related problem involves the invasion and occupation of private property by squatters, who are often organized and sometimes violent. The squatters seek to take advantage of relatively liberal laws permitting occupants to receive title to unused agrarian land. In some cases, the Costa Rican police and judicial system have failed to deter or to peacefully resolve such invasions. In November 1997, a U.S. citizen and a Costa Rican squatter died during a confrontation over land ownership in Pavones, near Golfito in southeastern Costa Rica.

Costa Rica enjoys trade benefits under the Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act, also known as the Caribbean Basin Initiative or CBI. These benefits, along with those granted under the Generalized System of Preferences if it is renewed, are subject to a number of conditions related to respect for worker rights, treatment of American investors, and respect for Intellectual Property Rights.

The American Federation of Labor - Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO) withdrew a 1993 petition, earlier accepted by the United States Trade Representative (USTR), after the Costa Rican Government enacted legal reforms that prohibited Solidarity Associations from engaging in collective bargaining. In June 1998, leaders of the Rerum Novarum Workers Confederation wrote to the AFL-CIO complaining about alleged government noncompliance with guarantees regarding freedom of association. Rerum Novarum withdrew the complaint after the Rodriguez administration, which had assumed office a month earlier, asked for a reasonable period to demonstrate its commitment to protection of workers rights.

During the past several years, various unions have submitted complaints about unfair labor practices to the International Labor Organization (ILO), which, if not resolved, could lead to submission of another AFL-CIO petition.

With respect to intellectual property rights, the International Intellectual Property Alliance and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America have filed petitions with USTR based upon inadequate patent protection for pharmaceutical and agricultural chemical products and piracy of copyrighted material, especially video and audio recordings and computer software. Costa Rica is working on new legislation to address these issues.

Brief Synopsis of Political System / Schedule For Elections / Orientation of Major Political Parties
The Costa Rican political system is a long-standing, stable Constitutional democracy with a unicameral Legislature directly elected in free, multiparty elections every four years. Oscar Arias Sanchez of National Liberation Party (PLN) won the February 2006 presidential election in which about 80 percent of eligible voters cast ballots. The next elections for President and the Legislative Assembly will occur in February 2010.

The two major parties are centrist, with the ruling PUSC inclined to the Christian democratic right and the opposition PLN tilted to the moderate Social Democratic left. Party leaders; however, tend to blur these policy and ideological differences. Moreover, Costa Rican emphasis on consensus pushes most governments toward the ideological center. Five minority parties currently hold an important balance in the Assembly, with neither major party enjoying an outright majority.

The Supreme Court has 22 Magistrates divided among four Chambers, including the Constitutional Chamber (Sala IV), whose members decide constitutional issues involving laws and court cases.

The Political Constitution, enacted in November 1949, enshrined the Government's decision in December 1948 to abolish the country's military forces. In 1983, President Luis Alberto Monge proclaimed Costa Rica's permanent neutrality. The Constitution created a powerful independent body, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), to oversee elections. The Constitution, as amended in 1969, limits the President to one four-year term. The President may not seek reelection. Deputies may only be reelected after sitting out one term.
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