Costa Rica Digest, Sept. 27, 2004

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>>Costa Rica News Digest<<
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TODAY'S CONTENTS
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*Feature Article: Fischel Scandal Just Grows, and
Grows, and Grows!

*Events

*News Digest


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FEATURE ARTICLE
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*Fischel Scandal Just Grows, and Grows, and Grows!

Former Costa Rican president and now Secretary
General of the
Organization of American States (OAS) Miguel Ángel
Rodríguez told
reporters that he knows nothing of the scandal
surrounding the Fischel,
the Caja Costarricense del Seguro Social and the
credit loan from Finland.

He also told reporters from the Spanish daily La
Nación, that he has
not been following the news on the subject and what
is being said in
Costa Rica about the matter.

The credit was approved in December of 2001, during
the Rodríguez
presidency.

When pressured by reporters to give his opinion on
the scandal,
Rodríguez, said that he has been immersed in the
restructuring of the
OAS for the last couple of months.

Anonymous Calls Results in Raid of Legal Offices of
the Caja

Agents with the "Delitos Económicos" (Financial
Crimes) section of the

Organismo Investigacion Judicial (OIJ) raid the
offices and car of the
Legal Director of the Caja Costarricense del Seguro
Social (CCSS),
Rodrigo Cordero.

The Ministerio Público said it received an anonymous
phone call that
Cordero was removing documents from the legal
department of the CCSS and

storing them in the trunk of his car, with the intent
to remove them

completely from the building.

Authorities spent more than three hours reviewing the
documents in the

vehicle and speaking with Cordero before moving to
the third floor
offices where the man worked.

No official news has been released on the results of
the raid and the

inspection of the documents nor the results of the
conversation between

Cordero and the authorities.

Private Sector Distancing Itself from Fischel

The scandal that has surrounded the Corporación
Fischel, the Caja

Costarricense del Seguros Social (CCSS) and the
Finland credit loan,
had not only been a focus of attention for the
Ministerio Público, but
for the private sector as well.

Several companies have already place a distance
between itself and
anything to do with the Fischel and any of it's
officers.

Yesterday, Asesores de Servicios en Salud (ASERSA)
publicly made the

announcement that in the following days the names of
Walter Reiche
Fischel, Marvin Barrantes and Randall Vargas, will
disappear from the
board of directors of ASERSA.

Fischel owns some 40% of the stock of ASERSA. Another
40% of ASERSA stock
is held by ASEMECO, the company that also owns the
Clínica Bíblica
hospital, and the rest of the stock in the hands of
various shareholders.

William Cubillo, manager of ASERSA, says that the
company is in the
process of purchasing the stock held by Fischel.

The move by ASERSA to separate itself from Fischel
comes on the heels of

another company, ANVECO, who built the new building
housing the new
Clínica Bíblica clinic.

More companies are expected to distance themselves
from any relations with

Fischel in the coming weeks

Fischel May be Sold

Heard the latest rumour? The sale of the Corporación
Fischel? Well,
the truth may not be too far from the gossip.

In a statement to the press, president of the board
of directors of
the Corporación Fischel, Emilio Bruce, does not
discard the possibility
that the pharmaceutical giant may be sold.

Bruce said in his statement that, "now as in the
past, the Corporación

Fischel will continue to develop new business ideas
to reflect the
changes in the global market. The company will keep
open it's doors to
the interests of it's investors, both national and
foreign, and evaluate
the best options for the well being of it's
customers, suppliers and stock

holders."

Bruce added that the Corporación Fischel will
continue to provide the same

solid services it has in the past, but in no way
dispels the rumours that

have been circulating financial circles for the past
week.

Bruce said that talks of sale have been part of the
history of the
company, as the company evaluates different offers
and/or interests from
time to time.

The board president didn't deny either that the
Corporación Cefa has had
it's eyes on Fischel for some time and that there
have been talks between
the two companies. Nothing concrete has come of it,
according to Bruce,

though it is believed that the two entities are
negotiating a possible
sale.

The Corporación Fischel has been at the centre of the
scandal over the

diversion of a part of the funds from the Finland
credit loan to the Caja

Costarricense de Seguro Social (CCSS) that has seen
Fischel's president,

Walter Reicher Fischel, and company lawyer, Randall
Vargas, behind bars

awaiting the results of the ongoing investigation.

This past Monday, a former Fischel manager, Marvin
Barrantes, was detained
an placed under house arrest, while the downtown
offices of the Corporación

Fischel were raided by the Fiscalia for evidence to
complete their

investigations into the Fischel-Caja scandal.

Eliseo Vargas, former president of the CCSS is also
in jail, and former
Costa Rican president Rafael Angel Calderón Fournier
cannot leave the

country, along with his former law firm partner,
Gerardo Bolaños, who is
also under house arrest, for having received monies
from Fischel, through

Panamanian corporations, as a commission for the
arrangement and
completion of the CCSS credit loan.

Calderón gave back US$522.500 dollars he received
from Marchwood Holdings
in Panama, as did Bolaños when he deposited with the
Fiscalia US$90.000

dollars in stock and other assets.

The Fiscalia alleges that as much as US$8.000.000
dollars was paid in

commission to various public functionaries and
politicians from the
credit loan of US$38.000.000 dollars that was for the
purchase of medical

equipment and supplies at the CCSS.


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EVENTS
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*Film about Tibet
The film “Seven Years in Tibet” begins at 6:45 p.m.
at the Law School

auditorium of the University of Costa Rica (UCR) in
San Pedro. Info:

207-4271.

*Pubic Events with the Dalai Lama
Today, the Dalai Lama will speak to the public about
“Ethics for the
New Millennium,” 9:30-11:45 a.m. at the University of
Costa Rica.
Tomorrow, the Dalai Lama will meet with Christian
religious leaders at
10 a.m. at the Children's Museum and at 2 p.m., he
will discuss
“The Eight Verses of Training of the Mind,” a lesson
from the teachings
of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Info: Tibetan-Costa Rican
Cultural Association,

258-0254.


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NEWS DIGEST
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*Real Estate Fraud Still up in the Air

The Sala IV, the supreme court of Costa Rica, had a
chance to decide
who will be protected in real estate fraud cases.
Much to the amazement
of some in the Costa Rican legal community, the court
decided not to
decide.

By deciding that two potentially landmark legal cases
are "sin lugar,"
or without merit, magistrates have left the country
hanging as to who to

protect, the crooks or the innocents.

Historically, the Sala III, the supreme court for
criminal appeals,
has protected the innocent and returned scammed
property back to its
original owners.

On the other hand, the Sala I, the civil supreme
court, has protected
third parties in property fraud cases. In many
situations, the third
parties are the same thieves or accomplices who
swindled the piece of

property in the first place.

In other words, the swindlers can steal property with
forged documents,
sell the property to someone else, and the civil
court will protect the
last owner in the chain.

On Sept. 13, 2002, someone filed an action in the
Sala IV saying that
the criminal court, the Sala III, was wrong and that
third parties should
be protected.

In May of this year, someone else filed another
supreme Court case
against the Sala I, the civil court, stating original
owners should be

protected.

A small country like Costa Rica needs only one set of
laws no matter in
what court a legal action is litigated. For this
reason, some in the
Costa Rican legal community and property owners who
have been defrauded
were waiting patiently for the supreme court to give
the country some

direction.

Just like in almost every other country of the world,
when the Supreme
Court decides not to hear a case, it reaffirms what
already is in place.

So now, as before, property fraud cases will protect
third parties if
filed in Costa RicaÂ’s civil court and protect
original owners only if
filed in Costa RicaÂ’s criminal court.

There is no court commentary to determine why the
magistrates decided
not to decide.

The country court system is broken down into four
different courts or
salas only as a method to expedite matters, not to
have different sets
of rules for different processes. The spirit of the
legal system here is
to have one congruent authority.

Several lawyers contacted had no idea of the recent
ruling or even that
these cases existed in front of the Supreme Court.
The majority do not
know there is a dichotomy in the law.

This is why you have to have competent legal advice,
no matter what you
decide to do in Costa Rica. About 80% of the lawyers
in this country can
be classified as "clueless." We have worked hard to
find experts in all
fields here in Costa Rica, to make sure that
investors are protected.
For legal referrrals, you may contact us at
porongo@safe-mail.net.

We also have contact with competent business
consultants, real estate
people, a great boat manufacturer, etc. Letting your
"fingers do the
walking through the yellow pages" in this, or any
other country where
you are not familliar "with the territory" is like
playing games in
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We have been in business since 1997, so let our
experience work for you!



*Tax Reform Package Reaches Legislative Assembly

After more than two years of debate by the countryÂ’s
lawmakers,
the fiscal reform package has finally reached the
legislative
assembly, although there remains much work to be done
before the
tax reforms are passed.

The reform package proposes to make some fundamental
reforms to
the countryÂ’s taxation system in order to bolster the
governmentÂ’s
tax revenues, pay off the countryÂ’s growing foreign
debt, and reduce
the deficit to 2.65% of GDP.

Under one of the planÂ’s major proposals, income tax
in Costa Rica will
cease to be levied on a territorial basis, meaning
that a residentÂ’s

worldwide income will fall under the tax net.

The top income tax bracket would also be raised from
25% to 30% along
with a general overhaul of income tax thresholds.

Another major change will see the 13% sales tax
transformed into a

value-added tax, extending the levy to services such
as legal fees
and medical services in addition to payment for
goods. However,
private education services would be exempt.

Corporate income tax under the plan would gradually
be reduced from 30%
to 25%, and special tax breaks would also apply to
small and medium-
sized businesses in the hi-tech sector or located in
under-developed
areas.

The tax-reform bill would also make permanent taxes
on casinos and
online gambling firms, and attempt to improve tax
collection methods
in general.

A decision by the Constitutional Court earlier this
month to reject a
legal challenge by two lawmakers opposed to the plan
appeared to give
its supporters fresh impetus when all seemed lost.

However, lawmakers now have to review 1,182 reform
motions that were
rejected by the legislative commission responsible
for drafting the
bill, before it can be approved.

This in itself could cause fresh conflict amongst
lawmakers. Supporters
of the plan have reportedly said that they are
working on ways to speed
up this process within accepted legal boundaries.
However, those opposing
the plan counter that any attempt to force through
the reforms would be

“undemocratic.”


*Philippines, Costa Rica Agree to Boost Bilateral Ties
The Philippines and Costa Rica marked a new milestone
in their relations
with the signing of a memorandum of understanding
that calls for regular

consultations between both countries.

The "Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment
of a Bilateral

Consultation Mechanism between the Department of
Foreign Affairs of
the Philippines and the Ministry of External
Relations and Culture of
Costa Rica" was signed at the United Nations on
Friday by Foreign Affairs

Secretary Alberto G. Romulo and his counterpart,
Foreign Minister Roberto

Tovar Faja.

The signing was witnessed by Ambassador Lauro L. Baja
Jr., Permanent

Representative of the Philippines to the United
Nations, and Ambassador
Bernd Niehaus, Permanent Representative of Costa
Rica, as well as
diplomats from the permanent missions of both countries


*Heavy Rains Cause Damage
The heavy rains of the last several days have left
five bridges damages
in Cartago, Oreamuno, Turrialba and Vázquez de
Coronado. Also, the rain
has caused damage to various roads.

The worst of the damages is being suffered in the
Province of Cartago.

The bridge over the Toyogres river is probably the
worst damaged, as
vehicles and pedestrians have had to find an
alternative route to get to
and from Cartago and Oreamuno.

Edwin Aguilar, regional director at the Ministerio de
Obras Públicas y

Transportes (MOPT) in Cartago, says that there has
been infrastructural

damage in most of the province.



*Miss Costa Rica Mundo 2004
Miss Costa Rica Mundo 2004, Shirley Calvo Jiménez, is
set to travel to
city of Sanya, Hainan Island, in China to participate
in the Miss Mundo
2004 contest, in December.


The beauty queen is 22 years old and a student of
business administration.
A resident of Sabanilla, Jiménez is off to work daily
at the Legislative

Assembly.

Jiménez, is about to to conclude her thesis in
Business Administration and

the Degree in International Relations.

Her experience in beauty pageants include
participation in the Reina

Internacional de los Carnavales de Guayaquil in
Ecuador, where she was

crowned and the Reina Maya Internacional in Belize,
where she came in
first finalist.

This year she was an invited guest at the Nuestra
Belleza en Honduras in

August and in Guatemala two weeks ago.

Jiménez is expected to leave for China on November 8,
where she is
expected to tour China and get ready for the December
4 contest.



*Consulting Firm Can't Account for $200K in Aid for
Costa Rica

About $200,000 linked to a Japanese official
development project in
Costa Rica remains unaccounted for after it was paid
to a major
Japanese consulting company, the Yomiuri Shimbun
reported Saturday.

The fund is part of $230,000 (around 25 million yen)
paid to Pacific

Consultants Co., based in Tama, western Tokyo, which
was supposed to

subcontract part of a Japanese-financed project to a
Costa Rican
government agency, the major newspaper said in a
front-page article.

The irregularity was disclosed through investigations
by the Japan

International Cooperation Agency (JICA), the
government's aid donor body,
the Yomiuri said.

On Sept. 15, JICA suspended the company from bidding
on aid projects for
two months, the Yomiuri said.

Costa Rican law enforcement authorities also appear
to have launched

investigations into the case, it said.

The project was for devising an agricultural
development plan in Costa
Rica's northwestern region, the Yomiuri said. The
consulting company
formed a consortium with another firm in October 2000
to bid on the 423

million yen project, entirely financed by Japanese aid.

Pacific Consultants subcontracted the surveying and
mapmaking related
to the project to the National Geographic Institute
of Costa Rica,
according to the paper.

The subcontract fee cited in the contract submitted
to JICA was $230,000,
but an audit by the Costa Rican Ministry of Public
Works and Transport
found only several tens of thousands of dollars in
the institute's
account, the newspaper said.

Faked Documents Over Project

Pacific Consultants International (PCI) submitted a
falsified document
to the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
regarding a contract
for work on an official development assistance
project in Costa Rica, "The

Yomiuri Shimbun" Japan's news source, has learned.

In the document submitted to JICA, PCI said it
subcontracted surveying and

topographical mapping to the Instituto Geografico
Nacional de Costa Rica

(National Geographic Institute of Costa Rica) after
it had the institute
and two Costa Rican companies submit estimates for
the cost of the work.
PCI listed the estimated costs in the document.

However, a JICA investigation prompted by the Costa
Rican government found

that PCI had really negotiated solely with the
geographic institute.

PCI reportedly has admitted the allegation.

A JICA official said: "All ODA contracts, including
subcontracts, can be
made only with our approval. The falsified report is
a serious violation of

the contract between PCI and us."

PCI, the largest consulting firm in Japan that
specializes in overseas

development work, was commissioned to draw up a plan
for an agricultural

development project in Costa Rica to be funded by 423
million yen in ODA.

The company subcontracted a part of the project to
Costa Rican institution

for 25 million yen. However, much of the subcontract
fee that was supposed
to be paid to the institute by PCI remains
unaccounted for. JICA suspects
PCI may have misused the money.

In ODA programs, bids for consulting work on a
development project are
based on the quality of the proposal and the
company's capabilities,
rather than just the bidding price.

Influential factors include the experience of the
consultants' staff, and

prospects that the project will deliver on specified
goals, according to

sources.

This puts the company with the greatest local
knowledge at an advantage.
For this reason, consulting firms compete with each
other to establish a
good relationship with officials in countries where a
project is likely to
be conducted - even before such countries ask the
Japanese government for

development assistance.

Since planning projects are often the first step
toward full scale

development programs, the consulting firm in charge
of planning is in a
good position to be commissioned for the development
project as well.


*Father Minor Calvo, accused as being the principal
author is the

assissantion of journalist, Parmenio Medina, will
spend more time in jail,
as his appeal to end preventive detention was denied.
Calvo will have to
wait the results of the investigation into the murder
from his jail cell.


*High Speed Internet Service Approved

The Contraloría General de la República
(Comptroller's office) last
week turned down the contract that the Instituto
Costarricense de
Electricidad (ICE) had with Ericsson Costa Rica to
supply 600.000 new GSM

cellular lines, but it did give the green light to
high speed internet.

ICE has a deal with Samsung Electronics to provide
wide band internet
service that would be available country wide.

The contract approved by the Contraloría is for the
aquisition of
84.485 DSL ports that amounts to an investment of
US$22.973.628 dollars.

The investment will allow ICE to provide high speed
DSL service as part of

it's program Sistema de Acceso para el Proyecto de
Red IP, which will be

connected to the national telecommunications system.

The project will take advantage of the existing
infrastructure, since the
DSL service will be provided over the same telephone
lines used currently
to provide telephone communications.

Customers connected to the high speed service can use
their telephone and

surf the internet at the same time.


*Vehicular Inspection Rules Eased
Need to take your car at Riteve for the annual
vehicular inspection?
Starting today, some 120 items will pass from "grave"
to "leve"
(serious to light).

One of the items that affects many car owners is
tinted windows. In the
past, Riteve would not pass the vehicle if it had
after market tinted

windows, including the rear windows.

The Ministerio de Obras Publica y Transporte (MOPT)
made changes to the

requirements as part of the agreement the government
made with protestor
some weeks back. The new Transport Minister, Ovidio
Pacheco, is now in
charge of fulfilling the government's obligations.

Other defects affected by the easing of the rules, is
the vehicle does
not have a rear view mirror, the high beam/low beam
switch is not working

properly and the tire dimensions are different from
the recommended for
the type of vehicle.



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