Socialist Feminist Activist Moises Montoya updates the fight against CAFTA implementation

The Dominican Republic-Central America Free Trade Agreement (DR-CAFTA) was agreed upon and signed by the United States, the Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua as a treaty under international law in 2004. To be implemented, the agreement needs to be passed into domestic law in each of the seven countries.

The U.S. Congress passed it first, under Fast Track authority, signed into law by Bush on August 2, 2005, after a 217-215 House of Representatives vote taken quietly in the middle of the night. By about mid-2006 the other countries except for Costa Rica had passed the measure into law, against reported volatile protests in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras.

The Costa Rican governement, currently headed by Nobel Peace Prize winner Oscar Arias (El Salvador peace accord), has announce its intention to pass the law. However, a vote has not yet been taken due to active opposition from organized labor and other activists. Unlike the other countries in the region, Costa Rica has a long history since post-WWII of Social Democratic policy making. This has resulted in stronger organized labor and a higher standard of living including a relatively extensive social safety net and a relatively abundant public sector .

A two-day General Strike during the last week of October 2006 made it clear that the people are prepared to destabilize the economy to block passage. On December 12, 2006 the International Affairs Committee of the Costa Rican Congress approved the treaty in a close vote. To become law, it now has to be ratified by the full Congress. The government announce that month that it is expected to be debated then voted on in the first few months of this year. However, an AP story on January 17 or 18 announced that these measures will be delayed for the forseeable future. This means the struggle against CAFTA implementation will continue, along with the reported heavy pressure on the Costa Rican government by the Bush Administration.