WikiLeaks: U.S. Punished Costa Rica For Not Signing Covert Immunity Agreement

Anthony Freda Illustration

Michael Edwards
Activist Post

Like a mafia strongman who kneecaps you, then threatens you not to tell anyone or it will only get worse next time, the United States slashed support to Costa Rica after the Kentucky-sized country failed to grant immunity to U.S. soldiers and American citizens in the International Criminal Court.

WikiLeaks is once again at center stage in bringing to light government intrigue that has remained undercover for years.  Apparently, even the smallest countries are not immune.  According to the cables, between the years of 2004-2006, the U.S. imposed undeclared sanctions on Costa Rica totaling upwards of $400,000 annually, according to Costa Rica's largest newspaperThe Nation (La Nación).

Although these cables are a bit dated, the news of U.S. coercion remains relevant as 46 U.S. Coast Guard ships and 27 US Navy vessels are parked in Costa Rican waters as part of ongoing operations against drug trafficking.  The 10-year agreement involving 7,000 U.S. Marines was signed by former Costa Rica President, Oscar Arias, where the U.S. reportedly pays Costa Rica $300,000 per month to occupy its waters.
The $400,000 per year of withheld funds was part of an overall $40 million pool that the United States established for the implementation of free trade and security agreements with Central American countries.  In Costa Rica's case, this money would be spent on training to improve environmental and labor conditions as part of NAFTA, and now CAFTA, implementation.  Furthermore, the funds would also have been used to train and prepare police and the Costa Rica Coast Guard to combat drug trafficking.


However, in order to receive the funds, Costa Rica would have had to betray one of its core principles of sovereignty; namely, that it would sign on to a treaty known as "Article 98" that would grant immunity to the U.S. in the International Criminal Court at The Hague, in the Netherlands.

Costa Rica is actually a founding member of the ICC and is widely regarded as "The Switzerland of Central America" for its policies of neutrality and lack of a formal military.  Unlike the United States, which increasingly appears to have become a de facto dictatorship through executive orders and corporate ownership of politicians, Costa Rica's Democratic Republic still has its checks and balances firmly in place.  There was simply no way for Costa Rica to sign such an agreement, since its Legislative Assembly would need to have approved its execution.  The United States was not deterred: WikiLeaks cables reveal that the U.S. ambassador at the time, Mark Langdale, pushed strongly for some alternative agreement that would circumvent the Congress. 

What is most disturbing about the situation in Costa Rica is just how entrenched U.S. policies of flat-out extortion -- or bullying, if you prefer -- really are.  And they admitted it in the cables.  Langdale stated it bluntly in 2005:  "Costa Rica is paying an increasingly large price for not signing on to Article 98."

Another similar case of colonial bullying directed at Costa Rica was exposed in September, 2010. Christina Tobin, founder and chair of The Free and Equal Elections Foundation, announced details of her meeting with Costa Rica Vice President, Alfio Piva, and Founder and President of Costa Rica Libertarian Party (Partido Movimiento Libertario), Otto Guevara, in regards to drug policy.  According to Guevara, "If Costa Rica legalizes marijuana, the United States would stop sending funding and cut off agricultural exports to the United States."

Tobin clearly defined the colonial nature of such pressures echoed in the WikiLeaks revelations: "It’s despicable that the United States has such ‘authority’ over a sovereign nation such as Costa Rica,” Tobin said. “There’s a lot we can learn from Costa Rica, nonetheless the U.S. government continues to bully other countries to achieve its objectives, a hopelessly undemocratic tactic to international policy.”

Should we really wonder, then, why the world functions the way it does?  Costa Rica, a country of 4 million people with no military was one of only 12 who refused to sign Article 98 vs 102 countries that took the U.S. payoff.  Other more corrupt countries such as Guatemala pocketed millions by accepting.  Perhaps this is the clearest example yet of the price of independence.  No wonder the U.S. has a history of installing and propping up dictators throughout the world; just like petty thugs, when the mafia boss comes calling they are only too eager to give the correct answer.

Sources for this story:

La Nación: http://www.nacion.com/2011-03-14/Investigacion/NotasDestacadas/Investigacion2711020.aspx?Page=10#comentarios

Free and Equal: http://www.freeandequal.org/2010/09/christina-tobin-releases-details-of-her-meeting-with-costa-rica-vice-president-alfio-piva-and-libertarian-party-founder-otto-guevara/

**Special thanks to Scott Oliver from We Love Costa Rica for translation**

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