October 19, 2007

The Honorable José Miguel Insulza  
Secretary General
Organization of American States
17th Street & Constitution Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006

Honorable Secretary General:

We the undersigned of this letter are distraught by numerous reports of violations of Costa Rican laws regulating the October 7 Referendum to accept or reject the ratification of the Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) with the United States. In a profound gesture of democracy, the fate of CAFTA was put to the people of Costa Rica to determine in a precedent-setting, national referendum.

Systemic interference in the referendum process by the United States and Costa Rican governments, as well as multinational corporations, puts one of the most vital democracies in Latin America at risk.

Civil society organizations in Costa Rica are compiling evidence documenting this interference, the most blatant of which occurred during the last two days preceding the referendum, stipulated by law to be a period of electoral silence in which no further campaigning can take place. Some of the most grievous violations include:

• On Saturday, October 6, during the national blackout period for campaign propaganda, the White House reinforced a statement made by U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab on October 5, threatening to retract existing Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI) preferences if Costa Ricans rejected CAFTA—something only Congress can revoke. The people of Costa Rica were also told by U.S. government officials that there will be no re-negotiation of CAFTA— something impossible for an outgoing President to predict.

• This came in the wake of a lengthy campaign waged by the U.S. Ambassador to Costa Rica, Mark Langdale, threatening economic reprisals for a “no” vote including visits to factories where he personally issued threats of dire consequences for failure to ratify CAFTA.
• Owners of transnational corporations threatened workers with massive dismissals if CAFTA were defeated.
• A one and a half hour Presidential address by Oscar Arias was broadcast on television on Saturday, October 6 aimed at instilling fear in the voters if the referendum was defeated.

Moreover, we must point out that your own public statement expressing sympathy for the free trade agreement with the United States is a matter of concern.

We are confident that many international observers from the OAS witnessed the acts of manipulation and inaction of the Costa Rican Supreme Electoral Council.

The failure to act on the part of the Costa Rican Supreme Electoral Tribunal in response to these blatant breaches of Costa Rican law has shattered the legitimacy of this important institution in the eyes of a large sector of Costa Rican civil society.

We oppose the unrestrained intervention and deliberate manipulation of the Costa Rican referendum process by the government of the United States from the highest levels, including the office of the President. We ask you, as Secretary General of the OAS, to act in a timely manner to call for an extension the 15-day certification period so that a full investigation into violations of the electoral law can be conducted.

Failure to act on your part could lead to serious consequences for Costa Rica, a society that has become deeply divided over this life or death issue. It is imperative that you act to avoid an undermining of democratic process in Costa Rica that could fuel widespread resistance and ungovernability.

Respectfully,

(Your Name Here)

Sign the Open Letter!