Pubdate: Tue, 24 Jul 2007 Source: Miami Herald (FL) Copyright: 2007 The Miami Herald Contact: http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/262 Author: Blake Schmidt, Special to the Miami Herald Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Marijuana) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/coke.htm (Cocaine) PEACEFUL COSTA RICA WAGES WAR ON DRUGS Costa Rica is Showing Progress in its War on Drugs, but Concerns Exist That the Country is Used as an Exchange Center for Major Drug Trade SAN JOSE, Costa Rica -- Known abroad mostly for its political stability, pristine beaches and eco-tourism, this country without an army has suddenly found itself in the middle of the war on drugs. During President Oscar Arias' 14 months in office, Costa Rican and U.S. authorities have set seizure records in increasingly spectacular drug busts -- nearly 50 tons of cocaine, compared with 2003, when seizures didn't reach one ton. In the latest case, scuba divers are still trying to recover a suspected boatload of cocaine that sank to the bottom of the Pacific after its crew set it on fire last week as authorities approached. The four Colombian crewmen were handed to immigration authorities due to a lack of evidence. "That's the third boat in recent months drug traffickers have burned in attempts to hide proof," said Security Minister Fernando Berrocal. Chief Prosecutor Francisco Dall'Anese says he believes the increase in seizures here may be due to Costa Rica's growing role as an exchange center in the flow of Colombian drugs toward the Mexican traffickers who smuggle the drugs to U.S. cities. "The Colombian and Mexican drug traffickers are using Costa Rica as an exchange center," Dall'Anese wrote in an e-mail to The Miami Herald. The increase has forced Costa Rica, which abolished its military in 1948 and now has only a national police force, to rely more on the U.S. Coast Guard. Berrocal recently asked Congress to allow Coast Guard ships to roam Costa Rican waters with less oversight in order to assist Costa Rica's mostly U.S.-donated fleet of smaller counter-drug boats and planes. "We've become the eyes and ears of Costa Rica," said Dwight Mathers, executive officer of the 378-foot Cutter Rush that has been patrolling Costa Rica's waters. Late last year, Costa Rican and U.S. authorities nabbed eight tons of cocaine abroad a Costa Rican fishing boat -- the biggest seizure in Central America until authorities in March stopped a ship in Panamanian waters with 20 tons on board. And earlier this month, authorities arrested five Colombians who had allegedly come to San Jose to assassinate Berrocal and Minister of the Presidency Rodrigo Arias, who also is the president's brother, in retaliation for drug seizures. The Colombians were sent home because the Costa Rican criminal code doesn't include the crime of conspiracy, officials said. Berrocal said he also feared an armed attack by other Colombians to liberate the suspects. In Colombia, the five faced no charges and were set free. Costa Rica's drug traffic also is attracting locals. Authorities say they have caught many Costa Rican fishermen puttering out into the Pacific to sell gasoline to northbound smuggling boats. And drugs have never been so readily available here. "We were once a bridge for drugs. Now we're not. A lot of it's staying," said Dr. Vera Barahona, technical coordinator at the government's Alcoholism and Drug Addiction Institute. Drug consumption of all types has multiplied in the past decade, according to the institute. The percentage of youths who've used marijuana has tripled to 7.4 percent and cocaine use has quadrupled to 2 percent. Among Costa Rican youths, 16 percent have consumed an illegal drug -- the highest recorded rate in Central America, though still less than half the U.S. rate. On a recent morning, taxi driver Jorge Bonilla bumped along San Jose's potholeridden streets, lamenting that his son had become a crack addict. "There's drugs everywhere," Bonilla said. "It's impossible to eliminate them." - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake