Government officials this morning have begun carrying out a demolition order on Hotel Las Palmas in the Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge.

However, a judge has ordered a stay on the demolition at nearby Hotel Suerre pending a further appeal.  Both hotels are located near Punta Uva.

The legal fight here goes back almost 20 years.

In the late 80′s, the Czech-born businessman Jan Kalina proposed a hotel in the area within the refuge Gandoca-Manzanillo. On June 17, 1990 he received a land use permit with the commitment to carry out the project in strict compliance with the environmental regulations for construction in the reserve and he proceeded to build the Hotel Las Palmas.

However, in 1992, apparent irregularities and environmental damage were detected. These included the construction of an artificial lagoon, the construction and expansion of drainage, the obstruction of natural water ways, tractor work, mercury lighting on the palm trees and use of coral to fill a swamp and unauthorized removal of trees.

On March 5, 1993, a court ruling gave the green light to a resolution issued by the then Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mines to revoke the original land use permit. This order required the eviction and demolition of everything that was built.

After that, Kalina appealed seeking to overturn the measure. In 2004 the appeal was rejected by the Sala Primera court which again ordered the resort demolished.

It was not until September 28, 2005 when the Ministry of Environment and Energy (Mina) took possession of the hotel, evicted the guests, then the employees and ultimately the owner and his wife. Two days later Sala IV court stayed the eviction and demolition order pending another appeal.

On October 8, 2009 an Administrative Court judge ruled again for the eviction and demolition of the hotel.

The work was finally begun today despite the opposition of some neighbors and protests over the last two days. Those protesters fear that the demolition of the hotel will lead to eviction and demolition of other properties which may also be in violation of the environmental regulations in the reserve or their land use permits.

When the officials entered the hotel, there were 14 tourists staying there who have been relocated elsewhere in the area.

Meanwhile, 28 employees were assisted by the Joint Social Welfare Institute (IMAS) to determine if they qualify for financial assistance.

Luis Diego Román, coordinator of the eviction operation, said the demolition of the buildings would start today and there is no deadline to finish it.

“Here they drained a wetland, cut down trees and modified the beachfront. And there is not even any wastewater treatment. The environmental damage was caused 20 years ago when the hotels were built. The owners have not paid the state for five years and now we will try to return to its natural state,” said Roman.

More:

• La Nación: Minaet toma posesión de dos hoteles en refugio de Manzanillo
• La Nación: Litigio de 18 años termina en demolición de hotel Las Palmas
• La Nación: Comenzó demolición del hotel Las Palmas
• Teletica 7: MINAET desaloja 2 hoteles en el Caribe sur

Police and protesters today, photo courtesy of Periódico El Limonsense

There have been several road blocks reported that started last night by protesters who are apparently angry over the government’s plans to restrict development and demolish several existing hotels and homes within the Gandoca-Manzanillo Refuge that do not conform to the plan.

There have been reports of felled trees and rocks blocking the road at several locations. At the worst location, the bridge at Hone Creek heading towards Cahuita, there were also burning tires and black smoke could be seen from miles away.

Some of the roadblocks have now been cleared but others are apparently still up and riot police were called in to clear the protest.

Formalizing of the plans for the refuge is a long simmering issue within the community and the hotels Las Palmas and Suerres have been threatened with demolition.

More:

• Periódico El Limonsense: Vecinos de Gandoca, Manzanillo, protestan contra expropiaciones
• Teletica 7: Desalojo en el Caribe Sur enfrenta a vecinos con las autoridades
• Talamanca News Feb 8: Is there too much protected land in Talamanca?

Residents of the Playa Cocles area are asking the Costa Rican Water Agency, Instituto Costarricense de Acueductos y Alcantarillados (AyA), for more details on a planned water treatment facility.

While residents are supportive of improved water treatment plant they are critical of “lack of information and transparency” from AyA regarding the project and want to know more details about the facility and where it will be based. Plans for the treatment facility first came to light about a year ago when some local residents found AyA surveyors on their properties looking for sites for the facility.

On June 8, there was a community meeting to try and get some answers and residents asked many questions of the AyA representative.

In an interview published yesterday by La Nación, José Francisco Valverde also responded to questions about the project and why it is being proposed for Cocles instead of Puerto Viejo (where presumably most of the waste water will originate).

More:

• La Nación: Vecinos de Cocles enfrentan al AyA por planta de tratamiento
• La Nación: José Francisco Valverde, gerente de la Unidad ejecutora AyA/BCIE: ‘Será de la más alta tecnología’

There were 5 candidates for the race. With 89% of the vote counted, the results were as follows:

Melvin Gerardo Cordero Cordero, Liberacion Nacional, Teacher, 53 years old   62.99%

Heriberto Hernández Ceciliano, Unidad Social Cristiana, 44 years old   27.23%

Levi Sucre Romero, Accion Ciudadana, 44 years old, Business Manager   5.41%

Eduardo Montes Centeno, Talamanca Unida, 49 years old, Teacher   2.82%

Luis Enrique Bermúdez Bermúdez, Movimiento Libertario, 43 years old, Taxi Driver   1.54%

Cordero’s Bio indicates he was a promoter of community development for DINADECO, supervisor of social development programs and family allowances, a municipal executive for the municipality of Talamanca and the Director of the Olivia School (1991-2010).

Cordero’s PLN party won 58 of the 80 mayoral races contested yesterday.

The governor of the northern Panamanian province of Bocas del Toro, Bonifacio Abrego, said Sunday that he had decided against declaring a curfew for the city of Changuinola. Abrego said that calm had returned to the city after three days of violent confrontation between striking banana workers and police. The province of Bocas del Toro borders Costa Rica on the Caribbean coast.

Meanwhile, the Panamanian president, Ricardo Martinelli, vowed that he would uphold the controversial Law 30, which was the cause of the strike.

On Saturday, the Panamanian government ordered the reopening of the Changuinola airport, and police confirmed that the highway that connects the city to the rest of the country had been cleared. The road had been blocked for three days by strikers.

“The problems in Changuinola have been the product of misinformation and a series of lies,”  Martinelli said in a press statement issued Sunday. “The intransigence of a group of trade unionists can not end with the banana industry in Changuinola.”

The conflict emerged when the Bocas Fruit Company withheld the portion of workers’ salaries that normally goes toward paying union fees. The company subtracted the union membership fee in response to a recently enacted law that makes such fees optional.

“The government regrets the misunderstanding on the part of this company,” the Martinelli administration said in a press statement. “It is not in the power of this business, nor any other, to retain workers’ salaries because it constitutes a violation of workers’ rights.”

Under the law, the employees must decide whether to pay membership fees and the decision cannot be made for them by their employers.

The protest ended Sunday, when the government signed an agreement with the striking workers. According to the document posted on the Panamanian government website, the original law will not be changed, yet, the government committed to providing more resources to help workers confront the high cost of living.

While roads and the border are open again, shuttle companies such as Caribe Shuttle are holding off on resuming service for a few days while they monitor the situation and make sure the route is safe to travel.

Sources: Caribe Shuttle, Tico Times.

Clashes have been reported today at Finca 4 and Finca 13. Photo courtesy of La Prensa

La Prensa is reporting that a second person has died as a result of protests near Changuinola in Bocas Province, Panama.

According to the director of the Changuinola Hospital, Thusnelda Cruz, 123 persons have been admitted to the hospital for treatment of injuries as a result of the protests.

Meanwhile our friends over at Caribe Shuttle have let us know that the US Embassy in Panama has now issued a travel advisory for traveling to or from Bocas del Toro while noting that the islands themselves are calm. The travel advisory reads:

Bulletin from Bocas Warden

To those hotels/hostels this email sent to, please inform you guests.

Today, Friday 9 June: It is not a good idea to travel to, near or thru Changuinola or mainland Bocas Del Toro Provincia. It is not a safe to be in this area, and there are road blockages preventing transit, due to protests between Panamanians and their government.

If you need to travel from Isla Bocas to anywhere, it is advised that you leave only by air, to Panama City, David or San Jose, Costa Rica. Either, remain in Isla Bocas until the protests end, or change you travel arrangements accordingly.

When it is save to travel by boat/road from Isla Bocas, an advisory will be sent.

At 7pm, Friday 9 July: Per Isla Bocas Alcalde, Joe Anderson, and Isla Bocas Hospital Emergency, Dr Luis Mou, condition in Isla Bocas is very normal, no problems reported.

Larry Shane
Bocas Warden, US Embassy Panama

The land route between Costa Rica and Bocas del Toro remains closed leaving the only transport option the three times weekly Nature Air flights from San José.

Travelers who have already booked shuttle transport from Costa Rica’s Caribbean to Bocas should contact their travel agency.

A new law passed recently (Ley Migración 8487) opened the possibility of tourists who wish to stay more than 90 days in Costa Rica extending their stay by applying at an immigration office and paying a fee of $100.

The old rules required tourists who wanted to stay longer than 90 days to leave the country for at least 72 hours. For those who wintered in Puerto Viejo that usually meant a trip over the border to Bocas del Toro in Panama for a few days.

The immigration department has now posted rules on how this program will work in practice and what documentation is required.

The new law states that “Las personas extranjeras autorizadas para ingresar al país y permanecer en él bajo la categoría migratoria de turista, por un plazo inferior a noventa días, tendrán la posibilidad de prorrogar su permanencia”. In other words that persons who entered under the tourist category with a period of less than 90 days are able to apply to extend their stay.

The bureaucrats in charge of implementing the program seemed to have interpreted the law in the most restrictive possible manner such that the change will be effectively useless for the majority of tourists. The have indicated that the language will be strictly applied and that the extensions will only be available to those who received less than 90 days on their initial entry whereas most North Americans are automatically granted a 90 day stay when they enter the country. As such, they will not qualify for the extension.

As well as the $100 fee, the government will also require a long list of documentation to accompany the application, including a certified copy of the person’s ticket to leave the country and a copy of the passport translated into Spanish.

And so it seems likely the over the border runs to Bocas will continue.

The full rules are available here.

Some of the things that CATCAS says should be priorities for the new deputy are:

• Repair of the road between Hone Creek and Manzanillo and the principal streets of Puerto Viejo and Cahuita
• Sewage and water treatment
• Garbage collection
• Security and crime
• The possibility of a small airport in the Hone Creek area
• Review of the municipal taxes and fees (which are exorbitant and unequally applied)
• The promotion of the local culture
• The Puerto Viejo school

CATCAS has asked for a meeting with the new deputy to discuss their proposals.

You can view the full letter (in Spanish) here.

May travelers had been reporting the poor state of the road, which was loaded with potholes that made driving hazardous.

The Ministry (MOPT) has also announced the continuation of work on the 18 kilometers on road from Puerto Viejo to Manzanillo. The ministry release did not specify the amount of money to be invested in the project or the timeframe.

Today’s MOPT inspection coincides with the visit of President Arias to the Puerto Limon, where he will be on hand to receive the first racers of the Transat.

More: La Nacion: MOPT realiza bacheo de emergencia en ruta Limón – Puerto Viejo

A judge of the administrative court has ruled that the Sistema Nacional de Áreas de Conservación (SINAC) is responsible for the eviction and demolition of Hotel Las Palmas located inside the Gandoca Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge at Punta Uva.

The decision was rendered by the court yesterday after a period of apparent inaction by the Ministry of Environment and SINAC to act on previous orders for the eviction of the hotel.

The judge, Lorena Montes de Oca, absolved of responsibility the Ministry of Environment, Energy and Telecommunications (MINAET) and its chief, Jorge Rodriguez. The information was confirmed by MINAET spokesmen and the Comptroller General of the Republic, which brought the suit.

The judge ruled that SINAC must coordinate with all institutions to ensure that “the demolition of the property proceeds as soon as possible”.

According to the MINAET spokesman, Ricardo Arias, the eviction order was scheduled for last week, but there was “a problem” in coordination with security forces.

The case dates back to 1985 when the Ministry of Natural Resources, Energy and Mines (MIRENEM) granted an occupancy permit for the Resort Punta Uva, SA. Eight years later MIRENEM withdrew the permission from the owner of the complex, Jan Kalina.

In 2004, the Sala I court ordered the eviction and demolition of the hotel. However, since then a series of legal moves and lawsuits have held up the eviction order.

More: La Nación: Jueza ordena demoler hotel dentro de área protegida