(12 Nov 2024)
RESTRICTION SUMMARY:
ASSOCIATED PRESS
San José, Costa Rica – 11 November 2024
1. Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves pinning medal on El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele
2. Children waving Costa Rican flags
3. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador:
++SOUNDBITE PARTIALLY OVERLAID BY SHOT 4++
"Some people say we are violating the human rights of criminals. No. All criminals have human rights. All of them. There is not a single criminal in this world that doesn’t have rights. All criminals have rights, because they are human. Nobody is arguing that. I just say whose rights are in conflict with the rights of others."
4. Costa Rica’s capital San José
5. SOUNDBITE (Spanish) Pedro Martín, San José resident:
++SOUNDBITE PARTIALLY OVERLAID BY SHOT 6++
"The crooks have to be in the place where they belong and the people have to be at ease. Even if someone disagrees, let them go to El Salvador and ask the people of El Salvador to see what response they get about how they are now walking happily in the street without fear of being mugged, without fear of being killed."
6. Various of people walking in streets
STORYLINE:
Costa Rica bestowed its highest diplomatic honor on visiting El Salvador President Nayib Bukele Monday for his success in lowering levels of violence during a more than two-year campaign against powerful street gangs.
President Rodrigo Chaves lauded Bukele’s efforts as his own country continued to struggle with historically high homicide numbers.
Yet Bukele’s recognition brought controversy in Costa Rica, long known as Central America’s most stable democracy.
Chaves, a conservative economist, ran an outsider’s campaign in 2022 despite having briefly served as finance minister in the administration of outgoing President Carlos Alvarado.
He has maintained high levels of approval, but covets the legislative majority ushered into office by Bukele’s early popularity.
"President Bukele also understands what I have said a thousand times in this country, that for democracy to be worthwhile, it has to give results to society, to not be replaced by another political system that we Costa Ricans don’t want to see.”
The country long applauded for a robust ecotourism industry, environmental conservation and relative peace has been wracked by violence in recent years, largely attributed to drug trafficking.
Costa Rica has become a key waystation for cocaine exports to Europe and the United States.
Last year, Costa Rica hit a homicide record with 906 compared to 654 in 2022.
This year is only slightly off last year’s pace, according to the government.
Bukele has achieved his success in part by suspending a number of constitutional rights that push aside due process and give security forces and prosecutors far greater power to pursue suspects.
Despite that, voters rewarded Bukele with an unprecedented second term earlier this year and he maintains stratospheric approval levels.
Bukele addressed criticism of his methods as he has before.
He said first the right to life must be protected by addressing violence before other rights can be guaranteed.
"Some people said we are violating the human rights of the criminals. No. All criminals have human rights. All of them,” Bukele said.
"I just say whose rights are in conflict with the rights of others."
On Tuesday, the two leaders were scheduled to visit one of Costa Rica’s largest prisons.
AP Video shot by Berny Araya
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