Monday 11 November was a day of protest.
Thousands of workers from the education, health, port and telecommunications sectors, together with environmentalists, students and ordinary citizens, took part in a mass march in San José. Picket lines and protests were also staged at various points around the capital.
The government described the protest as irresponsible and futile, whilst President Laura Chinchilla "condemned" the strike on her Facebook page and accused the protesters of contributing to the deterioration of the country’s public institutions.
The protests were sparked by a number of issues, including the new fiscal reform plan, the decision of the Department of Social Security (CCSS) to privatise primary health care services (EBAIS) in East San José, the concession of the ports to private operators, proposals to cut electricity prices for the business sector and the ’flexibilisation’ of environmental controls.
Gilberto Cascante of the Asociación Nacional de Educadores (ANDE) commented that the protest movement groups public and private sector workers as well as grassroots organisations that share concerns about the country’s problems. Teaching unions protested against the cuts in education and the ’single salary’ bill, which is still in the pipeline.
"We are not prepared to accept that the CCSS privatise the EBAIS of San Pedro and Montes de Oca, because there is a constitutional principle establishing that the CCSS, not a private company, should provide health services," said Luis Chavarría, general secretary of the national social security employees’ union, UNDECA.
Some of the placards read: "My Health is Not a Commodity" and "No to Health Privatisation, No to the Contracting out of Health Care".
The protesters also demanded the cancellation of the concession awarded to the Dutch multinational APM Terminals for the construction of a new port in Limón, as well as an end to all government negotiations with the Brazilian company OAS, following the suspension of the contract to rebuild the road link between San José and San Ramón.
Demonstrators also marked their opposition to the request made by major electricity consumers that they be given reduced rates, and that the cost be passed on to small domestic consumers.
Environmentalists attended the march in large numbers, calling on the government to pass legislation prohibiting the entry of genetically modified products.
They also voiced their opposition to mining concessions granted in the past, calling for an end to the exploitation of natural resources by multinationals and the over-exploitation of marine resources.
Students chanted slogans against the police repression they face, not only at peaceful protests but also in the area surrounding the University of Costa Rica, where they are reportedly harassed and detained when taking part in any kind of social gathering.
Various placards carried by members of the AEEG students’ association read: "Students against Police Repression" and "End Police Brutality Now!"
Hundreds of people marched down the main streets of Alajuela on the morning of 11 November.
"United we stand, a single bloc uniting all the forums and trade unions defending the country against neoliberal governments and their privatisation policies that systematically impoverish our institutions," said the statement published along with a numerous photos following the march.
The fight today is against all those that "pillage without shame or measure, right in front of our faces and behind our backs, using the law on concessions and their positions of power to profit themselves and big national and multinational business interests" it adds.
