USA TODAY US Edition

70 years after abolishing army, Costa Rica prosperous, peaceful

- Amanda Trejos

Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador are plagued by chronic poverty and violence that have sent a flood of refugees fleeing to the United States. Panama has gained the unwanted title as a world capital for money laundering and corruption. And all of them, plus Nicaragua, face recurrent political upheaval.

Yet amid this chaos, one Central American neighbor remains an island of political stability, economic prosperity and contentmen­t: Costa Rica.

The country’s secret is something that virtually no other country in the world can claim — no standing army. It has used the savings from defense spending to improve education, health care and a durable social safety net.

In 2018, Costa Rica will mark its 70th anniversar­y since it abolished its military, and that seems to suit the population. It ranked first in Latin America and 12th in the world in happiness, according to the 2017 World Happiness Index. The Happy Planet Index ranked it No. 1 in the world.

This tropical country, home to the greatest density of species in the world, takes pride in its ecological­ly friendly policies that attract tourists to its lush jungles. It enjoys a standard of living about double that of other Central American nations except for Panama, which profits from the Panama Canal.

Costa Rica’s experiment without a military began in 1948, when Defense Minister Edgar Cardona proposed the idea to spend more for education and health, according to former Interior minister Alvaro Ramos.

José Figueres, provisiona­l president at the time, took the proposal to the constituti­onal assembly, which approved it. Instead of a permanent armed forces, the assembly created a new civil police force to defend the nation.

Ramos, 62, said the change led to many advances for Costa Rica, especially in the 1950s and ’60s. “The standard of living of the sick, rural society went up, (and) we built big hospitals, but most importantl­y, there was a massive education boost,” he said.

Costa Rica leads the Latin American and Caribbean region in health and primary education, having the secondlowe­st infant mortality rate after Chile and a 98% literacy rate, according to the 2016-17 Global Competitiv­eness Report.

The country also provides universal health care to its citizens and permanent residents. The World Health Organizati­on ranks Costa Rica as having the best health care system in Central America and 36th best in the world.

Costa Rica has a history of presidenti­al support for peace and conflict reso- lution without violence. Former president and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Oscar Arias claims that negotiatio­n is the best way to avoid confrontat­ion.

“Military solutions to conflicts should be the last, last resort,” he said. “Here, conflicts are resolved at a negotiatin­g table.”

Arias, 77, received internatio­nal attention during his first presidenti­al term in 1986 for his efforts to end major civil wars and pro-communist revolution­s in several Central American countries. He said the Reagan administra­tion was “obsessed” in the 1980s with supporting Nicaragua’s Contras, the right-wing rebel group that opposed the socialist Sandinista government. Arias rejected President Ronald Reagan’s military option and instead searched for a pacifist solution.

Arias received the Nobel in 1987 for leading a peace plan with Central American heads of state to agree on economic cooperatio­n and a peaceful resolution to that conflict. “In every negotiatio­n you obtain what you can, not what you want,” Arias said.

Costa Rica remains peaceful despite violence in neighborin­g countries. The border between Costa Rica and Panama became the only non-militarize­d frontier in the world after Panama followed Costa Rica’s example and abolished its military in 1989.

 ??  ?? Tourists admire the beauty of Poás Volcano National Park in Costa Rica. The nation leads the Latin American region in health and primary education. It also provides universal health care to citizens. EZEQUIEL BECERRA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES FILE PHOTO
Tourists admire the beauty of Poás Volcano National Park in Costa Rica. The nation leads the Latin American region in health and primary education. It also provides universal health care to citizens. EZEQUIEL BECERRA/AFP/GETTY IMAGES FILE PHOTO

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