Costa Rica Most Democratic Latin American Nation

Costa Rica Most Democratic Latin American Nation

Putting CAFTA in the Hands of the People Help Earned Costa Rica this Recognition.

The annual Latin American Index of Democratic Development has found that Costa Rica holds its number one spot for democratic nations. The private study collaborated with Polilat.com and the Konrad Adenauer Foundation to conduct its research, and results were released yesterday, September 25, in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The Latin America Index of Democratic Development regularly observes, monitors and evaluates the behavior of governments and societies throughout Mexico, Central America and South America. To determine which country was the most democratic, the index conducted an analysis of societies’ behaviors, leaders’ comportment, and the actions of various democratic institutions in each of Latin America’s 18 countries. The results, from best to worst: Costa Rica, Chile, Uruguay, Panama, Mexico, Argentina, Peru, Colombia, Brazil, Honduras, El Salvador, Paraguay, Nicaragua, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador.

Unfortunately, the study showed that although the average score for democratic development “continues to improve,” more countries lost percentage points this year than were lost last year - in 2008, ten countries lost ground on certain categories compared to 2007’s eight countries. In addition, the study concluded that 50 percent of Latin American countries — the majority group — have a low level of democratic development. These countries include Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, Mexico, and Panama. Venezuela, Bolivia and Ecuador have seen the least growth over the past year.

According to the report, only the three countries with the highest scores — Costa Rica, Chile and Uruguay — “maintain conduct” and have not fallen into some sort of crisis in the past few years. The other 15 “in accordance with their own situational dynamic, ascend and descend circumstantially,” according to the report. That said, Costa Rica is joined by El Salvador, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, the Dominican Republic and Venezuela in improving its 2008 ranking over 2007. The report also indicated that Costa Rica has seen “a widespread improvement in various economic factors,” those which “also reverberate into social factors such as unemployment and poverty.”

Despite its improvements however, Costa Rica still shows room to improve. The Latin American Index of Democratic Development followed up its praise with a warning that, according to international human rights standards, a “high percentage of the population still lives below the poverty line.” This socioeconomic factor causes the difference between Costa Rica’s rich and poor to polarize toward two extremes. The study also cites the wealthy-poor dichotomy as one reason for the country’s rise in violent crime.

2008 is Costa Rica’s first year as leader of the pack, and the country showed a 6 percent improvement over last year’s scores. The nation scored two percent higher for Respect of Political Rights and Civil Liberties in 2008, largely attributed to female participation in politics. Regarding social indicators, Costa Rica saw its ratings soared in 2008. Almost all related indicators improved in this field, including a 16 percent improvement in the infant mortality rate. The country’s TLC referendum — the first time in Costa Rica history that the government gave such power of choice to the people — also contributed to its high rankings.

Written by Erin Raub