Bello The captured state

摘要

IN COSTA RICA'S rainy season, bright mornings yield with deceptive suddenness to tropical downpours. So it was on September 10th, when the country's civil servants went on strike. They oppose a fiscal reform that raises some taxes and limits automatic wage increases. Universities and public offices were deserted. After blocking roads and a railway, many went home before the afternoon shower. Two months later, some are back at work. But teachers are still on strike and many state schools remain shut. With reform stalled, the currency is under pressure and investors have pushed up the cost of servicing the public debt. Unless Carlos Alvarado, a social democrat elected as president in April, wins this trial of strength, Costa Rica may follow Argentina into the arms of the IMF