Óscar Arias

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Óscar Rafael de Jesús Arias Sánchez (born 13 September 1940, in Heredia, Costa Rica) is the current President of Costa Rica and the first Nobel Laureate from his nation. He served as President from 1986 to 1990, and was elected for a second term in a close election in 2006. In 1987 he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to end the civil unrest then raging in several Central American countries.

Born to an upper class family in the province of Heredia, Óscar Arias concluded his secondary schooling at the Colegio Saint Francis in the capital city of San José. He then enrolled in Boston University with the intention of studying medicine, but he soon returned to his home country and completed degrees in law and economics at the University of Costa Rica. In 1967, Arias traveled to the United Kingdom and enrolled in the London School of Economics. He received a doctorate degree in political science from the University of Essex in 1974. Arias has received over fifty honorary degrees, including doctorates from Harvard University, Princeton University, Dartmouth College, Oberlin College and Washington University in St. Louis.

Arias joined the National Liberation Party (Partido Liberación Nacional, or PLN), Costa Rica's main social democratic party. In 1986 he ran successfully for president on that party's ticket. Arias's presidency saw the transformation of Costa Rica's economy from one based on the traditional cash crops (coffee and bananas) to one more focused on non-traditional agriculture (e.g., of exotic flowers and fruits) and tourism. Some within the PLN criticized his administration for abandoning the party's social democrat teachings and promoting a neoliberal economic model.

Arias received the 1987 Nobel Peace Prize for his work towards the signing of the Esquipulas II Accords. This was a plan to promote democracy and peace on the Central American isthmus during a time of great turmoil and outside influence in the midst of the Cold War. Partly due to the collapse of the Soviet-led Communist block that had traditionally supported leftist governments and insurgencies in Central America, the signing of the accords was indeed followed by an end to most of the fighting in Central America.

Arias then called for a higher level of integration in the Central America region and promoted the creation of the Central American Parliament (Parlamento Centroamericano). During his current administration, Arias has declared that Costa Rica will not enter the Central American Parliament. Arias also modified the country's educational system. The most notable action in this respect was the reintroduction of standarized academic tests at the end of primary and secondary school.

After a controversial ruling by the Constitutional Court voided an amendment to the constitution that forbade presidential reelection, Arias announced in 2004 that he intended to run again for president, in the February 2006 general elections. Pressure on the Constitutional Court from lobbyists, supported in particular by large industrial firms, was the main focus of criticism during campaing. Private polling companies and several news media published polls that predicted Arias as the winner by a wide margin. The election was initially deemed too close to call. A month later, on 7 March, after a manual recount, the official results showed Arias beat the center-left contender Ottón Solís by 18,169 votes (1.2% of valid votes cast). He took the oath of office in a mixed national enviroment at noon on 8 May 2006 at the National Stadium.

External links

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Nobel Peace Prize: Laureates (1976–2000)

[Complete List] | [Laureates (1901–1925)] | [Laureates (1926–1950)] | [Laureates (1951–1975)] | [Laureates (2001—)]

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