Óscar Arias, President of Costa Rica (1986-90). Photo from http://origins.jpl.nasa.gov/education/outreach-peace.html (US gov site), which states here (JPL Image Policy): Unless otherwise noted, images and video on JPL public web sites (public sites ending with a jpl.nasa.gov address) may be... Óscar Arias The following table contains a list of the presidents and heads of state of Costa Rica since Central American independence from Spain and Mexico. From 1823 to 1839 Costa Rica was a state within the United States of Central America; since then it has been an independent nation. See also... President of Costa Rica Term of office:  May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (129th in leap years). There are 237 days remaining. Events 1450 - Jack Cades Rebellion: Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI. 1541 - Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River naming it Río de Espí... 8 May 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. Events January January 1 - Spain and Portugal enter the European Community January 1 - Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands and is separated from the Netherlands Antilles. January 9 - After losing a patent battle with Polaroid, Kodak leaves... 1986 to May 8 is the 128th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (129th in leap years). There are 237 days remaining. Events 1450 - Jack Cades Rebellion: Kentishmen revolt against King Henry VI. 1541 - Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River naming it Río de Espí... 8 May 1990 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1990 in video gaming January January 3 - Former leader of Panama Manuel Noriega surrenders to American forces. January 7 - The Leaning Tower of Pisa is closed to the public due to safety concerns. January 9 - Lt Gen... 1990 – Preceded by:   Luis Alberto Monge Álvarez was the President of Costa Rica from 1982 to 1986. Categories: Stub | 1925 births | Presidents of Costa Rica ... Luis Alberto Monge – Succeeded by:  Rafael Ángel Calderón Date of birth: September 13 is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years). There are 109 days remaining in the year. Events 533 - Belisarius and the Roman Empire defeat Gelimer and the Vandals at the Battle of Ad Decimium. 1440 - Gilles de Rais is taken into custody upon an accusation... 13 September 1941 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). Events January January 6 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms Speech in the State of the Union Address. January 10 - Lend-Lease is introduced into the U.S. Congress. January 19 - British troops attack Italian... 1941 Place of birth: Heredia is a city in north-central Costa Rica, the capital of Heredia province. It is located at 10° 00 North, 84° 12 West, at an elevation of 1,140 metres (approx. 3,730 ft) above sea level. In 2004 it had a population of some 22,600 people. The... Heredia Party: The National Liberation Party is a political party of Costa Rica which was founded by Jose Figueres Ferrer in 1948, after voting irregularities. It soon became one of the most important in the country. In 2002, for the first time in history, it lost its second consecutive election. Categories: Substubs... PLN

Dr. Óscar Rafael de Jesús Arias Sánchez (born September 13 is the 256th day of the year (257th in leap years). There are 109 days remaining in the year. Events 533 - Belisarius and the Roman Empire defeat Gelimer and the Vandals at the Battle of Ad Decimium. 1440 - Gilles de Rais is taken into custody upon an accusation... 13 September 1941 was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). Events January January 6 - Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivers his Four Freedoms Speech in the State of the Union Address. January 10 - Lend-Lease is introduced into the U.S. Congress. January 19 - British troops attack Italian... 1941, in Heredia is a city in north-central Costa Rica, the capital of Heredia province. It is located at 10° 00 North, 84° 12 West, at an elevation of 1,140 metres (approx. 3,730 ft) above sea level. In 2004 it had a population of some 22,600 people. The... Heredia) was the The following table contains a list of the presidents and heads of state of Costa Rica since Central American independence from Spain and Mexico. From 1823 to 1839 Costa Rica was a state within the United States of Central America; since then it has been an independent nation. See also... President of The Republic of Costa Rica is a republic in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north and Panama to the south-southeast. Unlike some of its neighbors, Costa Rica has been an exemplar of stability, peace, and democratic governance. Since the minor civil war of the late 1940s that... Costa Rica from 1986 to 1990. He also received the The Nobel Peace Prize (where Nobel is pronounced with the stress on the second syllable) is one of five Nobel Prizes bequested by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel. While the Physics, Chemistry, Medicine and Literature Prizes are awarded annually in Stockholm, the Peace Prize is awarded in the... Nobel Peace Prize in 1987.

His presidential term focused on promoting a The term neoliberalism is used to describe a political-economic philosophy that had major implications for government policies beginning in the 1970s – and increasingly prominent since 1980 – that de-emphasizes or rejects positive government intervention in the economy, focusing instead on achieving progress and even social justice by... neoliberal economic model, dismantling social democratic institutions, requiring licensing of the press which was condemned by the Inter-American Human Rights Court, shifting exports from Costa Rica's traditional cash-crops (bananas, coffee) to non-traditional ones (e.g. exotic flowers and fruits), and placing more emphasis on tourism as an income source.

The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Arias in 1987 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. Although Arias was accused by some of attempting to undermine the Nicaraguan government by refusing to recognize the legitimacy of its government and supposedly ignoring violations of the The Esquipulas Peace Agreement was an initiative in the mid-1980s to settle the military conflicts which had plagued Central America for many years, in some cases — Guatemala — decades. It built upon work laid by the Contadora Group from 1983 to 1985. The agreement was named for the... Esquipulas Peace Agreement by enemies of Nicaraguan's government, none of this was ever proven to be true.

He called for a higher level of integration in the Central America region and promoted the creation of the The Central American Parliament, also know by the abbreviation Parlacen (from the Spanish Parlamento Centroamericano) is a political institution devoted to the integration of the Central American countries. The Parlacen has its origins on the Contadora Group, a project launched in the 1980s to help deal with civil wars in... Central American Parliament (Parlamento Centroamericano). To date, the only Central American country that has not yet signed the treaty is Costa Rica. His period in office has been negatively criticized because of these efforts.

Arias also modified the country's educational system. The most notable action in this respect was the reintroduction of compulsory academic tests at the end of primary school and high school. These measures have been the topic of much debate in the country ever since.

In 2004 he announced his plans to run for President again in the February 2006 general elections, and is currently considered the front runner.