...given Oscar Arias' role in shoving NAFTA down the throats of Costa Ricans and other Central Americans (Solis worked for Arias) and given Costa Rica's critical role as the linchpin of U.S. corporate/military policy (expansion, domination) in this "circle the wagons" region (Central America/the Caribbean)--i.e., "circle the wagons" against the leftists who have swept South American elections over the last decade. My suspicion would be that Solis is CIA-groomed. Whether this is true or not, or to what extent it might be true, we can't really know yet. (They no doubt have had contact with him, on behalf of U.S. corporate/military interests and the 1%, but is he "their man"?)
His background (for instance, Fulbright Scholar, writer for Foreign Affairs Latin America, degree from Michigan U., association with Florida International U. in Miami) points that way (CIA groomed), as does his lukewarm position on U.S. "free trade for the rich"...
According to wiki: "He said that he would 'put the brakes' on new free trade agreements and would begin correctly administrating current free trade agreements."
However, other serious leftists in Central America (for instance, in Nicaragua and El Salvador) have had to be careful about already existing U.S. "free trade for the rich." The U.S. (corporate/military) is an overwhelming influence in this region and have many ways to eliminate inconvenient leaders. (For instance, Arias' complicity in the overthrow of Mel Zelaya and Honduran democracy in 2009.) So it may be that Solis is merely cautious, rather than 'groomed' and complicit.
Here's the wiki summary:
Solís was born in San José, Costa Rica to Vivienne Rivera Allen, an educator, and Freddy Solís Avendaño, an uneducated small businessman. Both his parents lived in Turrialba, and as such many residents consider him Turrialban.[1] His family has Afro-Caribbean and Chinese roots, coming from Jamaica to Costa Rica in the early 1900s.[2] Solís grew up in San Pedro de Montes de Oca and Curridabat, neighborhoods of San José. He attended Methodist High School in San José, where he was president of the student body, before studying history at the University of Costa Rica, where he earned a degree with academic honors in 1979.[3] He earned a Masters degree in Latin American Studies at Tulane University in New Orleans.[4]
Solís has held various academic and consulting positions. Between 1981 and 1987, he was an associate professor at the University of Costa Rica. In addition, he was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Michigan from 1983 to 1985. During this time, Solís worked with the Arias administration and eventually became director of the Center for Peace and Reconciliation (CPR for its Spanish initials).[3] From 1992 to 1995, Solís worked with the Academic Council of the United Nations System. Starting in 1999, Solís worked for Florida International University (note: in Miami) as coordinator in the Center for the Administration of Justice and as a researcher for the Latin American and Caribbean Center, where he analyzed political and social events in Latin America.[3]
A writer and editorial writer, Solís has published numerous essays and books about national and international affairs. In the 1990s, he wrote for La República, a daily newspaper based in San José. His writing has been published by Foreign Affairs Latinoamérica, Frontera Norte, Espacios and Global Governance. His writing has focused on civil society, international relations, and trade.[3]
Political career[edit]
While still at UCR, Solís joined the National Liberation Party (PLN for its Spanish initials) in 1977.[3] Solís was an adviser to Óscar Arias in the Foreign Ministry, working on the Esquipulas Peace Agreement for which Arias would later win a Nobel Peace Prize. Solís served as Director of International Relations for the PLN.[3] During José María Figueres Olsen's time in office, Solís was ambassador of Central American Affairs.[4]
In 2002, Solís followed Rolando González Ulloa as General Secretary of the PLN, a position he resigned from the following year,[3] citing his disappointed with the Alcatel-Lucent bribery scandal that many PLN leaders were involved in. In 2005, he denounced the PLN for irregularities and corruption during party elections, along with a host of former PLN members.[5] Solís went as far as to call the PLN leadership "Napoleonic" and "anti-democratic".[3] He officially renounced his affiliation with the party and returned to academics.
In 2009, Guillermo began his affiliation with PAC.[3]
2014 presidential campaign[edit]
Solís announced his candidacy for president on 27 November 2012. In the PAC's primary, he ran against Epsy Campbell Barr, Juan Carlos Mendoza García, and Ronald Solís Bolaños, winning with 35 percent of the vote.[3] In October 2013, he chose Helio Fallas and Ana Helena Chacón Echeverría as his Vice-Presidential running mates.[6] Among his aims, Solís claimed he would clean up corruption, create major investments in infrastructure, and shore up Costa Rica's universal health care and social security system.[2] He also promised to continue initiatives to keep Costa Rica environmentally friendly.[7] He said that he would "put the brakes" on new free trade agreements and would begin correctly administrating current free trade agreements.[8]
On 2 February 2014, Solís won the most votes in the election with 30.95 percent. PLN candidate Johnny Araya came second with 29.95 percent of the vote.[9] Most of Solís' support came from the Central Valley provinces of San José, Alajuela, Heredia and Cartago.[10]
Since no candidate exceeded 40 percent of the vote, a second round of voting occurred on 6 April as required by the constitution. Before that, on 5 March, Araya announced that he would abandon his campaign after polls showed him well behind Solís.[11] However, under Costa Rican law the runoff still had to take place, and Solís won with over 77 percent of the vote, the largest margin ever recorded for a free election in Costa Rica.[12][13][14] Unlike the first round, Solís earned a majority in every province, including the Puntarenas, Limón, and Guanacaste.[15] When he takes office on 8 May, he will be the first president in 66 years not to come from the PLN or what is now the PUSC.[15]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luis_Guillermo_Sol%C3%ADs
(My emphasis in boldface. See original for footnotes and links.)
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