The Economist Asia - 03.02.2018

36 The Americas The EconomistFebruary 3rd 2018

1

(^2) rightsNGOin Costa Rica, has filed a case in
El Salvador against the country’s family
law, which defines marriage as the union
between a man and a woman.
Advocates of other rights hope to ride a
wave of liberal jurisprudence. Several
women’s-rights groups are “rethinking
their strategies” after the same-sex mar-
riage ruling, says Viviana Krsticevic of the
Centre for Justice and International Law,
an NGOin Washington. The ruling “has
energised a lot of people”.
That includes critics, who will probe
more avidly the court’s vulnerabilities.
One is the doctrine of conventionality con-
trol, which is contested by some scholars.
The court’s use of the doctrine “will weak-
en rather than enhance” its authority, says
Jorge Contesse, a professor at Rutgers Law
School. Another weak spot is the way
judges are appointed by member coun-
tries of the OASwithout public hearings.
As the court’s influence expands, critics
may demand more scrutiny. Governments
that dislike the court’s socially liberal rul-
ings could join forces to appoint like-mind-
ed judges. In a worst-case scenario, they
might, like Venezuela, start the process of
withdrawing from the court’s jurisdiction.
In Costa Rica, which has always com-
plied cheerfully with the court’s decisions,
a public outcry hasbegun. The same-sex
marriage ruling has dominated the elec-
tion campaign in its closing stages. The
next president may try to defy the court.
Officials at the suburban White House are
shocked by their new notoriety. “My
grandma called me up and asked why I’m
working here,” says one. He may have to
get used to such scolding. 7
The Super Bowl in Canada
Let the dachshunds stampede

D

URING Super Bowl 50, in 2016,

American viewers got to watch

Heinz’s uplifting “wiener stampede”

commercial, with dachshunds dressed as

hot dogs gambolling in slow motion

across a meadow. An ad forT-Mobile

featured executives from a rival company

badgering Drake, a rapper, to clutter up

his lyrics with legalese. Canadians

watching the same game were treated to

a dull slide show for Sun Life Insurance.

Last year Canadian football fans had a

choice, thanks to the television regulator.

It ruled that access to American made-

for-the-occasion adswas “in the public

interest”. CTV, which had broadcasting

rights in Canada, continued to show local

ads. But most Canadians can watch Fox,

which showed such treats as a Donald

Trump-inspired shampoo commercial.

CTVlost nearly 40% of its viewers during

the game.

This year Bell Media, which owns

CTV, tried again to feed viewers Canadi-

an-only fare on the two channels show-

ing the Super Bowl. This would be in

keeping with a long-standing policy of

protecting Canadian culture, it argued.

Since 1972 Canadian carriers of foreign

programming like Bell Media have been

able to transmit their own broadcast

signals, even on American channels.

Its argument did not move the Su-

preme Court. On January 24th it refused

to suspend the regulator’s decision.

Canadians watching the game (on NBC

this time) will see its ads, too.

That will cost Bell Media money.

Although NBCis part of the cable pack-

age it sells, it gets no revenue from Ameri-

can ads. The National Football League

(NFL), which is keen to get the highest

price for broadcast rights, joined Bell

Media in its suit against the decision.

Canadians have long disliked simulta-

neoussubstitution, or “simsub”, as they

call it. It is especially annoying during live

events. Viewers miss important plays

when the broadcaster cuts to a commer-

cial; broadcastscan end prematurely.

When the event is the Super Bowl, the

ads are part of the show, not interrup-

tions of it. That is what the regulator said.

Bell Media and the NFLhave now ap-

pealed to Mr Trump to intervene. That is

surely a Hail Mary pass.

OTTAWA

Why watching American advertisements is in the public interest

The 40-yard dachsh

A

“SLICE of Iowa misplaced on the Cen-

tral American isthmus”, is how an

American political scientist once charac-

terised Costa Rica. He meant it as a compli-

ment. Costa Rica is orderly, relatively rich,

and has been a democracy since 1949. But

ticos, as Costa Ricans call themselves, are

feeling disgruntled. Their sour mood is

shaping elections to be held on February

4th. None of the five leading presidential

candidates hasthe support of more than

20% of the electorate, according to the (un-

reliable) polls. Two are anti-establishment.

For the first time in Costa Rica’s democratic

history, such flame-throwers could win.

A ruling on January 9th by the Inter-

American Court of Human Rights seems to

oblige Costa Rica to let same-sex couples

marry. That angered its conservative elec-

torate (see previous story). But it is not the

only cause of discontent. The unemploy-

ment rate is 9.4% and income inequality is

rising. The murder rate—12.1 per 100,000

people last year—is low by regional stan-

dards but higher than it used to be. A scan-

dal involving the import of Chinese ce-

ment by a businessman with ties to the

president, Luis Guillermo Solís, has con-

tributed to voters’ anger.

Ticosnow look enviously upon the two

countries that bracket Costa Rica: Panama,

which is richer, and Nicaragua, which is

safer. Life was better 30 years ago in some

ways, admits Rodolfo Piza, the candidate

of the Social Christian Unity Party, one of

two parties that held the presidency until

2014 (he is in fifth place). “You could walk

the streets without fear. There was more

equality. There was less unemployment.”

Politics is not providing answers. The

57-seat legislature hasnine parties, many

of them dedicated to one issue. Its rules,

written for a two-party system, allow one

deputy to filibuster a law. It takes nearly

three years on average for Costa Rica to

pass one. That is slower than in any mem-

ber of the OECD, a rich-country club that

Costa Rica has applied to join.

Gridlock has weakened support for de-

mocracy. It dropped from 80% of the popu-

lation in 1996 to 62% last year, according to

Latinobarómetro, a pollster (though that is

a slight recovery from its low in 2013).

For now, dissatisfaction is showing up

as support for unconventional candidates.

Fabricio Alvarado, a deputy who was a

journalist and an Evangelical Christian

crooner, jumped from 3% to around 20% in

the polls after he made opposition to the

Costa Rica’s elections

Like Iowa, with

lots of beefs

SAN JOSÉ

Latin America’s oldest democracy is not

immune from the region’s discontents