Oscar Arias
Oscar Arias
Óscar Arias Sánchezwas President of Costa Rica from 1986 to 1990 and from 2006 to 2010. He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his efforts to end the Central American crisis...
NationalityCosta Rican
ProfessionWorld Leader
Date of Birth13 September 1940
CityHeredia, Costa Rica
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More combat planes, missiles and soldiers won't provide additional bread for our families, desks for our schools, or medicine for our clinics.
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Mine is an unarmed people, whose children have never seen a fighter or a tank or a warship.
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Latin Americans glorify their past so ceaselessly that they make it almost impossible to advocate change.
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Latin America has not achieved the development that it deserves... I'm not optimistic for all of Latin America, not only for Central America.
central saw solve
I saw no reason why other nations should tell Central Americans how to solve their problems.
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I often say that poverty needs no passport to travel.
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I do not believe that the hungry man should be treated as subversive for expressing his suffering.
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A nation that mistreats its own citizens is more likely to mistreat its neighbours.
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Our experience shows that security does not lie in weapons or fences or armies.
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In a democracy, a leader must be the head teacher, someone eager to respond to doubts and questions and explain the need for and the benefits of a new course.
history nor shameful since
During the 41 years that have elapsed since Costa Rica abolished its army, our fundamental freedoms have never been threatened, nor do we know a shameful history of repression.
alone central toward trade
Free trade will go a long way toward alleviating poverty in Central America. Yet trade alone is not enough.
central obtain peace
If there is no peace in Central America, it will not be because Costa Rica, and myself as president, have not done what is necessary to obtain peace.
believes clinging looking solutions
Costa Rica believes in building bridges, in looking for solutions to problems, and not clinging to positions.