If you have heard about Costa Rica, you know that it is known no only because of the natural beauties, rainforests and beaches, but also because in Costa Rica peace is one of the most important treasures of the country. They constantly thrive to keep violence away and one of their methods is not having an army at all. The last time Costa Rica had an army was in 1948 when the last civil war took place, after that battle army was permanently removed until this date.
A few years ago the current president of Costa Rica won the Nobel Prize for Peace, because of his strong efforts to keep violence and fighting away from Central America. Children are often brought up to believe in peace and keep Costa Rica life as simple as possible. It may be harder nowadays, yet there are still many efforts being made to keep it as peaceful as possible.
At this moment, Costa Rica is joining Brazil signing into law a ban on child abuse by parents and guardians. This law is looking to eradicate violence as a punishment and clearly states that they want to change the “Rights of children and adolescents for discipline without corporal punishment and humiliation”. This law has been part of the U.S code of conduct for years now, yet in Latin America it has not been instated until now. With this law, the Costa Rica government plans to teach parents to discipline their children by setting up examples, getting to know them, negotiate and avoid using physical and humiliating punishment.
According to a study conducted by IDESPO 2003, in Costa Rica homes, 65.3% of parents beat, kick and pinch and 74.2% yell and verbally abuse their children. This comes from generations and generations and it is part of Latin American traditions. Also, these changes are part of the struggle people in Costa Rica are making to diminish violent behavior among youngsters, since it has been quite clear that crime rate and violence related issues have been increasing in the past few years and Costa Rica homes, families and mostly children deserve to have a society without violence.
