Each week we select articles from local newspapers that amuse or interest us and then translate them into English. We wish to stress that these translations are literal --English versions of exactly what was originally written in Spanish by reporters for Por Esto, Diario de Quintana Roo, Novedades and El Seminario. It should also be mentioned that we cannot always verify the facts in the stories we publish here. We leave that job to the newspaper that originally published the article. We appreciate hearing from our readers so please feel free to E-Mail US your questions, suggestions and comments. You may also wish to consider starting a discussion on any topic below that interests you by posting on the Living on Cozumel Forum.

Note: These articles are a great deal of work to find and translate. They are under copyright. But we all know what a temptation it is to want to share interesting info all over the internet. We don't mind you copying short snippets. But .....

The Cozumel News in English, Vol 17

Dec 1-15, 2004

Cozumel ’s municipal treasurer announced that beginning December 1, 2004 , residents can obtain discounts up to 25 percent when they prepay their 2005 property taxes and trash collection.

Treasurer Angel Vela Magnaña affirmed that payments received between December 1 and December 15 will be discounted a full 25 percent. A 20 percent reduction will be applied to property taxes and garbage bills paid after December 16 and before the 31st.

For those who don’t have the financial resources to pay now, there will be a 15 percent in effect for January and 10 percent in the month of February.

As part of the preparations for the festivities that honor the holiest Virgin of Guadalupe, Cozumel ’s church of the same name will be headquarters for all this year’s activities.

There will be the customary torch run around the island as well as retreats for children, adolescents and adults. Participants will be prepared not just physically, but spiritually as well. This will strengthen their faith in Mexico ’s patron saint that rules as empress of the Americas .

Processions honoring the Virgin begin December 1, with the participation of 28 different organizations and unions.

Torch-bearing runners as well as hundreds of vehicles will depart from Virgin of Guadalupe church where they will receive a blessing. The faithful will then make their way down 65th Avenue to Benito Juarez, heading to the municipal pier. From the pier, runners will take the coastal road heading south until they come to the cross-island road, which will bring them back to Guadalupe Church.

The church’s parish priest, Father Eugenio Blanco, mentioned that the object of these celebrations is to bring the Catholic community closer to the Virgin Mary. The devoted can experience not just an exterior peace, but also an interior peace through the retreats and reinforce their faith in God.

Among the recommendations made in an effort to safeguard participants

Is that each vehicle carry first-aide supplies, and abstain from drinking alcohol. They should also avoid carrying combustibles for lighting torches and refrain from passing other vehicles.

Torchbearers participating in the procession are required to find a name for their group, designate someone as leader, register their vehicles plate number and pay a quota of 15 pesos.

They should also attend the spiritual retreats beginning December 5, 2004 at 6:00 P.M.

Cozumel taxi drivers and owners of municipal transportation permits elected to postpone the operation of new bus routes. Urban Transport Union (Uniper) president Edwin García Valdez saying that it’s important that the population be informed prior to start-up. He underscored that service to the colonias will have priority.

For his part, taxi union leader Juan Gómez Pacheco, denied that the new taxi permits were being divided between union leaders and insisted that he has never betrayed his fellow drivers.

García announced that department Hill create maps indicating the various new transportation routes and those Hill be placed at bus stops. They will include the exact date when the new bus service will commence.

Regarding mass transportation to the hotel zones, he stated that they still need to work out some of the finer points before they can add those routes.

In this same press conference, union leader Gómez Pacheco said that he had met with protesting cab drivers the previous Monday and assured them that the newly issued taxi owner permits Hill be for them and no one else. He denied that the licenses were authorized for political leaders and others recommended by those leaders.

“These cab drivers have over 20 years burning out their kidneys and they deserve the permits. However, this is not my decision, but rather it is the governor’s decision. Just like everyone else, they have to wait to see the disposition of this matter,” said Gómez Pacheco.

He made it clear that the 60 new concessions had not yet been delivered and that it is not true that he has power over them.

He noted that 484 taxi permissions exist in Cozumel, but declined to mention the cost for obtain one. However, in a survey taken among drivers, we were told that the cost for placas on the island could go as high as 100,000 US dollars.

Note from the translator:For those who don’t know how the taxi system works in Mexico , here’s my understanding: Permissions to operate a taxi are dispensed by the governor and based upon the need for additional units in a particular area. Those who already possess “placas” own them for life. While the law states that they can only have one permit in their name and that it must be in the area where they themselves reside, that is not the case. The taxi driver’s union is one of the most powerful in the land and has a hand in determining which politicians win and which lose. Newly issued “placas” should be made available to union drivers who presently work on a percentage (“martillos”). These fellows vote as their told and turn over the greater percent of their earnings to the fellow who owns the placas – and sometimes the taxi as well. Generally what happens is the union is responsible for assigning new permits. However, instead of awarding them to the next in line, they pass give them to relatives and associates.

“We have to find a way for economic benefits generated by cruise ships to reach Cozumel ’s population,” said Mayor Carlos Hernández Blanco. He stressed that this is not just homework for municipal authorities and his three-year administration, but a long-term assignment with sustained development. He emphasized that on many occasions the program resources mean to fight poverty don’t come with the necessary speed.

Hernández Blanco pointed out that is paradoxical that despite the fact that Cozumel has the lowest unemployment rate in the country, its residents don’t receive a salary that matches the cost of living. The majority of working Cozumeleños are paid minimum salary plus commissions. It then follows that their earnings are totally dependent upon tourist activity and when tourism is down, their families see a drastic drop in household income.

The mayor acknowledges that there are individuals living in unacceptable conditions. Despite the fact that Cozumel it the number-one cruise ship destination in the world, the wealth generated by the 5 million tourists arriving annually, doesn’t translate into benefits for the general population.

He emphasized that that it is extremely difficult to achieve an equilibrium between economic development, social needs, and protecting the environment. It becomes even more so because the economic resources necessary to attend to social demands are just not there.
Hernández Blanco stressed that as municipal president, one always wants to do more, however, the financial “calendar” depends upon federal and state budgets. As a result, the municipality is sometimes not able to effect the plans and programs that were meant to improve the population’s quality of life.

Despite a number of recent controversies, dolphins continue to be big business throughout the state of Quintana Roo. Although there are no statistics available regarding earnings generated, the potential for profit is evident.

Currently there are plans to construct two new dolphin arenas in the state, with an investment of almost 100,000,000 pesos.

To date there are 9 businesses registered to operate “dolphinariums”, with a total of 170 dolphins in captivity.

In light of the ever-increasing population and vehicles on Cozumel , and consequentially, the growing number of emergencies, the civil protection department is proposing the creation of an emergency coordination center. The center would provide better coordination and communication between emergency units.

Representatives of the medical community, rescue workers and local police were called to the mayor’s office recently to discuss the increase in emergencies on the island as well as false alarms.

They proposed the installation of an emergency coordination center that would receive and directly channel every emergency to the correct unit.

The project will also require training the general population in how they can effectively participate. Citizens will be instructed on what numbers to call and when they should call. Educating residents will help to avoid calls for emergency vehicles or ambulances, when the situation doesn’t warrant this type of response.

Neighbors in the Gonzalo Guerrero neighborhood urge municipal and health authorities to inspect the loading area behind Chedraui Supermarket. They claim that truck drivers from the mainland “take care of their necessities” in the empty lot across the street from the loading dock and also throw garbage into that area. Moreover, they claim that the driver’s use the public thoroughfare as though they owned it.

Based on these complaints, El Semanario reporters paid a visit to the area and found a great deal of garbage in the area.

Chedraui demand that sanitation and municipal authorities pay attention to this serious problem. The semi-trailer drivers who bring their cargo over on the ferry transporter have not bothered to create any type of bathroom or latrine and the odor that emanates from the empty lot is particularly fetid when it rains.

Residents informed that drivers line up their vehicles along 17 th Street in a way that impedes normal traffic flow, and say that Chedraui should create a better system for receiving product.

December 3 - the Heroic Body of Fireman accomplished 205 services during the month of November, the most important of which was the fire in the Sherwin Williams Paint Store, according to Bombero commander Carlos Miss Ortegón. Fortunately, there was no loss of human life or serious injuries involved.
The 205 services itemize themselves in the following way:: Elimination of 54 bee swarms; 34 patients' transfers; 15 fires. 24 medical services, 4 gas leaks, 13 social service visits, 4 cleanliness clean-ups of spill fuel. 1 crocodile capture and 1 boa removal.

**Editors Note: Except under certain circumstances, it is illegal to have open fires in the city limits. This doesn't stop a lot of jungle-bred people from lighting them -- especially on chilly nights. And they're not too particularly what they burn either. We called the bomberos 3 times in the last month to report bad smelling illegal fires. So we assume this accounted for some of those "social services" numbers mentioned above. We found the bomberos to be very courteous. And prompt. They came right out and "educated" the people within 10 minutes of receiving a call which identified the source of the smoke plume exactly enough to be able to track it down. To report a fire of this sort. Call: 872-0800. Begin by telling them that its not an urgent call and then give them the fire coordinates as nearly as you can figure them.

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