I think you're putting the way wrong spin on this story.
First of all, the original article did not say anything about targeting establishments frequented by foreign sex tourists or even mention ZB, NF, IDEM etc.. What that article said was "The head of the security ministry's sex crimes unit wants to foster legislation so his agency can seize the property of pimps, pedophiles and corruptors of minors. The property of those
convicted of these crimes would be confiscated the same way that the law allows officers now to take the property of persons involved in drug trafficking." To the best of my knowledge none of the establishments we normally visit have been found guilty of anything worse than code violations. And if any had you can be sure that we would have heard about it as these places are much higher profile than the little tico establishments that are hidden away in unmarked houses in the outlying barrios of SJ, where such REAL crimes usually occur.
Secondly, IF a business were found guilty of pimping out Ch*ldren I would hope the CR authorities would have every legal angle at their disposal to punish those offenders rather than just give them a slap on the wrist. Prostitution in CR is legal and therefore not a sex crime that would fall under this law AS LONG AS both parties are consenting ADULTS. Operating an MP or renting out rooms so guys can have sex with adult prostitutes or however one chooses to characterize it, may skirt the law. But, again as the women involved are of legal age and are not there against their wills, the authorities always have and probably always will look the other way EVEN if this law had taken effect.
Quote:
Prostitution is not prosecuted in Costa Rica but pimping is a crime. A number of hotels, bars, pensions, massage parlors and strip clubs are poorly disguised bordellos, and it is these properties and their owners Chavez hopes to target with stronger legislation.
Periodically some of these are raided and some arrests are made. But the business usually reopens within a month or two. If the structure and personal property were confiscated, that would not happen.
This quote from the conclusion of the article was indeed somewhat distrubing in its somewhat vague and seemingly overreaching approach. And that very fact may have had a lot to do with why Chávez was slapped back, as some powerful commercial interests were threatened. But if protecting Ch*ldren are its real goals and the threat of confiscation means that the business we visit are even more diligent at insuring that an und***ge girl does not slip through the cracks, I (guardedly) would consider that a good thing.
Finally, I would have highlighted a few different parts of the latest article:
Quote:
Cháves and his unit were involved in a change in philosophy involving sex crimes. Until about 2003 und***ge prostitution was characterized as something done to the country by North American tourists. But, the majority of sex arrests made by the Cháves unit involved Costa Ricans as both suspect and victim.
This further suggests to me that Cháves's real target is not any of us or places like ZB, NF, IDEM or even Oasis that operate openly and for the most part honestly, but the little places that service an underground market and which are frequented almost exclusively by local clientele.
Quote:
Since April 2003 the unit has nabbed some 46 individuals
Hardly the success rate that would throw much fear into the hearts of the thousands of gringo sex tourists that come to CR each year.
Quote:
The unit now has been barred from doing investigations because Costa Rican law appears to give the Judicial Investigating Organization a monopoly on that kind of work.
This is simply a political turf war. This guy may not be handling these cases anymore and the innovative approach he was promoting may be shelved, but that hardly means the other offices of the government are going to ignore this issue. That quarter mil from the US will just end up going to a different department.
Quote:
the OIJ made public a list of 15 persons who were being sought. Each already has been convicted but for some reason is not in jail. All but two of the persons on the list were convicted of sex-related crimes, including sexual abuse of minors, rape and corruption of minors. This is the first time that such an extensive list and photos were distributed to the press. The list raises the question how so many could be convicted of such major crimes and not be in jail.
The OIJ will still be going after the same people that Cháves and his boys were going after and which SOMEONE should be going after and doing so with the same ineffectual techniques. I think Cháves was right that SOMETHING more needed to be done though whether confiscation of property was the solution needed we will now probably never know.
Finally,
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. We don't need spin just the truths will help us all in our future lives. 
I for one would like to see some of my tax dollars used to protect the und***ge from the sickos that rome this planet. If I see someone looking to abuse someone like this I would seek out help from the authorities to try to put a stop to it. Where ever I travel I always stay in the boundaries of their laws & my own morals. Even if it was legal to be with someone of less age than we consider correct I would not partake! It is these pervs & sick ones that give us all a bad name & they are the ones that get everything stirred up to the point that gets the authorities over reactive that hurts normal men out looking for a good time with the Chicas of the night! We really owe it to everyone to try to do what we can to correct the situation if we see offenders hurting others of innocence.
