Abstract

We raise the political significance of the intense citizen participation that we witnessed as individuals and social subjects in the process of national discussion and approval of the Free Trade Agreement between the Dominican Republic, Central America and the United States (CAFTA) during 2004 and 2008. The experiences, which nurture this reflection, were lived mainly by groups located in the county of San Ramón, the western region of the Central Valley of Costa Rica. The patriotic identity was the axis articulator of a social movement highly heterogeneous in its social composition. The reactive reach of the movement failed to forge consensus on the collective actions of the protests and social movements, after the referendum of October 7, 2007. Some challenges arise for the subjects / regional social struggles, which we outline at the end of the essay.

Key words: CAFTA; social movement; patriotic identity; Costa Rica