Visas: a new obstacle to the integration of Central America

The decision by the governments of Costa Rica and Honduras to require visas for their citizens to travel from one country to another has once again shown weakness Central American Integration System (SICA) appeared in 1991, replacing what was the Organization of Central American States (Odeca).

SICA, which was signed on December 13, 1991 in Tegucigalpa, became the new political scheme and institution for Central American integration, bypassing Odeca, created on October 14, 1951.

But the new regional entity, out of many created in more than 30 attempts to integrate Central America, which in the 60s of the last century was an example for Europe, The seven Isthmus countries that make it up have not completed the consolidation of unity: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama.

The differences that characterize the seven countries are reflected, for example, in institutions such as the Central American Parliament (Parlacen), an initiative of former Guatemalan President Vinicio Cerezo, which Costa Rica never joined, and the Central American Court of Justice, which consists only of El Salvador, Honduras and Nicaragua.

For many Central Americans, Parlacen is the “white elephant” in the region to which they will represent presidents of member states at the end of their mandate, and representatives of local parliaments who are already leaving.

Another example of the lack of political unity in Central America, in this case in immigration matters, is the CA-4 mechanism, in which only El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua are, which allows citizens of the four countries to travel from one to another without the need to using a passport. Their personal identification document is sufficient for this.

The differences are also reflected in SICA, whose creation was supposed to ensure the well-being of the population of its member countries and human dignity, in the poor presence of its leaders at the last regional summits.