Strike could make or break president of Costa Rica

The strike by Costa Rica's public-sector workers could mark a turning point for the four-year president of Carlos Alvarado, according to analysts and opposition legislators.

If the unions can win the battle over the fiscal plan with the government of Alvarado, he would be seen as lacking any political muscle with which to fight pressure groups.

On the other hand, if he can impose his plan on the strikers, he will be seen to be establishing order, without having to worry about the opposition o sectors that oppose the structural reform that the nation requires.