Is Santiago relatively safer than other cities?

mido

Bronze
May 18, 2002
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This questions is difficult to answer, if you could name a certain area it could be easier. Every city has safer and not so safe areas.
 

SKing

Silver
Nov 22, 2007
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I am a woman.
When you are not walking around scared of your environment you can't imagine how safe you feel.
I walked from my subway stop from work in NYC to my friend's house in the worse area of Bed-Stuy, about 7 blocks every night for one whole summer in the dark, sometimes after 12 midnight without problems. It wasnt until someone at work said "You stay in Bed-Stuy, do-or-die??" that I began to feel fear.
I travel in santiago by Public car, guagua, or taxi. I do not know where the bad areas are therefore I have probably entered most of them without knowing I shouldn't have. I have no fear where I go. When I was pregnant, because of cravings, I would sometimes sneak out of my house at 11pm or later and walk about 5 blocks to the main avenue to the carrito to buy pastelitos de pollo off of the street.

Point is,
I don't think any one area is safer than another. Sometimes I feel that the people who walk around with so much fear bring attention to themselves, causing them to be mugged, robbed, etc.

To me, Santiago is fairly safe

SHALENA
 

Chip

Platinum
Jul 25, 2007
16,772
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Santiago
Watch Jose Gutierrez on 37 for everything bad that happens here. Violent crime has been on the rise but then again kids get out of high school here walking the streets after 10 with nary a problem. Learn how to not be a target and where not to go and you should be ok.
 

Hillbilly

Moderator
Jan 1, 2002
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Normally I would say it is pretty safe, but I am a large person and am rarely approached.
However, today in class one of my students told me that she had to go to the District Attorney's office (Fiscal?a)...when I asked why? She said she was assaulted last night at about 10 at the corner of San Luis and 27 de Febrero. They took everything she had including her laptop!! Two axxholes on a motorcycle.

Furious with impotence!

HB
 

VJS

Bronze
Sep 19, 2010
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I'd say Santiago is one of the safest places in DR, still one can easily find themselves a victim. Couple of incidents:
- a friend was sitting in an icecream place in plaza Zona Rosa. A couple of guys show up with guns, clean everyone out, leave - about a year ago

- another friends' neighboor in Gurabo. Father owns some small business, thieves break into their place, kill the couple and rape their daughter. May or June this year.

- another friend leaving with her mother in an apartment, first floor - 'good area' of Santiago, dont recall the name. They were both out, theves broke the bars on the windows, stripped the apartment clean, left. June of this year.
 

mbgmike

New member
Jan 17, 2012
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i never feel unsafe their but that is a hard question. its like asking ig any american city i safe. yes and no. crime happens all around. its like towns with subways. they jump on train, pop up likr rodents, rob and then get backon train and be back on other side of town in no time. just do not go to bad places. stay in car at night and don't get out at traffic lights
 

yacht chef

Bronze
Sep 13, 2009
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Why would it be any safer then any other city in the DR ? All the citys are only a short bus ride away from each other ! I say carey a 9 and shout anything with a adens apple or calls you amor .
 

jazz21

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Jul 11, 2011
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I live in Santiago, "en el Pekin". This 'barrio' is known as one of the 2 most dangerous: the other one is Cienfuegos.
In the last 2 month the criminality here raised up very much, people here say now Pekin it's the most dangerous.
Every night I can here people shooting. Many times is only for joke, but one person get killed every 3 or 4 days here in the barrio.
I have an old car, I leave it in the street. Last night I sow a neighbout hitting the car, I thiml he was druged.
There is another fact: there are changes in the "drug delivery band", there is apparently a new organization. Ths happened after the Medina Election. So I think maybe, I TOLD MAYBE, some police boss were changed and he or she changed the "drug delivery band". So there is a sort of war within different bands I think.
The local police is trying to do something (maybe, or maybe is helping one of the band). There often is the "black police too", I don't know the name, they are black dressed, like warriors, the have war guns, antibulletkacket, I this they are militar.
So, I think, here the problem is drug: many addicted here, so, they need money to buy it, and they robber, shoot kill for that.
AND there is a new thing: people here is getting used to enter shops or offices with guns to get money.
Someone told me the criminals are getting used to kill people when they robber you in the street, so you can not recognize them in the future (becouse you are dead).
Don't know. I don't earn enough money to go in a better Santiago zone, and the same, I do not know where a better (I mean a more secure) zone is.
I apoligize for my english, it's not my first language and now, only speacking Dominican Spannish, I'm forgetting English.
Bye, jazz21.
 

bachata

Aprendiz de todo profesional de nada
Aug 18, 2007
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What make it worse in DR is that the media don't miss any even not matter how small it should be... Some one blow a fart in Santiago and the whole world will know about it in two hours.

I thought this place of US where I live was so quite like a cementery until I started driving a Taxi, it's so much things going around here and the press don't say nothing about it.

Too many people doing nothing in DR that's why all the corners of the city are always crowded!

JJ
 
Dec 26, 2011
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Cienfuegos. Interesting place. My gf's aunt wouldn't spend a few days in Veron with us for fear that they'd clean her place out(very humble furnishings) while she was gone. She said 'I know I don't have anything but it's all I've got'. She has a "good" job at the hospital, making like 6000 pesos/month or some other absurdly low amount. :(
 

Jumbo

Bronze
Jul 8, 2005
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Really? Many of the cities and towns that Obama carried are on the list of most safe and most desirable places to live. Your veiled assertion is misguided and doesn't represent the facts. Take a look at the electoral map and then go into the local districts and see how the people voted. A real eye-opener for those who aren't carrying this political baggage. FYI, I always vote for 3rd party candidates. Both major parties are garbage!

Waaaaaay off topic.

I find the less you have the less of a target you are. Santiago has been a safe place for me in the past. Never a probem. But recently the teens i have watched grow up over the past 8 years from hard working religious parents are buying guns and spending all day getting tats. Seems their young wives and novias are busy on the internet with multiple gringos.