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Daily News - 16 March 2000
RD$420 million for cocoa farms
President Leonel Fernández announced the start of a nationwide program to rehabilitate cocoa farms. The government is making available RD$426 million that is expected to benefit 35,000 farmers throughout the country. The funds will be distributed via the Cocoa Commission and the Banco de Reservas to exporters and cocoa product manufacturers. These will serve as intermediaries and will channel the money to the farmers. Cocoa plantations in the DR were greatly affected by the winds and torrential rains brought by Hurricane Georges, last September 1998. Cocoa producers have also suffered the effects of low cocoa prices on international commodity markets. According to Minister of Agriculture Amilcar Romero, there are 2,436,185 tareas of cocoa planted, which make up 25% of the national forests. The planting of cocoa is seen as an incentive for the farmers to preserve the forests. Cocoa trees also contribute to biodiversity and to avoid erosion of soils. During the event held at the National Palace, the Cocoa Commission received a first allotment of RD$127.5 million to start the program.
Passports to cost less
The government had promised to do so on several occasions, but prices were only reduced at select consulates. With five months to go prior to the end of his term, President Fernández finally issued the resolution reducing the price of Dominican passports sold by all missions. The order is given in a letter issued by President Leonel Fernández on 10 February. The price cuts are effective immediately. On 4 October 1999, the President had ordered price cuts for consulates in New York, Boston, Miami and Philadelphia.
New rates for passports in Dominican consulates abroad are now:
Six year passport: US$121.50
Four year passport: US$101.50
Two year passport: US$81.50
The presidential candidates
The leading political parties have already registered their presidential candidates for the presidential election. The deadline to do so is tomorrow, 17 March at midnight.
The presidential and vice presidential candidacies registered so far are:
Partido de la Liberación Dominicana (the ruling party): Danilo Medina and Amilcar Romero. The Medina-Romero ticket has the support of the minority party, Bloque Institucional Socialdemócrata. Partido Revolucionario Dominicano: Hipólito Mejía and Milagros Ortiz Bosch.
Partido Reformista Social Cristiano: Joaquín Balaguer and Jacinto Peynado. The Balaguer-Peynado candidacy has the support of minority party, Partido Liberal de la RD-La Estructura.
Minority parties:
Movimiento Independencia, Unidad y Cambio (MIUCA): Manuel Salazar, Virtudes Alvarez.
Partido de los Trabajadores (PTD): José González Espinosa, Esteban Díaz Jáquez.
Movimiento de Unidad e Integración Nacional (UNIDO): César Estrella Sahdalá, César Nicolás Penson. Partido Nueva Alternativa: Ramón Almánzar, Héctor Sánchez.
Pending is the presentation of candidacies by the Partido Popular Cristiano (Hector Rafael Peguero Méndez), and Fuerza Nacional Progresista (Marino Vinicio Castillo).
The Junta Central Electoral has already approved the candidacies presented by the Partido Revolucionario Dominicano, but has yet to give green light to the other candidacies.
Balaguer's campaign has a web site
94-year old presidential candidate Joaquín Balaguer has an Internet page. The former statesman has a web site and promises to respond to all the email he receives.
His web page is at www.balaguerpresidente.com
The web site features news on the Partido Reformista Social Cristiano, Balaguer's biography, his years and achievements in government, his agenda, a humor section, an opinion page, and even a chat section. It is coordinated by Sergia Elena de Seliman. There is a section with videos featuring Balaguer's public presentations.
Italian consulate opens in Bavaro
Italy has just opened a consulate in Bavaro. It is located in the Hotel Los Corales, of Playa Cortecito, midway between Punta Cana and Macao beaches, along the eastern coastline. Ambassador Stefano Canavessio traveled to Bavaro to inaugurate the new consulate. It will serve Italian tourists that visit the Punta Cana, Bavaro and Macao-Arena Gorda beaches. Consul General of Italy, Aldo Meroni will direct the consulate's operations. Ambassador Canavessio said that last year 26,000 Italians visited the area. He explained that the consulate will also assist citizens from other European Union countries that visit the East Coast beaches.
The Spanish Government has an honorary consulate in Higuey, the capital of the La Altagracia province. The consul general of that consulate is José Manuel Alvarez.
Attorney General wants violent videos to be banned
Attorney General Juan Francisco Domínguez has asked the Department of Customs to ban the import of violence-inducing videos. The District Attorney requested that Customs ban the importing of videos such as Doom, Postal, Requiem, Karmageeddon I and II, Mortal Kombat, Duke, Jnuken and Apocalypse Now. His office has an ongoing campaign to discourage parents from purchasing violent toys.
Businessmen plead with politicians to respect the environment
The president of the Hotel & Restaurant Association and Celso Marranzini, president of the National Council of Businesses (CONEP) held a press conference yesterday to suggest that the Junta Central Electoral retain 3% of the campaign funding available to political parties, until the later remove the propaganda that liters the cities. Rafael Blanco Canto, president of Asonahores, also demanded that the political parties reduce the level of noise contamination their political campaigning brings.
He also complained about the traffic jams the political caravans are causing.
"Politicians have to start respecting the environment," said Marranzini. Nevertheless, he said that there has been progress. At least city trees are being spared from a barrage of posted propaganda as in past elections.
Both Blanco and Marranzini urged Dominicans to cast their vote against the political parties that pollute the cities.
"I believe it is time to tell the politicians: Gentlemen, this country is not yours, stop disrespecting the visitors," said Marranzini. He commented that Spanish politicians successfully achieved this balance during the recent Spanish election.
He considered it a big contradiction that politicians on the campaign trail spend so much time promising that they are going to respect the laws when they are citizens' right to a clean cities.
US-DR trade statistics
The American Chamber of Commerce reports that Dominican exports to the US declined 4.7% during the period January-October, reaching US$3,547 million. Imports, on the other hand, increased 3.2%, up to US$4,24 million. The DR has a US$124 million surplus with the US.
The decline in exports is attributed to the decline in the growth rate of Dominican apparel exports and to the decline in agriculture exports in general, primarily due to the effects of Hurricane Georges.
During the first 10 months of 1999, cut garments imported for assembly by free zones was US$900 million, down 3.7%. Apparel exports were US$1,910 million during the first 10 months of 1999. The DR is the fourth largest supplier of apparel to the US. Dominican textile exports grew only 0.3% during the period. Mexico, a signatory of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), has competitive advantages over the DR. The DR has its hopes on the passing of a textile parity bill, at present being considered by the US Congress, to reinstate its previous growing pace of textile exports. The other major exports to the US are electronic components (US$295 million, up 4.7%) and medical instruments (US$290 million, up 3.5%).
Footwear exports dropped 13.8%, with exports at US$207 million. The parity bill would also have a beneficial effect on Dominican footwear exports.
Cigar exports to the US were US$149 million last year. Tobacco exports in general (US$177 million) declined 24%, reflecting a drop in US tobacco product consumption. The DR is the leading supplier of cigars to the US. In 1997, it had 57% of the US market, which increased to 67% by October 1999.
Sugar exports dropped 34%, with total exports at a low of US$76 million. Cocoa exports went from US$69 million to US$17 million, and coffee exports from US$31 million to US$10 million, due to the effects of Hurricane Georges on coffee and cocoa plantations. Fruit produce exports to the US grew. Exports of bananas, melons, coconuts, avocados and citrics were US$20 million.
But overall, the effect of Georges on Dominican agriculture is reflected in the statistics that show that farm produce declined 53%, going from US$482 million during the first 10 months of 1998 to US$316 million for the same period in 1999.
The Dominican Republic is the 28th largest importer of US products in the world. In Latin America, only Mexico, Brazil and Venezuela buy more from the US than the Dominican Republic. It is also the 31nd largest exporter to the United States.
Mariasela and Jatnna to Channel 7?
El Siglo newspaper reports that Mariasela Alvarez and Jatnna Tavarez, two of the leading Dominican TV stars, will not be filling in for the Punto Final spot Freddy Beras Goico left on Channel 9's evening programming when he moved on to a UHT station. The newspaper says that the leading TV conductors would take their programs to Antena Latina, Channel 7, after they could not reach an agreement on logistical support and profit sharing with Color Visión. The producers have not confirmed this news story.
US national volleyball team to play in Santo Domingo
The US national juvenile volleyball team will play the Dominican volleyball team in Santo Domingo next week. The US best will arrive for the series that will take place at the volleyball pavilion of the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center and the indoor sports court of the Carol Morgan School from 22-29 March. The Carol Morgan School games will most probably take place on Saturday, 25 March. The games are part of the Dominican team training program. The games are slated to take place from 9 to 12 noon, and from 4-6 pm.
Supervising the organization of the 2003 Pan Am Games
Representatives from the Pan American Sports Organization arrive today to supervise the preparations for the Santo Domingo Games scheduled for summer 2003. Roger Jackson, Felipe Muñoz, Michael Fennell, Mario Ramírez and Chris Welton are expected. On 19 March, Carlos Nuzmán, of the organization's legal commission is expected. And the Pan Am Games marketing commission is expected on 23 March. Austin Woods, Mario Ramírez, and Ciro Pérez make it up. On 26 March, a finances group is coming, made up by Danilo Carrera, Melitón Sánchez and Mario Ramírez.
Best of Spanish opera at the National Theater
"La del Manojo de Rosas", a Spanish opera by Pablo Sorozabal will be presented 17 March at the National Theater. This "zarzuela" is considered a classic of Spanish art, and is a story of love, jealousy, and deception taking place in Madrid. Over 90 artists will be on the stage. Tickets are available at the National Theater.
Festival Internacional de Cine de Santo Domingo
The Santo Domingo Film Festival is showing at the Cinema Center (1-2) movie theaters. Films from Spain, Venezuela, Brazil, Bolivia, Germany, and Cuba will be participating. Among the films are: El Valle, Venezuela, by Gustavo Balza.
En Brazos de la mujer madura, by Manuel Lombardero
El cometa, by Marisa Sistach
Quien diablo es Julieta, by Carlos Marcovich.
Das Trio, Hermine Hunfgel (Germany)
Cuba Libre, by David Riondino
El dia que murió el silencio, (Bolivia) by Paola Agazzi.
Un Hombre de éxito, by Humberto Solás (Cuba).
Hasta cierto punto, by Tomas Galea (Cuba).
Las profecías de Amdana, by Pastor Vega (Cuba).
Se permuta y plaff, by Juan Carlos Tabio (Cuba).
Dios y el diablo en la tierra del sol, by Glauber Rocha (Brazil).
Orchids exhibition announced
The Dominican Orchidology Society announces its spring time exhibition/competition of orchids. The exhibition will be open to the public 17-19 March at the Botanical Gardens. The orchid growers will be competing for 26 prizes. The Botanical Gardens are open 9 to 5 pm.
Theater at the Sala Ravelo
"Las Damas de las Camelias, of Spanish playwright Ramón Pareja" will be staged at the National Theater's Sala Ravelo on 16-19 March and 23-26 March.
Paul Taylor Dance Company
The Paul Taylor Dance Company (www.ptdc.org) will perform in Santo Domingo 24 and 25 March at the National Theater. The group will perform in a benefit for the Fundacion Mir in La Romana. Fundación Ritmos por la Danza brings this company to Santo Domingo. The company has toured 650 cities in 60 countries and was appointed cultural ambassador of the United States in the program Millennium Council of the White House.
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