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Daily News - 24 April 2001
President of Chile in DR
Presidents Ricardo Lagos of Chile and Hipolito Mejia inaugurated the Santo Domingo Book Fair yesterday. "Culture always needs to be a foremost concern," said President Lagos in his opening speech. "It is an essential mechanism for our societies to be in touch with their inner selves." President Lagos spoke after Minister of Culture Tony Raful and President Hipolito Mejia.
President Lagos visited here for 26 hours. During his stay he signed a joint statement with President Mejia committing to support joint cooperation programs for the economy, commerce, travel, farming, mining, defense, culture and politics. Ministers of Foreign Relations Hugo Tolentino Dipp and Maria Soledad Alvaear Valenzuela of Chile signed the agreements.
President Lagos invited President Mejia to visit Chile.
In addition to the formal agenda, President Lagos took time to visit the tomb of former PRD leader, Jose Francisco Peña Gomez and met with Juan Luis Guerra, the legendary contemporary merengue and bachata composer, at the Bachata Rosa bar/restaurant in the colonial city.
President Mejia decorated President Lagos with the Duarte, Sanchez and Mella medal, Great Cross of Gold, the highest rank. President Lagos decorated President Mejia with the Order of Merit of Chile, Grand Collar rank.
President Mejia optimistic about helping Haiti
Speaking at a press conference held in the company of President Lagos, President Mejia expressed his optimism that advances are being made to bring solutions to Haiti. He said that his request for solidarity from the international community met with support in Quebec. "We spoke and I served as an intermediary so that President Bush and Prime Minister Chretien could understand the reality and poverty of our brother, Haiti," he said. Referring to the DR's promotion of the Hispaniola Investment Fund, he said true and concrete steps are being taken.
President Mejia met for about two hours in Quebec with President Bush, Prime Minister Chretien and President Aristide of Haiti. "Aristide showed his satisfaction because things are moving and the reply and offer of President Bush (to send a mission to study how the money would be invested) is a clear indication and makes me feel optimistic that there will be short term alternatives and solutions to the Haitian reality," said President Mejia.
Debt conversion money for Haiti will depend on Haiti
Today, in an editorial, El Caribe newspaper touches on realistic aspects of applying the Hispaniola Investment Fund proposals. The DR has proposed to use part of the fund for reforestation. Nevertheless, El Caribe says debt reduction for developing countries with tropical forests has only a US$30 million allotment in the US Budget. For more information on the law, see http://caselaw.lp.findlaw.com/casecode/uscodes/22/chapters/32/subchapters/iv/sections/section_2431.html
It points out that President Bush would have to submit a new bill to the US Congress to increase this amount to have any impact in the region.
Furthermore, the editorial writer points out that the debt conversion requires the underwriting of a bill to which neither President Bush or any congressperson has committed. The promoters of the Hispaniola Investment Fund did take advantage of the presence of Senator Hillary Clinton on vacation in the DR last week to urge the senator to take steps in this direction.
Moreover, El Caribe points out that the political viability of the bill will depend on the international community agreeing that Haiti has a sufficiently democratic government. The newspaper points out that the bulk of foreign aid is on hold, and European and US governments would like to use this as a lever to promote a better political climate in Haiti.
"Consequently, the possibility of the condoning of the debt of both countries will depend on progress towards democracy being made in Haiti. The ball is thus in the hands of the Haitian government and the Haitian opposition," explains El Caribe.
No bilateral free trade talks with US
In the same editorial, the newspaper says that it was made clear in Quebec that the DR will not request a bilateral free trade agreement with the United States. Minister of Industry and Commerce Angel Lockward had announced the DR would open talks to this end. This position met with local opposition from both government and private sectors. The editorial writer points out with relief that the DR will wait until the Free Trade Agreement of the Americas is signed in 2005.
Haitian visas cost more
A reader in Haiti wrote to DR1 Daily News to clarify that the Dominican consul in Port au Prince charges US$50 for a single entry and US$250 for a one-year multiple entry visa to Haiti. DR1 Daily News yesterday quoted El Siglo saying that the visas cost US$40 and US$200, respectively. Yesterday's report can be viewed at
http://www.dr1.com/daily/news042301.shtml
Senate spokesman says so-called Senate report is not one
President of the Senate Ramon Alburquerque said that the report prepared by Senate advisor Pedro Manuel Casals Victoria and signed by Senator Jose Rafael Abinader has not been discussed in the Senate nor has it been approved by the majority of the Senators, thus it cannot be referred to as a Senate report.
Alburquerque, nevertheless, said that Senator Abinader has every right to deliver to the Attorney General's office his denunciation of irregularities during the privatization of the CDE. "There is a difference between what is a document of the Senate and what is a document of a senator," said Alburquerque.
He said that the Senate recently negotiated an extension of the contracts of the power distributors and authorized increases in their rates within two years.
Famous judge to speak at the UASD
Spanish Judge Baltasar Garzón, famous for moving on the cases against Chilean Dictator Augusto Pinochet (see http://www.lakota.clara.net/Library/garzon.html) arrived yesterday to Santo Domingo. He will speak at the state university, Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo, on occasion of that university's dedication of the Chair of Human Rights. Judge Garzon will be named Honorary Professor of the School of Judicial and Political Sciences of the UASD. During his two-day stay, he will visit President Hipolito Mejia at the National Palace. He is slated to give a conference today, 24 April at 7 pm at the Central Bank auditorium on "Protection of Human Rights in the International Justice System."
Presidente announces dates of Latin Music Festival
Presidente Beer finally has announced the official dates of the Presidente Latin Music Festival. The festival will be held 1, 2, 3 June at the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Stadium. The company has not yet announced the performing artists.
Fourth Italian Gastronomy Festival
The Italian Gastronomy Festival will again take place on the grounds of the Fortaleza Ozama in the Colonial City. For those who love Italian food, this is a great activity for the entire family. It starts at 12 noon, Sunday, 6 May. Most of the leading Italian restaurants and food importers will participate.
Dominican to conduct world stars in Italy
Dominican conductor Jose Antonio Molina will be conducting Barry White, Cristina Aguilera, Britney Spears, and even Paul McCartney during the Pavarotti and Friends event scheduled for 29 May in Italy. Likewise, Molina told the press he would go on stage in June in Beijing, China, where he would conduct Luciano Pavarotti, Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo in a performance there.
New venues for the Pan Am Games
Jose Joaquin Puello, president of the Dominican Olympic Committee and the 2003 Santo Domingo Pan American Organizing Committee said that winners of the construction tender for the new Pan Am Games venues will be announced in the first week of May. These new structures will go up in the Mirador del Este Park. He told Hoy newspaper's sports editor Franklin Mirabal that a new volleyball pavilion would be built next to the one that already exists in the Juan Pablo Duarte Olympic Center. A new Olympic pool would also go up beside the existing one in the Olympic park. He said talks are advancing for the construction of the gymnastics pavilion next to the Boxing Pavilion and the Quisqueya Ball Park.
Dominican Baseball Commissioner Jose Daniel Calzada, who says that this would affect the Dominican Baseball League's plans to expand the stadium into a first class facility in the future, opposes the use of the area adjacent to the Quisqueya Ball Park. Calzada proposed that the gymnastics pavilion go up next to the Francisco Moscoso Puello Hospital.
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