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President in New York President Hipolito Mejia visited Governor of New York George Pataki and Mayor of New York City Michael Bloomberg yesterday as part of his US tour. During his meeting with President Mejia, Pataki pledged his support to the request the Dominican Republic is making to President Bush to legalize the status of an estimated 75,000 Dominicans in the United States and for the signing of a bilateral Free Trade Agreement. Analysts say that neither the legalization of immigrants nor the FTA are unlikely to become a reality, at least for now. The 9/11 terrorist attack on the US has made the US Congress reticent to act on increasing benefits to immigrants, and there is no indication the DR will be included in trade talks in the near future. But President Mejia says that one cannot win a battle that is not fought. El Caribe newspaper says that the petition for the legalization of the illegal status of Dominicans living and working in the US comes after the Dominican-American Roundtable complained that President Mejia had not made the request during his July visit to Washington, D.C. Meanwhile, New York Assemblyman Adriano Espaillat says that not all is futile. He told El Caribe that the proposal is a good one. “We have to understand that by lobbying for an amnesty, we open a space for other matters,” he explained. | |||
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13.5% salary increase The National Salaries Committee agreed yesterday to phase in a 13.5% minimum wage increase between now and March 2003. The wage increase will be levied in two phases -- an 8% increase as of October 2002 and a further 5.5% in March 2003. As reported in Diario Libre, the monthly minimum wage for companies with registered capital of more than RD$500,000 would go from RD$3,415 to RD$3,690 at the end of October 2002 and then again to RD$3,890 in March 2003. The National Salaries Committee has yet to rule on the special sectors, such as free zones and the hotel industry that presently have lower minimum wages. The free zone minimum wage is currently RD$2,490 per month. In his 17 September speech announcing the transfer to the private sector of the increasing costs to produce power, President Mejia had asked the private sector to accept a 7% increase so as to compensate consumers. Worker unions later lobbied for a 20% increase. | |||
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Hospital costs increase The Association of Private Clinics and Hospitals (ANDECLIP) said their electricity costs have already gone up 20% due to the constant increases in the cost of power, water and equipment damaged by the power brownouts and blackouts, and the long hours of operation of their alternate power sources. This is prior to the hospitals receiving the price hikes that have been announced. Rafael Mena, president of the Andeclip, called the billing methods of the power companies abusive and arbitrary. He said some clinics are being billed upwards of RD$500,000 a month for the service and that the situation obliges the clinics to pass on part of the increases to consumers, by increasing their rates 20%. Mena also criticized what he called the poor service offered by the power companies when they are called to resolve any electrical problem. | |||
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Leave your salchichones at home Airport inspectors have been frisking passengers and their onboard and hand luggage, searching for meat products and vegetables that would be transported on flights to the United States and Puerto Rico, reported the Diario Libre. From 15 April, this new check being implemented by Ministry of Agriculture inspectors, in coordination with the United States Agriculture Department, has resulted in the confiscation of an average of 600 kilos of meat products and 2,400 kilos of vegetables a week. Cesarina Morel, in charge of the program at Las Americas International Airport, told the newspaper that the vegetables are later tested in labs and the meat products are incinerated. Dominicans pack the products to take as gifts for friends and family living abroad. Among some of the most confiscated articles are pasteles en hojas, mangos, guavas, guandules, honey, beef, goat and even cooked chicken. The implementation of the program in Dominican airports reduces passenger delays once arriving in the US or Puerto Rico. | |||
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Reducing money controls The Monetary Board announced it was taking measures to increase the money supply. Luis Manuel Piantini, vice governor of the Central Bank, told El Caribe that these measures seek to compensate for the constraints on the present money supply caused by the use of foreign exchange reserves to avoid a run on the peso. The increase in the money supply is expected to bring relief to the increasing interest rates. Most business loans are contracted at floating rates and when the rates go up, businesses are hurt by the unexpected rising costs. El Caribe newspaper says that while there will be relief for the interest rate, the measures could spur inflation and result in further devaluation of the peso. The peso’s value as of yesterday was RD$19 to the US$. Listin Diario newspaper says that the Monetary Board has eased the restrictions on bank reserve levels so that they have more money to lend in pesos and US dollars. | |||
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US college recruiting event The Caribbean Counselor’s Association and the Carol Morgan School will be hosting two days when Dominican high school graduates can meet with representatives from several US colleges. The event will be held at the Hotel Embajador on Saturday and Sunday, 12 and 13 October from 2 to 5 pm. Colleges sending representatives to talk to students and parents are: Bryant College (RI), Florida Culinary Institute (FL), International Fine Arts College (FL), Loyola University of New Orleans (LA), Lynn University (FL), Regis College (MA), Saint Leo University (FL), Seton Hall University (NJ), University of Tampa (FL), and Ursinus College (PA). For more information, call Carol Morgan School at 947-1035 or email Cecilia Meijer at CMeijer@cms.edu.do | |||
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Carnival Cruise schedules La Romana Carnival's newest cruise ship, "Paradise", will call at the renovated La Romana Port as of 5 March, 2003. The vessel has capacity for approximately 2,000 passengers and will sail on Sundays out of Miami, Florida, arriving in La Romana on Wednesdays, every other week. The schedule will be maintained on a year-round basis – the first year-round operation for the port of La Romana – and the cruise ship will dock at the port of La Romana for a full day. The first cruise is scheduled to leave Miami on 2 March, with arrival at La Romana Port on Wednesday, 5 March. Claudio Silvestri, president of Premier Hotels, said the ship will visit every 15 days. Upon making the announcement, Silvestri said that the La Romana company is making a sizeable investment in the river port to attract increased cruise ship traffic and that the advent of the cruise ships will increase employment in La Romana. Silvestri went on to say that Bob Dickinson, president of the cruise line, said they were interested in hiring Dominican graduates of the Casa de Campo Preparatory Institute by Johnson and Wales University to work in Costa Cruises, a Carnival affiliate. Carnival Cruises manages 35% of the cruise ship market worldwide and is the largest transporter in the Caribbean. Casa de Campo began working with cruise ships in the early 90s when it welcomed the American Family Cruises that docked off Catalina Island. As reported in the Listin Diario, Silvestri says that the new La Romana facilities that will soon be formally inaugurated are unrivalled in the Caribbean. He said passengers on board the ship will have the option of taking a tour of Catalina Island, visiting the Casa de Campo Marina or attending shows at the Altos de Chavon amphitheater and artistic village. | |||
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