The government reported today that it is building its 2005 budget around an exchange rate of RD$37 to US$1. Technical Secretary to the Presidency Temistocles Montas made the announcement today, but said that, nevertheless, the government has not yet sent the bill to Congress, as reported in the Listin Diario.
Montas said the decision to calculate the budget at a rate of RD$37 to US$1 was made after the tourism and free zone sectors asked the authorities to intervene and graduate the appreciation of the peso that last week climbed to RD$26 to US$1 at some exchange posts.
Large sectors of the economy that also depend on remittances are also being affected by the peso's substantial climb since the Fernandez government took office. While the peso has appreciated, however, the prices of goods and services have been slow to drop, in part reflecting the skepticism of the private sector regarding the new rate, the higher cost of doing business and presumable attempts to net themselves a windfall from the higher yield on sales.
According to the Central Bank's daily report, the US peso was commanding RD$27.66 to US$1 today.
Speaking on the El Gobierno de la Manana radio program, Montas also announced further increases to the power rates. He said that those who pay for the service could expect rate increases of 30% next year.
The DR's taxation department, the DGII, reported that tax collections for October were RD$933.5 million more than those for the same month in 2003. The official report indicates that the government collected RD$4.6 billion in October 2004, while the enhanced revenue is being partly attributed to the increases in taxes passed by Congress in September.
President Leonel Fernandez authorized the extradition of nine Dominicans that had been requested by the US authorities. The extradition is dated 11 November. Of the nine, seven are wanted on drug trafficking charges. These are Rafael Dominguez Carvajal, Joj Yoel Nunez, Ramon Arnoldo Pimentel Guerrero, Bienvenido Roa, Agustin Henriquez and Oscar Santos Santos. Jeremias Gomez Perez is wanted for his involvement in a bank robbery and Rafael Collado is being sought for homicide. The extradition order exempts the individuals in question from being levied the maximum sentence of 30 years in jail.
Meanwhile, according to a report in the Listin Diario, among the list of names requested by the US authorities for extradition, are three former government officers. These include two who worked at the Presidential Palace, according to lawyer Julio Cury, who requested that legal advisor to the Executive Branch Cesar Pina Toribio publicly reveal the names of those concerned.
Lawyer Roberto Alvarez writes in El Caribe that the Dominican Republic should request backing from the United States Embassy to carry out a study similar to that which the US Embassy in Jamaica financed on the behavior of Jamaican deported nationals. He says that of 12,036 deportees to Jamaica, 63% were repatriated for criminal reasons, which is comparable to 66% of Dominican deportees. The remainder were returned primarily for violating migration laws. Alvarez said the Jamaican study also revealed that the average age of the deported Jamaicans when entering the US was 23, and that they typically stayed in the US an average of 12 years before being returned. He said the Jamaican study showed that deportees convicted of crimes that were not drug-related represented an insignificant minority.
Alvarez has expressed concern that in the debates regarding citizens' safety and the rising crime rate, the large number of deported Dominicans is frequently pinpointed as one of the main factors. Currently, however, there are no statistics to substantiate this claim.
The press reports today on a collaboration between DR and US crime prosecution forces. News reports have revealed that Gregory R. Swarn was arrested in the DR in connection to charges of mail and wire fraud, money laundering and his alleged involvement in a South Florida telemarketing scheme that bilked approximately 400 individuals out of more than US$5 million. Swarn, who had fled first to the Philippines, was drawn to the DR by the lure of a fictitious business deal, only to be arrested upon his arrival at Las Americas International Airport and handed over to the FBI.
The Ministry of Public Works removed the concrete barriers that had been placed on the Duarte Bridge that spans the Ozama River. As reported in El Caribe, the 103 ramparts weighed the same as a stand-still traffic jam of 200 vehicles, considerably affecting the lifespan of the bridge that has long been due for the completion of major repairs. The ministry ordered a study of the 50-year-old bridge's state by a Costa Rican company, and later announced major maintenance works at a cost of US$17 million.
Culture Minister Jose Rafael Lantigua said that the government has purchased a new air-conditioning system for the National Theater. The unit cost US$925,000 and will be installed in time for December's performances. Several significant presentations have had to be cancelled at the theater for lack of adequate ventilation after the previous government spent millions in supposed repairs to the old system.
Lantigua also said that a major overhaul is underway at the Plaza de la Cultura, where the National Theater is located. He said that the 2005 National Book Fair this year would take place on the Plaza de la Cultura grounds.
The Listin Diario reports today that if Congress approves the wage increase bill, those very members of the legislature will stand the most to gain. As was proposed by the Chamber of Deputies, the 30% increase for those making up to RD$90,000 a month would mean RD$27,000 more a month for the legislators. The increase entails an additional RD$10 billion that tax payers will have to fork over to fund the government employees' wages.
The bill that is to have its second reading tomorrow in the Chamber of Deputies would establish a minimum wage of RD$4,000 for government employees, and wage adjustments of 30% for most others.
The Senate has already approved a bill that establishes a 30% increase for public and government workers.
The legislators have said, however, that they will revise the bill so as to not include the private sector, now that the employer and labor sectors have reached an agreement that called for a 30% increase in minimum wage and 25% increase in wages of those making up to RD$20,000, and who had not already received at least a 25% wage increase in 2004.
The Group of Dominican Professionals (GDP-WASH), the Dominican Organization of International Resources (ODRI – a 501 (c) (3) organization), and the 4-40 Foundation will join forces to raise funds to assist Dominican children suffering from cancer. On Friday, November 19, 2004, GDP-WASH will host a benefit gala-dance at The Hamilton Crowne Plaza Hotel in Washington, DC. The soiree's theme will be "Ojala Que Llueva Cafe para Los Ninos del Robert Reid Cabral" and the evening's agenda will include a reception as well as a silent auction in which guests may bid trips to various resorts in the Dominican Republic, memorabilia signed by the World Series-winning Boston Red Sox players, and commercial and collection-caliber paintings. The evening will be followed by a dinner with a special presentation and tribute to the Grammy Award winner Juan Luis Guerra and fashion designer Oscar de la Renta.
To participate or to pledge your support through your donation to this noble cause please visit www.gdp-wash.org or call us toll-free at 877-870-8048.
Several of the region's best martial artists will be in Santo Domingo this week to participate in the 14th Pan American Taekwondo Championships being held from November 18 - 21, 2004. The General Assembly and elections will take place prior to the Championships on November 17, 2004.
Some 20 countries have confirmed their participation in the event that is to take place at the same Taekwondo facility that was used for the Pan American Games in 2003. Hoy newspaper reports that the secretary general of the Pan American Taekwondo union, Helder Navarro, is in the DR for the event. Exhibition teams from Korea will also participate in the event.
Leonardo Monsanto told Hoy newspaper that several regional sport directors, including Kevin Kim and San Heo Lee, who assist Chunguon Chou, the president of the World Taekwondo Federation, will also attend the event.
For more information, see http://www.patu.org/
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