According to Tourism Minister Felix Jimenez, the government has spent three million dollars on the reconstruction of Cabarete's beach. A total of 280,000 cubic meters of new sand was dumped on the beach, and the 2.5-kilometer stretch can now handle as many as 100,000 beachgoers at one time. Funding for the project, which includes Puerto Plata and Sosua beaches as well as Cabarete, came from a passenger tax and private sector contributions with the Puerto Plata Hotel Association playing a principal role.
Foreign Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso announced on Friday that the Dominican Republic "doesn't have anything to hide", and invited the visiting mission of US congressional leaders to look at the situation of Haitian immigrants in the Dominican Republic. He added that they should also worry about approving initiatives in the United States aimed at improving the situation in Haiti. According to Hoy newspaper, Morales reminded reporters that the United States Congress has had a bill designed to assist Haitian exports pending approval for the past four years. The measure would make Haiti more attractive for foreign investors. This is the "Hope and Hero" bill that was approved for African countries, but the Congress has not acted the same way regarding Haiti.
The mission of Democratic congressmen from the United States House of Representatives visited a few of the sugar cane worker settlements, known as "bateyes" and declared that the Dominican government had been negligent about the living conditions of the people living there. The legislators visited the bateyes of La Paloma and Cayacoa in San Pedro de Macoris. Shortly after meeting with the legislators, Foreign Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso said that it "was impossible to get a good image during such a short visit." He invited the legislators to come for a few days. He accused certain NGO groups of orchestrating the visit, and he called it a "show."
The chief of the visiting US congressional mission, Eliot Engel brought up the fact that many of the Dominican "consuls" in the US are actually United States residents, which disqualifies them from legitimately representing the Dominican Republic in consular functions.
Listin Diario editorial today also criticizes what over the years has become a common government practice - to appoint residents as consuls for political reasons, even when the US government will not recognize these as such. It can be said that it is not a congressman who should bring this complaint, but rather the US State Department, the editorial points out. To then make the point that this situation has been frequently discussed in the local press. The editorialist asks the Ministry to determine the real status of the consular officers.
The congressman also went to bat for Dominicans in New York, complaining of the high cost of consular services.
Consulates and embassies are frequently criticized for their excessive personnel, as these posts are seen as prizes for political patronage.
Chief of Police, Major General Bernardo Santana Paez told 5,000 of his men to work to make this a safe Christmas for the average citizen. In announcing the "Safe Christmas 2006" program, the general said that mixed units from the police and the armed forces would be patrolling the streets 24 hours a day. Their aim will be to reduce to a minimum the number of incidents involving robbery, assault, traffic accidents or "stray bullets". The chief warned his men that indiscriminate firing of weapons was not going to be tolerated, since "the law starts here." The chief said that he and his men were going to "do what is necessary to guarantee the peace of mind that Dominican families deserve."
The new Profesor Juan Bosch trauma hospital, located on the Duarte Highway between La Vega and Bonao has had a busy two months since opening its doors. According to a story in El Nacional, Dr. Felix Hernandez, the director, reports that 108 surgical procedures have been performed, 2,150 outpatients were treated and 1,434 images were taken by the tomography and radiology teams. A total of 4,194 lab tests were done. Currently, 46 out of 145 available beds are in use. The specialized trauma and surgery center serves the 14 provinces of the Cibao Valley. The hospital offers emergency services and has 21 specialists and 12 GPs on its staff.
According to the director of the Drug and Pharmacy department of the Ministry of Public Health, people with ED (Erectile Dysfunction) will require a doctor's prescription in order to purchase any of the available pharmaceutical products. Anyone selling these sexual stimulants to a customer who does not present a prescription will be arrested and fined. The maximum jail time is two years. The director, David Diaz Guzman, told reporters from Listin Diario that he was particularly worried about young people who use these medications for no medical reason.
Bishop Tomas Abreu is asking legislators to leave Law 28-01 alone. The fiscal reform bill submitted by the Executive Branch would revoke these incentives. This law establishes incentives for investment in industrial assembly facilities with duty free status in the poorest provinces along the north-western frontier. The former bishop of the Mao-Montecristi diocese, a long time advocate for the region's development, told reporters from El Caribe that any changes to the law would be disastrous. According to the bishop, approval of the legislation as it now stands would create a mass exodus from the frontier provinces towards the major cities. Rumualdo Estevez, one of the original proponents of Law 28-01, told the reporters that if the incentives to invest along the frontier are removed, this could even lead to reduced safety for many citizens. Other experts in the region agree that any changes to the law would crush expectations of progress that the law has inspired in residents of the frontier region. Bishop Abreu said that the legislators would be "poor Dominicans" if they eliminated the few remaining Special Development Zone incentives.
The National Hotel & Restaurant Association publishes today an open letter in the Listin Diario urging Congress to not eliminate tourism incentives established in Law 158-01 and Law 284-02. The law carries tax exemptions for complementary attractions and for tourism businesses, primarily in non developed tourism destinations. Asonahores points out that with the DR-CAFTA around the corner, the DR would be at a disadvantage with other Central American participants that offer similar or better tax incentives to investors.
The Association of University Rectors (ADRU) recommended that President Leonel Fernandez should give the educational sector higher priority in budget allocations. In a document given to the press, the rectors cited both Law 66-97 and 139-01, which cover Higher Education, Science and Technology. These laws require that 16% of the National Budget should be assigned to education, or 4% of the GDP.
A massive oil spill that spread 11,000 gallons of gasoline and diesel fuel around the traffic circle at 27 de Febrero and Luperon Avenues was finally cleaned up yesterday. Units from the Santo Domingo Fire Department cleaned up the mess that was caused when a tanker truck belonging to the Isla Company overturned on Friday. The accident caused a huge traffic jam that lasted for hours. According to Santo Domingo Fire Chief Oscar Guillermo Garcia, a great deal of the fuel was recovered with pumps and most of the work centered round cleaning up the mess so that a stray cigarette end would not set the pavement alight. According to statements taken at the scene, the driver admitted falling asleep at the wheel.
The Dominican Republic imports around 350 tons of pepper each year, while the annual local harvest is estimated at 80 tons. According to Listin Diario, a joint effort between the Dominican Agrarian Institute and the Japanese Cooperation Agency (JICA) and the Ministry of Agriculture has created a pocket of about 500 pepper producers in Hato Viejo, Yamasa. According to the report, Dominican pepper is well accepted on the market for its concentration of flavor. The pepper harvest can produce as much as RD$120,000 per acre for the farmers. Generally speaking, the crop is combined with pigeon peas, yucca and cacao.
Serious lobbying by Caribbean and African nations is attempting to maintain the old quota system of banana imports into Europe. The old system kept the Dominican Republic out in the cold. The intensity of the lobbying reveals just how important this market is for the world's banana producing nations. Apparently, Belize, St. Lucia and some African ACP (Africa, Caribbean and Pacific) members are trying to obtain "a rapid return to the old system" of quotas and licenses for exporting bananas to the European Community. Their argument is that this will "support the countries that are most vulnerable to being left out of the market." Part of the problem stems from the existence of what is called the Banana-Dollar Region, where Chiquita Brands, Dole and Del Monte have huge holdings, mainly in Central and South America. These nations export over 2.2 million tons of bananas to Europe, and currently pay a EUR176 tariff per ton of fruit. Defenders of the old system told Dominican ambassador Federico Cuello Camilo that they could export their entire crop under preferential treatment. Unfortunately, the Dominican Republic was not included in the old system.
Believe it or not, there are 25,000 places where one may bet on the lottery or a baseball, football, basketball or hockey game in the Dominican Republic. In Santo Domingo province alone, there are 6,000 betting parlors known as "Bancas de Apuestas". Many of these tiny offices, equipped with just a computer terminal and a small printer, are breaking a law that states that there must be at least 400 meters between each betting parlor. In the last five years, the number of betting parlors has doubled, going from 12,466 in 2001 to 24,816 today. According to National Lottery officials, there are "bancas" just a block apart in some barrios. There are also reports of complaints from private and public schools as well as church groups. An initial fee of RD$50,000 is required to operate one of these betting parlors, and the yearly renewal fee is currently RD$26,000. The new tax "correction" will add another RD$100,000 to the fee and winnings will be taxed at the rate of 25%, instead of 15%.
On Friday of the All-Star weekend, the Aguilas Cibaenas came from behind to defeat the Tigres del Licey for the eighth straight time, 6-4. Trailing 4-0 going into the ninth inning the Aguilas produced six runs, thanks in part to timely hitting by Tony Batista, Mendy Lopez, Robby Hemlock, Luis Polonia and Melky Cabrera. In San Pedro de Macoris, it took the Leones del Escogido ten innings to defeat the Estrellas Orientales, 5-4. A Justin Huber homerun in the top of the tenth was the margin of victory. In San Francisco de Macoris, the lowly Azucareros held on for eleven innings before falling to the league leading Gigantes del Cibao, 9-7. The home team got a dramatic homerun from Nick Gorneault to leave the Azucareros in the field.
The All-Star game between the Puerto Rican Winter League and the Dominican Winter League was a huge success as the Dominican All-Stars came from behind to defeat Puerto Rico, 6-2. Victor Mendez produced a key double to center field. The game was played in the Estadio Cibao and the place was packed as hundreds of Puerto Ricans made the trip to support their team. Local stars Eric Almonte, Victor Mendez, Luis Polonia and Eric Aybar not only helped fill the stadium but also led the way to the victory.
Standings
| Team | W-L | Avg. | Games Behind |
| Gigantes | 27 - 14 | .659 | -- |
| Aguilas | 26 - 14 | .650 | .5 |
| Licey | 24 - 17 | .585 | 3.0 |
| Estrellas | 18 - 22 | .450 | 8.5 |
| Escogido | 14 - 27 | .341 | 13.0 |
| Azucareros | 13 - 28 | .317 | 14.0 |
Tomorrow:
* Santo Domingo
Estrellas vs. Licey
* San Francisco de Macoris
Escogido vs. Gigantes
* La Romana
Aguilas vs. Azucareros
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