DR1 Daily News breaks for the New Year holidays
DR assumes its UN Security Council seat on 1 January
The sub-division of Santiago is a hot issue at year’s end
Intrant is judicially handcuffed until ruling is passed
Traffic jams are the order of the day in Greater Santo Domingo
For goodness sakes drive carefully.
Faride Raful: “The money, are the government officers stealing it?”
Home for the holidays? Not really
Bail and preventive custody for suspects of irregular takeoff from Samana airport
Police tie son to murder of loan-sharking mom
Orphanage assaulted, Haiti headed towards the abyss
Who will win the baseball championship?
Tribute to Juan Luis Guerra at Casa de Teatro
La Romana’s Chavon Amphitheater presents Nicky Jam and Afrojack
Celebrate the New Year dancing merengue at the Jaragua Renaissance
New Year party at Casa de Teatro
DR1 Daily News breaks for the New Year holidays
Breaking news over the holidays has been slow. Let us hope that no news is good news and family and friends unite for recharging positive energy for 2019.
The next DR1 Daily News update will be published on Wednesday, 2 January 2019. Readers will be able to catch up reading DR1’s Wednesday compilation featuring a summary of news from the previous Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday days. Breaking news can always be followed 24/7 in the Forums. Or check out DR1 Calendar for a list of what’s happening in different venues around the country for the New Year and Three Kings holidays. Have the best of the New Year holidays!
See the DR1 Forum at https://www.dr1.com
See DR1 Calendar at https://www.dr1.com/calendar
DR assumes its UN Security Council seat on 1 January
The Dominican Republic assumes starting 1 January 2019, together with Germany, Belgium, South Africa and Indonesia, its two-year term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. The council is the only United Nations body that can make legally binding decisions and has the power to impose sanctions and authorize the use of force.
The Dominican Republic will be represented by newly-appointed ambassador Jose Singer. The Ministry of Foreign Relations reported that recently, Dominican ambassador to the United Nations, Frank Cortorreal, met with secretary general of the UN Antonio Guterres to present the Dominican Republic work program.
The sub-division of Santiago is a hot issue at year’s end
Those who had hopes President Danilo Medina would veto the bill that divides the city of Santiago could be soon disappointed. As of 26 December 2018, with the 10-day deadline looming for the bill that passed on 19 December, this had not happened. It is likely the end of year date was chosen so as to take advantage that people were more into partying than serious issues. The Constitution says if the bill is not observed or signed into law, it will become law just with the publishing by the Chamber of Deputies instead of the Presidency.
The bill has already met with the opposition of the top echelons of the business community. The Archbishop of Santiago, Monsignor Freddy de Jesús Bretón Martínez expressed his opposition saying that the split would bring chaos and anarchy to the modern city that is organized because of the joint efforts of social, business and city authorities.
Yet a minority is jumping with joy over the legislative approval of the separation of “West Santiago” from Santiago de los Caballeros, there are other sectors that see the division of the nation’s second largest city as a disaster-in-waiting. Some of the local teachers and so-called “popular leaders” held a press conference to announce that several civic sectors were overjoyed by the news of the congressional approval of the plan to divide the city. They said that the measure that separates Cienfuegos, El Ingenio and some 80 smaller communities from Santiago de los Caballeros was the result of 10 years of lobbying.
Nevertheless, in a meeting with Santiago Mayor Abel Martinez, other leaders, business and industrial community leaders told the mayor they totally reject the move to divide the city. The head of the Santiago Strategic Development Council, Juan Carlos Ortiz, called instead for all to work for common goals. The head of the Chamber of Commerce noted that cities in other countries that underwent sub-divisions are now reverting to their former status.
While there are obvious political maneuverings involved in creating a new municipal district, there are other, more important economic issues to consider. As reported in the El Caribe, the city of Santiago de los Caballeros could lose as much as 30% of its budget if the President signs off on this legislation. This is due to the fact that the area that would become the new municipality comprises about 33% of the population of Santiago, and according to the Municipal Law176-07 on cities and municipal districts, each district has to have a director and three councilmembers. The proposed West Santiago, with a population of over 200,000 would have an even greater number of council members than the city of Santiago.
The position of the Santiago Development Council is that the division would not solve problems but would create a great number of new problems: access to the municipal garbage site in Rafey; access to the Santiago Municipal Cemetery at El Ingenio and the water supply for the area would fall under the new authorities of Santiago West.
If the President does not veto the legislative bill that splits Santiago into two, the city government of Abel Martinez will lose an important revenue source, the Rafey garbage treatment center and the municipal El Ingenio cemetery. There is speculation a legal battle over the rights to these areas and services could be forthcoming. An estimated 33% of the 700,000 inhabitants of the city of Santiago would now fall under the to-be-created city government of Santiago West.
Several of those in opposition to the measure foresee legal battles looming on the horizon. According to Edwin Espinal Hernandez, Article 193 of the Constitution calls for territorial organization that leads to development and stability. Espinal notes that “everything points to the fact that rational decision making, in all aspects, was absent with the creation of Santiago West.”
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...oeste-genera-opiniones-encontradas-DO11685350
https://elcaribe.com.do/2018/12/22/...este-le-tumbaria-30-al-presupuesto-municipal/
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...este-le-tumbaria-30-al-presupuesto-municipal/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...tiempo-promulgar-la-ley-que-divide-a-santiago
https://elsoldelasamericas.com/diversas-personalidades-rechazan-division-municipio-de-santiago/
http://www.lainformacion.com.do/not...portara-al-desarrollo-equilibrado-de-santiago
Intrant is judicially handcuffed until ruling is passed
The National Institute of Ground Transportation (Intrant) has no judicial standing to eliminate the chaos in the nation’s traffic systems, nor is it able to act against drivers wo are careless or reckless, because the government has not passed the obligatory regulations for the application of Law 63-17, say legislators Henry Meran, president of the commission of justice of the Chamber of Deputies, and Euclides Sanchez and Ricardo Contreras, of the public works commissions of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.
They highlight that a year and 10 months after the legislation was signed and enacted, Intrant cannot take the sweeping actions required to reduce the traffic-related pandemonium that exists on the major streets and avenues of its principal cities.
They expressed their regret that Intrant itself is violating Art 336 of Laws 63-17. The article says that in coordination with the Ministry of Public Administration the Intrant should submit regulations to the Executive Branch within six months of the legislative approval of the law. This has not happened.
In a single paragraph, the legislation says that in order for the Traffic and Ground Transportation Safety Agency (Digisett) to function properly, the regulations have to be drafted by the Ministry of the Interior and Police in coordination with Intrant.
This has yet to be accomplished. There was hope that the Intrant would be able to put a stop to illegal stops of the conchos and buses, reduce accidents, even possibly eliminate, but at the least reduce, the huge traffic jams, and remove the hundreds of ramshackle vehicles that circulate in the major streets and avenues from circulation.
The legislators say that Intrant is afraid to act forcefully against any of the transportation “syndicates” for fear that their measures would be successfully challenged in court, given the back of the legislation to support the actions. Some legislators said that it is regrettable that these regulations have not been drafted and applied. Euclides Gutierrez told reporters “the Law 63-17 is very good, and if it is applied will provide a legal and operational framework to eliminate the problems of chaos and the traffic accidents.”
https://elnacional.com.do/intrant-sin-fuerza-juridica-para-poner-fin-caos-en-transito/
Traffic jams are the order of the day in Greater Santo Domingo
Traffic jams are reaching historic and unbearable levels, as students and employees suffer through hour long commutes that should only take 15 minutes – and these delays are often during “off peak hours,” a report in Diario Libre explains. Statistics from the Tax Agency (DGII) show that in 2017 approximately 41% of all of the vehicles registered in the country are circulating in Greater Santo Domingo. Santiago, the nation’s second largest city, has but 8.5% of the national total of vehicles.
Experts say that the high concentration of motor vehicles, in combination of the lack of prudence of many concho (multi-fare sharing taxis) drivers who pick up and drop off passengers at any place and at any time, lead to impossible traffic snarls and delays.
Among the dangerous habits are passengers who want to be dropped off at the beginning of an overpass to not walk too far. Then there is the dangerous habit of using two and even three lanes to make a left turn. There is also the habit of cutting across lanes to get on an overpass. And most of this goes on under the noses of traffic cops who just shrug their shoulders and say “So what, man?”
This chaotic situation has motivated officials and the general public alike to take action against the chaos in our city streets. One such proposal would require all schools, public and private, to provide for transportation for their students. This is especially aimed at the private schools where parents regularly take their kids to school and then these same parents double or triple-park as they wait for their children in front of the schools in the afternoon, creating many of the traffic tie-ups seen throughout the city.
Another proposal is to divide working hours into two shifts: One would start at 7am, and end at 2pm and the second would start at 2pm and end at 9pm.
For Oneximo Gonzalez, an expert in traffic and mobility, the traffic situation in Greater Santo Domingo is the result of the lack of an integrated public transportation system. He said that it would take determination and “political courage” to solve the problem in the short term, from three to five years.” Until this happens, the people keep finding ways to get around the tie-ups.
The Diario Libre newspaper did a survey in social media in order to find out how their readers worked around the loss of time, money and patience. This revealed that the Santo Domingo Metro, now with two lines running, frees up space on the surface and operates from 6am until 10:30pm and carries nearly 300,000 people a day to places in north, east and Greater Santo Domingo. The people surveyed said that the savings in time and money is evident. Riders of the Metro move at high speed under city streets and save between RD$5.00 and RD$30.00 per ride. However not all is not rosy in the Metro either. There are numerous complaints regarding crowding at peak hours at key Metro stops and passengers are noting the lack of upkeep on elevators and escalators. Also, heavy rains have caused the Office for the Reorganization of Transportation (OPRET) to shut down the system on occasion.
To many, the new cable car over the river that serves four stations over 5 kilometers in Gualey, Tres Brazos Sabana Perdida and Charles DeGaulle Avenue and environs is a blessing.
Ride-sharing is also something that is generally done within a family or a neighborhood if the neighbors work near each other. It has become monetized through social media as in South America and the United States. In the DR, this might become an issue with the high levels of criminal activity.
The survey also showed that experienced taxi drivers find short cuts for many destinations within the city. There are also persons who use apps that reveal traffic tie-ups and alternate routes. Much of this information is broadcast over the radio on the more popular stations. Bicycles are an alternative for moderate distance and are becoming more evident, according to the survey.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...n-santo-domingo-conoce-la-solucion-PA11669611
For goodness sakes drive carefully
The Center for Emergency Operations reported 10 persons dead in violent incidents and over 200 injjured over the Christmas holiday. Presidency Minister Gustavo Montalvo said the 911 Emergency System attended to 1,087 emergency cases and 196 road assistance cases on the peak days of 24 and 25 December 2018.
But the focus is on prevention, especially when driving in these days when there is no restriction on alcohol sales.
With more than 1,000 accidents being attended to in just one public hospital in Santo Domingo, the month of December has shown an alarming propensity for the public to disregard highway safety and common sense. The director of the Public Trauma Hospital Dario Contreras is calling for a ban or strict limitations on motorcycles over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. The Minister of Public Health was one of the first to voice this possible solution to the traffic dangers on the nation’s roads.
Of the 1,190 accident victims treated at the Dario Contreras, 735 were either the driver or a passenger on motorcycles, some 66.7%. Dr. Jose Aponte said that 49% of the yearly expenditures at the hospital involve treating accident victims, the majority of whom need intensive care that costs RD$50,000 a day. Fractures can cost RD$70,000 for three months of rehab work.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...pacientes-atendidos-por-accidentes-FP11693798
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...idos-durante-las-fiestas-navidenas-FH11707839
http://coe.gob.do/
Faride Raful: “The money, are the government officers stealing it?”
Chamber of Deputies legislator Faride Raful questioned that despite record tax collections, the Medina administration continues to borrow heavily. The PLD-majority Chamber of Deputies approved an amendment that added another RD$190 billion to the 2019 National Budget to cover expenditures. She said the approval of the RD$190 billion was illegal, as reported in Diario Libre. She observed that last year the Medina administration pushed through congress a bill that added RD$175 billion in financing and this had been discussed by the Permanent Hacienda Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, but this year the RD$190 billion loan was fast-tracked and not sent to commission.
The PRM opposition party legislator, Faride Raful, nevertheless, questioned the use the government is giving to public revenues by central government officers given the need for heavy additional financing.
“We are people rich who cannot provide evidence of any formal work activity that account for their eyebrow raising wealth, and for this there is no penalty in this country,” she criticized.
The bill passed with 117 votes in favor and 42 opposed in its second reading. Raful said that the Chamber of Deputies serves “as toilet paper” for President Danilo Medina and the legislators receive orders from the President.
Radhames Camacho, a strong supporter of President Medina who is the president of the Chamber of Deputies replied to the accusation: "We do not have individual rights here because the Constitution does not give us a chance to play with the social responsibility of a leader who assumes a role in the government," he said, following Deputy Raful's turn.
Agreement on poor handling of cases of human rabies
Dr. Clemente Terrero, the deputy director of the Robert Reid Cabral Children’s Hospital, told the Diario Libre that a five-year old boy who had been hospitalized with the clinical symptoms of human rabies had not been administered the anti-rabies vaccine within the timeframe established in the protocols for these cases. This was in the Elio Fiallo Hospital in Pedernales. This apparent neglect is more bewildering given two recent fatalities from this disease in recent weeks being reported in that region.
Terrero said in a telephone interview that “in this case the child was not vaccinated when he was taken to the hospital, but ten days later they began the vaccination process, but by then it was too late.” Dr. Terrero said: “We have a serious situation in the country. An outbreak of canine rabies and now we can say that we have human rabies, because there have been three cases in Pedernales. There have been four deaths attributed to the disease this year, which if it shows clinical symptoms is nearly impossible to cure. The doctors said that the chances of curing it are minimal.
Public Health Minister Rafael Sanchez Cardenas confirmed to reporters that the failure to follow protocols at the Elio Fiallo Hospital in Pedernales was a major factor in the two fatalities registered, so far, and he called upon the National Health Service (SNS) to investigate and apply sanctions against those that acted with negligence in these cases. The minister also expressed regret that the child who is currently being treated at the Robert Reid Cabral Hospital has to be officially diagnosed at the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, because the local rabies center is undergoing a major remodeling.
Dr. Sanchez Cardenas said that there is a team of specialists in Pedernales going house to house to investigate if other persons have been bitten by dogs of other animals. The Ministry is also using social media to inform the public regarding of the dangers and symptoms of human and canine rabies. The Ministry has an on-going campaign to vaccinate all the dogs and cats in the city of Pedernales as well as in the countryside.
Dr. Chanel Rosa Chupany, director of the SNS, said that persons bitten by an animal need to take several doses of anti-rabies vaccine in the first 28 days, undergo lab tests and the animal needs to be taken under surveillance. He urged that all cases be immediately reported to the Direcciones Provinciales de Salud (DPS), the regional health agencies.
He explained that the anti-rabies center was closed following a recommendation from the Panamerican Health Organization that said that vaccines should be available at all health centers and not in a single specialized center.
The former president of the Dominican Medical Guild (CMD) observed that while the Centro Antirrabico operated with limitations tests to determine rabies were made there. Now the samples have to be sent to the Atlanta-based CDC labs in the United States. He said this increases the vulnerability to the mortal illness. Rabies cannot be treated in humans, only in the dogs.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...hay-un-grave-brote-de-rabia-canina-HB11679961
https://elnacional.com.do/sp-admite-fallas-en-casos-rabia/
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...iento-de-protocolos-en-casos-de-rabia-humana/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...600-y-700-personas-son-agredidas-por-animales
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...da-madre-de-nino-con-rabia-no-fuera-orientada
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...onal-y-recursos-a-mano-contra-el-virus-canino
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...iento-de-protocolos-en-casos-de-rabia-humana/
Home for the holidays? Not really
A total of just over 2,000 Dominicans have been deported and returned to the Dominican Republic by some 16 nations or territories around the world so far in 2018. These deportees arrived at the Las Americas International Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo from the United States, Puerto Rico, Panama, Spain, France, Mexico, Venezuela, Italy, Aruba, Curacao, Germany and the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg). Just last week some 80 young Dominicans arrived from the United States after having served their jail time. Some 1,957 of the deportees were male and 44 were female. The men, between the ages of 25 and 67 had served prison sentences of as much as 15 years. The women were between 28 and 48 years old.
The list of criminal activities includes narcotics, counterfeiting, robbery, kidnapping, domestic violence, illegal immigration status, and other offenses that resulted in incarceration. After the deportees are received at the airport, they are taken to the Shelter for Repatriated and Arrested Persons in Haina, where they are processed, and released, unless they have issues pending with Dominican justice, in which case they are sent to the proper jurisdiction for further processing and trial. An average of 167 persons per month are deported back to the DR from the United States.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2018/12/20/...minicanos-han-llegado-deportados-por-el-aila/
Bail and preventive custody for suspects of irregular takeoff from Samana airport
Pilot Luis M. Pimentel Santos was allowed to post a RD$2 million bail in the case against him for illegal takeoff of Piper PA-23, Dominican registration HI896, at the Arroyo Barril International Airport in Samana. He was also legally banned from leaving the country and ordered to be available while the case is heard by the judiciary. Two others, military officers Alfredo de la Paz Rubí and Angel Benavides Fermín are accused in the case and were also allowed to post the same bail.
Five others received tougher preventive measures as their case is heard. An employee of the Avtur fuel distributor, a mechanic, an Aerodom airport employee, and Army sergeant Andy Lebron Martinez, who was the supervisor at the airport, received sentences of six months preventive custody.
The authorities also announced the arrest of Colombian pilot Orlando Morales Gaitan on Saturday, 22 December, when he attempted to travel to Bogota, Colombia on a Copa Airlines flight via Panama.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...ntia-economica-a-capitan-quiso-robar-avioneta
Police tie son to murder of loan-sharking mom
The National Police in the Central Cibao Command have announced that the son of slain loan shark Gertrudis Mercedes Hernandes Diaz (aka “Chichi”), Oscar Antonio Diaz Hernández (aka Oscalito) was the mastermind of a brutal crime last January 2018 in Sabana Iglesia. According to the police, Oscalito hired three men to murder his mother and was identified by one of these men as the mastermind behind the crime. According to the police report, the evidence includes fingerprints and other indications of guilt. The report states that the son was after his mother’s money. All four of the alleged criminals have been sent to the courts for trial.
https://elnacional.com.do/policia-vincula-hijo-en-muerte-de-mujer-prestamista-el-niega-imputacion/
Orphanage assaulted, Haiti headed towards the abyss
The political, social, environmental and economic chaos in Haiti continues to be probably the Dominican Republic’s greatest challenge. Instead of improving, nevertheless, over the years the situation in the neighboring country seems to be worsening as evidenced by a recent violent assault on an orphanage.
The Vatican News reported a brutal attack by armed men on the Kay pè Giuss orphanage manned by Italian nuns in the slum area of Waf Jeremie, Haiti. Sister Marcella Catozza told the Vatican News that the emergency situation in Haiti is “perennial.” The orphanage houses 146 children, including 30 that are seriously disabled, and receives around 400 day children. The shelter was founded after the 2010 earthquake.
During the assault, the armed bandits stole the power generator, sanitary material and the mattresses and all else they could take. Sister Marcella Catozza says the country is going towards the abyss, and the citizens are increasing being exposed to violence. We are not building anything that can guarantee a different future: we work as if we were always in an emergency. "
“There is a lack resolve to change things,” said Sister Catozza. She has worked in Amazonia, Albania, Vietnam, but in the Caribbean country she finds almost insurmountable difficulties. The lack of interlocutors, for example, so much that they cannot call the police after the attacks, because "the police are afraid of bandits,” she explained. "There is no one to turn to, there is nothing objective: you change things in the running, every day, depending on the employee you find in the office. It's like always having to continuously start over and the state does not help you,” she told the Vatican News.
She explained that the program Doctors without Borders, for example, is leaving the country: they have already closed three hospitals because the state has imposed on exorbitant taxes on the facilities. Doctors Without Borders ran free hospitals: now people do not know where to go. “This is the drama of this country: there is no will to change things," she complained.
Joint efforts of the Dominican Republic and the European Union to establish a hospital in Haiti to reduce the demand of Haitians on the free public health system in the Dominican Republic has met with indifference on behalf of the Haitian authorities. The Dominican Republic shares more than 300 km border with Haiti.
https://www.vaticannews.va/it/mondo...lenza-attacchi-orfanotrofio-suor-catozza.html
Who will win the baseball championship?
Follow the four Dominican baseball teams as they match off at the stadiums in Santo Domingo, San Pedro de Macoris and La Romana. Games continue on Thursday, 27, Friday, 28 and Saturday, 29 December. The round robin is off for the New Year celebrations. Matches resume again on Wednesday, 2 January through 14 January 2019.
The semifinal round is formatted as “all against all,” in which the four teams play a total of 18 games, six against each of the rivals. The two teams with the best record during the round robin face off in the finals. If before the 18 games are completed two teams classify, the round would end at that moment and 48 hours later the final series the tournament would begin.
The winner of the Dominican Professional Baseball Winter Championship then goes on to battle the best teams from Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Series scheduled to be played in Venezuela from 2 to 8 February 2019.
http://www.lidom.com/home/calendario/
Tribute to Juan Luis Guerra at Casa de Teatro
If you are a fan of the music of Dominican contemporary music legend, Juan Luis Guerra, head out to Casa de Teatro in the Colonial City to enjoy Grupo Los Frankos presentation of a tribute to Juan Luis Guerra on Friday, 28 December 2018. 10pm. Casa de Teatro at Arzobispo Meriño 110 in the Colonial City. Tickets at the Casa de Teatro box office: RD$800 cash only.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRDfBz1zJ1s
La Romana’s Chavon Amphitheater presents Nicky Jam and Afrojack
Dominican-Puerto Rican reggaeton singer, Nicky Jam, known for his hits "Travesuras", "Te Busco" (with Cosculluela), "El Perdón", "Hasta el Amanecer", and "El Amante" and his “Jaleo” album with DJ Steve Aoki, is performing at the 5,000-seat La Romana Amphitheater. He will share the stage on the evening of Saturday, 29 December 2018 with Dutch music producer, DJ Afrojack. DJ Afrojack is best known for his songs “Dirty Sexy Money”, “Helium”, “Ten Feet Tall” and “New Memories. ”
Tickets are for sale online at Uepa Tickets, CCN Servicios in Supermercados Nacional, Jumbo) and the owners office at Casa de Campo in La Romana.
Celebrate the New Year dancing merengue at the Jaragua Renaissance
The Jaragua Renaissance Hotel presents “Ultra SuperMegaBaile” with merengue superstars Fernando Villalona, Toño Rosario and Rubby Pérez on Monday, 31 December 2018. Also Eddy Herrera, Miriam Cruz, David Kada, Wilfrido Vargas, Krisspy, Kinito Méndez, Mozart La Para. 9pm. Tickets are for sale online at Ticket Express and at the Jaragua box office.
New Year party at Casa de Teatro
Come celebrate the New Year as of 10pm on Monday, 31 December 2018 with the eclectic group of family and friends at Casa de Teatro in the Colonial City. Live music from 10pm at the Café Teatro.
Check out DR1 Calendar for more events and details.
https://www.dr1.com/calendar
DR assumes its UN Security Council seat on 1 January
The sub-division of Santiago is a hot issue at year’s end
Intrant is judicially handcuffed until ruling is passed
Traffic jams are the order of the day in Greater Santo Domingo
For goodness sakes drive carefully.
Faride Raful: “The money, are the government officers stealing it?”
Home for the holidays? Not really
Bail and preventive custody for suspects of irregular takeoff from Samana airport
Police tie son to murder of loan-sharking mom
Orphanage assaulted, Haiti headed towards the abyss
Who will win the baseball championship?
Tribute to Juan Luis Guerra at Casa de Teatro
La Romana’s Chavon Amphitheater presents Nicky Jam and Afrojack
Celebrate the New Year dancing merengue at the Jaragua Renaissance
New Year party at Casa de Teatro
DR1 Daily News breaks for the New Year holidays
Breaking news over the holidays has been slow. Let us hope that no news is good news and family and friends unite for recharging positive energy for 2019.
The next DR1 Daily News update will be published on Wednesday, 2 January 2019. Readers will be able to catch up reading DR1’s Wednesday compilation featuring a summary of news from the previous Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday days. Breaking news can always be followed 24/7 in the Forums. Or check out DR1 Calendar for a list of what’s happening in different venues around the country for the New Year and Three Kings holidays. Have the best of the New Year holidays!
See the DR1 Forum at https://www.dr1.com
See DR1 Calendar at https://www.dr1.com/calendar
DR assumes its UN Security Council seat on 1 January
The Dominican Republic assumes starting 1 January 2019, together with Germany, Belgium, South Africa and Indonesia, its two-year term as a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. The council is the only United Nations body that can make legally binding decisions and has the power to impose sanctions and authorize the use of force.
The Dominican Republic will be represented by newly-appointed ambassador Jose Singer. The Ministry of Foreign Relations reported that recently, Dominican ambassador to the United Nations, Frank Cortorreal, met with secretary general of the UN Antonio Guterres to present the Dominican Republic work program.
The sub-division of Santiago is a hot issue at year’s end
Those who had hopes President Danilo Medina would veto the bill that divides the city of Santiago could be soon disappointed. As of 26 December 2018, with the 10-day deadline looming for the bill that passed on 19 December, this had not happened. It is likely the end of year date was chosen so as to take advantage that people were more into partying than serious issues. The Constitution says if the bill is not observed or signed into law, it will become law just with the publishing by the Chamber of Deputies instead of the Presidency.
The bill has already met with the opposition of the top echelons of the business community. The Archbishop of Santiago, Monsignor Freddy de Jesús Bretón Martínez expressed his opposition saying that the split would bring chaos and anarchy to the modern city that is organized because of the joint efforts of social, business and city authorities.
Yet a minority is jumping with joy over the legislative approval of the separation of “West Santiago” from Santiago de los Caballeros, there are other sectors that see the division of the nation’s second largest city as a disaster-in-waiting. Some of the local teachers and so-called “popular leaders” held a press conference to announce that several civic sectors were overjoyed by the news of the congressional approval of the plan to divide the city. They said that the measure that separates Cienfuegos, El Ingenio and some 80 smaller communities from Santiago de los Caballeros was the result of 10 years of lobbying.
Nevertheless, in a meeting with Santiago Mayor Abel Martinez, other leaders, business and industrial community leaders told the mayor they totally reject the move to divide the city. The head of the Santiago Strategic Development Council, Juan Carlos Ortiz, called instead for all to work for common goals. The head of the Chamber of Commerce noted that cities in other countries that underwent sub-divisions are now reverting to their former status.
While there are obvious political maneuverings involved in creating a new municipal district, there are other, more important economic issues to consider. As reported in the El Caribe, the city of Santiago de los Caballeros could lose as much as 30% of its budget if the President signs off on this legislation. This is due to the fact that the area that would become the new municipality comprises about 33% of the population of Santiago, and according to the Municipal Law176-07 on cities and municipal districts, each district has to have a director and three councilmembers. The proposed West Santiago, with a population of over 200,000 would have an even greater number of council members than the city of Santiago.
The position of the Santiago Development Council is that the division would not solve problems but would create a great number of new problems: access to the municipal garbage site in Rafey; access to the Santiago Municipal Cemetery at El Ingenio and the water supply for the area would fall under the new authorities of Santiago West.
If the President does not veto the legislative bill that splits Santiago into two, the city government of Abel Martinez will lose an important revenue source, the Rafey garbage treatment center and the municipal El Ingenio cemetery. There is speculation a legal battle over the rights to these areas and services could be forthcoming. An estimated 33% of the 700,000 inhabitants of the city of Santiago would now fall under the to-be-created city government of Santiago West.
Several of those in opposition to the measure foresee legal battles looming on the horizon. According to Edwin Espinal Hernandez, Article 193 of the Constitution calls for territorial organization that leads to development and stability. Espinal notes that “everything points to the fact that rational decision making, in all aspects, was absent with the creation of Santiago West.”
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...oeste-genera-opiniones-encontradas-DO11685350
https://elcaribe.com.do/2018/12/22/...este-le-tumbaria-30-al-presupuesto-municipal/
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...este-le-tumbaria-30-al-presupuesto-municipal/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...tiempo-promulgar-la-ley-que-divide-a-santiago
https://elsoldelasamericas.com/diversas-personalidades-rechazan-division-municipio-de-santiago/
http://www.lainformacion.com.do/not...portara-al-desarrollo-equilibrado-de-santiago
Intrant is judicially handcuffed until ruling is passed
The National Institute of Ground Transportation (Intrant) has no judicial standing to eliminate the chaos in the nation’s traffic systems, nor is it able to act against drivers wo are careless or reckless, because the government has not passed the obligatory regulations for the application of Law 63-17, say legislators Henry Meran, president of the commission of justice of the Chamber of Deputies, and Euclides Sanchez and Ricardo Contreras, of the public works commissions of the Senate and Chamber of Deputies.
They highlight that a year and 10 months after the legislation was signed and enacted, Intrant cannot take the sweeping actions required to reduce the traffic-related pandemonium that exists on the major streets and avenues of its principal cities.
They expressed their regret that Intrant itself is violating Art 336 of Laws 63-17. The article says that in coordination with the Ministry of Public Administration the Intrant should submit regulations to the Executive Branch within six months of the legislative approval of the law. This has not happened.
In a single paragraph, the legislation says that in order for the Traffic and Ground Transportation Safety Agency (Digisett) to function properly, the regulations have to be drafted by the Ministry of the Interior and Police in coordination with Intrant.
This has yet to be accomplished. There was hope that the Intrant would be able to put a stop to illegal stops of the conchos and buses, reduce accidents, even possibly eliminate, but at the least reduce, the huge traffic jams, and remove the hundreds of ramshackle vehicles that circulate in the major streets and avenues from circulation.
The legislators say that Intrant is afraid to act forcefully against any of the transportation “syndicates” for fear that their measures would be successfully challenged in court, given the back of the legislation to support the actions. Some legislators said that it is regrettable that these regulations have not been drafted and applied. Euclides Gutierrez told reporters “the Law 63-17 is very good, and if it is applied will provide a legal and operational framework to eliminate the problems of chaos and the traffic accidents.”
https://elnacional.com.do/intrant-sin-fuerza-juridica-para-poner-fin-caos-en-transito/
Traffic jams are the order of the day in Greater Santo Domingo
Traffic jams are reaching historic and unbearable levels, as students and employees suffer through hour long commutes that should only take 15 minutes – and these delays are often during “off peak hours,” a report in Diario Libre explains. Statistics from the Tax Agency (DGII) show that in 2017 approximately 41% of all of the vehicles registered in the country are circulating in Greater Santo Domingo. Santiago, the nation’s second largest city, has but 8.5% of the national total of vehicles.
Experts say that the high concentration of motor vehicles, in combination of the lack of prudence of many concho (multi-fare sharing taxis) drivers who pick up and drop off passengers at any place and at any time, lead to impossible traffic snarls and delays.
Among the dangerous habits are passengers who want to be dropped off at the beginning of an overpass to not walk too far. Then there is the dangerous habit of using two and even three lanes to make a left turn. There is also the habit of cutting across lanes to get on an overpass. And most of this goes on under the noses of traffic cops who just shrug their shoulders and say “So what, man?”
This chaotic situation has motivated officials and the general public alike to take action against the chaos in our city streets. One such proposal would require all schools, public and private, to provide for transportation for their students. This is especially aimed at the private schools where parents regularly take their kids to school and then these same parents double or triple-park as they wait for their children in front of the schools in the afternoon, creating many of the traffic tie-ups seen throughout the city.
Another proposal is to divide working hours into two shifts: One would start at 7am, and end at 2pm and the second would start at 2pm and end at 9pm.
For Oneximo Gonzalez, an expert in traffic and mobility, the traffic situation in Greater Santo Domingo is the result of the lack of an integrated public transportation system. He said that it would take determination and “political courage” to solve the problem in the short term, from three to five years.” Until this happens, the people keep finding ways to get around the tie-ups.
The Diario Libre newspaper did a survey in social media in order to find out how their readers worked around the loss of time, money and patience. This revealed that the Santo Domingo Metro, now with two lines running, frees up space on the surface and operates from 6am until 10:30pm and carries nearly 300,000 people a day to places in north, east and Greater Santo Domingo. The people surveyed said that the savings in time and money is evident. Riders of the Metro move at high speed under city streets and save between RD$5.00 and RD$30.00 per ride. However not all is not rosy in the Metro either. There are numerous complaints regarding crowding at peak hours at key Metro stops and passengers are noting the lack of upkeep on elevators and escalators. Also, heavy rains have caused the Office for the Reorganization of Transportation (OPRET) to shut down the system on occasion.
To many, the new cable car over the river that serves four stations over 5 kilometers in Gualey, Tres Brazos Sabana Perdida and Charles DeGaulle Avenue and environs is a blessing.
Ride-sharing is also something that is generally done within a family or a neighborhood if the neighbors work near each other. It has become monetized through social media as in South America and the United States. In the DR, this might become an issue with the high levels of criminal activity.
The survey also showed that experienced taxi drivers find short cuts for many destinations within the city. There are also persons who use apps that reveal traffic tie-ups and alternate routes. Much of this information is broadcast over the radio on the more popular stations. Bicycles are an alternative for moderate distance and are becoming more evident, according to the survey.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...n-santo-domingo-conoce-la-solucion-PA11669611
For goodness sakes drive carefully
The Center for Emergency Operations reported 10 persons dead in violent incidents and over 200 injjured over the Christmas holiday. Presidency Minister Gustavo Montalvo said the 911 Emergency System attended to 1,087 emergency cases and 196 road assistance cases on the peak days of 24 and 25 December 2018.
But the focus is on prevention, especially when driving in these days when there is no restriction on alcohol sales.
With more than 1,000 accidents being attended to in just one public hospital in Santo Domingo, the month of December has shown an alarming propensity for the public to disregard highway safety and common sense. The director of the Public Trauma Hospital Dario Contreras is calling for a ban or strict limitations on motorcycles over the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. The Minister of Public Health was one of the first to voice this possible solution to the traffic dangers on the nation’s roads.
Of the 1,190 accident victims treated at the Dario Contreras, 735 were either the driver or a passenger on motorcycles, some 66.7%. Dr. Jose Aponte said that 49% of the yearly expenditures at the hospital involve treating accident victims, the majority of whom need intensive care that costs RD$50,000 a day. Fractures can cost RD$70,000 for three months of rehab work.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...pacientes-atendidos-por-accidentes-FP11693798
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...idos-durante-las-fiestas-navidenas-FH11707839
http://coe.gob.do/
Faride Raful: “The money, are the government officers stealing it?”
Chamber of Deputies legislator Faride Raful questioned that despite record tax collections, the Medina administration continues to borrow heavily. The PLD-majority Chamber of Deputies approved an amendment that added another RD$190 billion to the 2019 National Budget to cover expenditures. She said the approval of the RD$190 billion was illegal, as reported in Diario Libre. She observed that last year the Medina administration pushed through congress a bill that added RD$175 billion in financing and this had been discussed by the Permanent Hacienda Commission of the Chamber of Deputies, but this year the RD$190 billion loan was fast-tracked and not sent to commission.
The PRM opposition party legislator, Faride Raful, nevertheless, questioned the use the government is giving to public revenues by central government officers given the need for heavy additional financing.
“We are people rich who cannot provide evidence of any formal work activity that account for their eyebrow raising wealth, and for this there is no penalty in this country,” she criticized.
The bill passed with 117 votes in favor and 42 opposed in its second reading. Raful said that the Chamber of Deputies serves “as toilet paper” for President Danilo Medina and the legislators receive orders from the President.
Radhames Camacho, a strong supporter of President Medina who is the president of the Chamber of Deputies replied to the accusation: "We do not have individual rights here because the Constitution does not give us a chance to play with the social responsibility of a leader who assumes a role in the government," he said, following Deputy Raful's turn.
Agreement on poor handling of cases of human rabies
Dr. Clemente Terrero, the deputy director of the Robert Reid Cabral Children’s Hospital, told the Diario Libre that a five-year old boy who had been hospitalized with the clinical symptoms of human rabies had not been administered the anti-rabies vaccine within the timeframe established in the protocols for these cases. This was in the Elio Fiallo Hospital in Pedernales. This apparent neglect is more bewildering given two recent fatalities from this disease in recent weeks being reported in that region.
Terrero said in a telephone interview that “in this case the child was not vaccinated when he was taken to the hospital, but ten days later they began the vaccination process, but by then it was too late.” Dr. Terrero said: “We have a serious situation in the country. An outbreak of canine rabies and now we can say that we have human rabies, because there have been three cases in Pedernales. There have been four deaths attributed to the disease this year, which if it shows clinical symptoms is nearly impossible to cure. The doctors said that the chances of curing it are minimal.
Public Health Minister Rafael Sanchez Cardenas confirmed to reporters that the failure to follow protocols at the Elio Fiallo Hospital in Pedernales was a major factor in the two fatalities registered, so far, and he called upon the National Health Service (SNS) to investigate and apply sanctions against those that acted with negligence in these cases. The minister also expressed regret that the child who is currently being treated at the Robert Reid Cabral Hospital has to be officially diagnosed at the CDC in Atlanta, Georgia, because the local rabies center is undergoing a major remodeling.
Dr. Sanchez Cardenas said that there is a team of specialists in Pedernales going house to house to investigate if other persons have been bitten by dogs of other animals. The Ministry is also using social media to inform the public regarding of the dangers and symptoms of human and canine rabies. The Ministry has an on-going campaign to vaccinate all the dogs and cats in the city of Pedernales as well as in the countryside.
Dr. Chanel Rosa Chupany, director of the SNS, said that persons bitten by an animal need to take several doses of anti-rabies vaccine in the first 28 days, undergo lab tests and the animal needs to be taken under surveillance. He urged that all cases be immediately reported to the Direcciones Provinciales de Salud (DPS), the regional health agencies.
He explained that the anti-rabies center was closed following a recommendation from the Panamerican Health Organization that said that vaccines should be available at all health centers and not in a single specialized center.
The former president of the Dominican Medical Guild (CMD) observed that while the Centro Antirrabico operated with limitations tests to determine rabies were made there. Now the samples have to be sent to the Atlanta-based CDC labs in the United States. He said this increases the vulnerability to the mortal illness. Rabies cannot be treated in humans, only in the dogs.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...hay-un-grave-brote-de-rabia-canina-HB11679961
https://elnacional.com.do/sp-admite-fallas-en-casos-rabia/
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...iento-de-protocolos-en-casos-de-rabia-humana/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...600-y-700-personas-son-agredidas-por-animales
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...da-madre-de-nino-con-rabia-no-fuera-orientada
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...onal-y-recursos-a-mano-contra-el-virus-canino
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2018/12...iento-de-protocolos-en-casos-de-rabia-humana/
Home for the holidays? Not really
A total of just over 2,000 Dominicans have been deported and returned to the Dominican Republic by some 16 nations or territories around the world so far in 2018. These deportees arrived at the Las Americas International Airport (SDQ) in Santo Domingo from the United States, Puerto Rico, Panama, Spain, France, Mexico, Venezuela, Italy, Aruba, Curacao, Germany and the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg). Just last week some 80 young Dominicans arrived from the United States after having served their jail time. Some 1,957 of the deportees were male and 44 were female. The men, between the ages of 25 and 67 had served prison sentences of as much as 15 years. The women were between 28 and 48 years old.
The list of criminal activities includes narcotics, counterfeiting, robbery, kidnapping, domestic violence, illegal immigration status, and other offenses that resulted in incarceration. After the deportees are received at the airport, they are taken to the Shelter for Repatriated and Arrested Persons in Haina, where they are processed, and released, unless they have issues pending with Dominican justice, in which case they are sent to the proper jurisdiction for further processing and trial. An average of 167 persons per month are deported back to the DR from the United States.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2018/12/20/...minicanos-han-llegado-deportados-por-el-aila/
Bail and preventive custody for suspects of irregular takeoff from Samana airport
Pilot Luis M. Pimentel Santos was allowed to post a RD$2 million bail in the case against him for illegal takeoff of Piper PA-23, Dominican registration HI896, at the Arroyo Barril International Airport in Samana. He was also legally banned from leaving the country and ordered to be available while the case is heard by the judiciary. Two others, military officers Alfredo de la Paz Rubí and Angel Benavides Fermín are accused in the case and were also allowed to post the same bail.
Five others received tougher preventive measures as their case is heard. An employee of the Avtur fuel distributor, a mechanic, an Aerodom airport employee, and Army sergeant Andy Lebron Martinez, who was the supervisor at the airport, received sentences of six months preventive custody.
The authorities also announced the arrest of Colombian pilot Orlando Morales Gaitan on Saturday, 22 December, when he attempted to travel to Bogota, Colombia on a Copa Airlines flight via Panama.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...ntia-economica-a-capitan-quiso-robar-avioneta
Police tie son to murder of loan-sharking mom
The National Police in the Central Cibao Command have announced that the son of slain loan shark Gertrudis Mercedes Hernandes Diaz (aka “Chichi”), Oscar Antonio Diaz Hernández (aka Oscalito) was the mastermind of a brutal crime last January 2018 in Sabana Iglesia. According to the police, Oscalito hired three men to murder his mother and was identified by one of these men as the mastermind behind the crime. According to the police report, the evidence includes fingerprints and other indications of guilt. The report states that the son was after his mother’s money. All four of the alleged criminals have been sent to the courts for trial.
https://elnacional.com.do/policia-vincula-hijo-en-muerte-de-mujer-prestamista-el-niega-imputacion/
Orphanage assaulted, Haiti headed towards the abyss
The political, social, environmental and economic chaos in Haiti continues to be probably the Dominican Republic’s greatest challenge. Instead of improving, nevertheless, over the years the situation in the neighboring country seems to be worsening as evidenced by a recent violent assault on an orphanage.
The Vatican News reported a brutal attack by armed men on the Kay pè Giuss orphanage manned by Italian nuns in the slum area of Waf Jeremie, Haiti. Sister Marcella Catozza told the Vatican News that the emergency situation in Haiti is “perennial.” The orphanage houses 146 children, including 30 that are seriously disabled, and receives around 400 day children. The shelter was founded after the 2010 earthquake.
During the assault, the armed bandits stole the power generator, sanitary material and the mattresses and all else they could take. Sister Marcella Catozza says the country is going towards the abyss, and the citizens are increasing being exposed to violence. We are not building anything that can guarantee a different future: we work as if we were always in an emergency. "
“There is a lack resolve to change things,” said Sister Catozza. She has worked in Amazonia, Albania, Vietnam, but in the Caribbean country she finds almost insurmountable difficulties. The lack of interlocutors, for example, so much that they cannot call the police after the attacks, because "the police are afraid of bandits,” she explained. "There is no one to turn to, there is nothing objective: you change things in the running, every day, depending on the employee you find in the office. It's like always having to continuously start over and the state does not help you,” she told the Vatican News.
She explained that the program Doctors without Borders, for example, is leaving the country: they have already closed three hospitals because the state has imposed on exorbitant taxes on the facilities. Doctors Without Borders ran free hospitals: now people do not know where to go. “This is the drama of this country: there is no will to change things," she complained.
Joint efforts of the Dominican Republic and the European Union to establish a hospital in Haiti to reduce the demand of Haitians on the free public health system in the Dominican Republic has met with indifference on behalf of the Haitian authorities. The Dominican Republic shares more than 300 km border with Haiti.
https://www.vaticannews.va/it/mondo...lenza-attacchi-orfanotrofio-suor-catozza.html
Who will win the baseball championship?
Follow the four Dominican baseball teams as they match off at the stadiums in Santo Domingo, San Pedro de Macoris and La Romana. Games continue on Thursday, 27, Friday, 28 and Saturday, 29 December. The round robin is off for the New Year celebrations. Matches resume again on Wednesday, 2 January through 14 January 2019.
The semifinal round is formatted as “all against all,” in which the four teams play a total of 18 games, six against each of the rivals. The two teams with the best record during the round robin face off in the finals. If before the 18 games are completed two teams classify, the round would end at that moment and 48 hours later the final series the tournament would begin.
The winner of the Dominican Professional Baseball Winter Championship then goes on to battle the best teams from Venezuela, Mexico, Cuba and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Series scheduled to be played in Venezuela from 2 to 8 February 2019.
http://www.lidom.com/home/calendario/
Tribute to Juan Luis Guerra at Casa de Teatro
If you are a fan of the music of Dominican contemporary music legend, Juan Luis Guerra, head out to Casa de Teatro in the Colonial City to enjoy Grupo Los Frankos presentation of a tribute to Juan Luis Guerra on Friday, 28 December 2018. 10pm. Casa de Teatro at Arzobispo Meriño 110 in the Colonial City. Tickets at the Casa de Teatro box office: RD$800 cash only.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRDfBz1zJ1s
La Romana’s Chavon Amphitheater presents Nicky Jam and Afrojack
Dominican-Puerto Rican reggaeton singer, Nicky Jam, known for his hits "Travesuras", "Te Busco" (with Cosculluela), "El Perdón", "Hasta el Amanecer", and "El Amante" and his “Jaleo” album with DJ Steve Aoki, is performing at the 5,000-seat La Romana Amphitheater. He will share the stage on the evening of Saturday, 29 December 2018 with Dutch music producer, DJ Afrojack. DJ Afrojack is best known for his songs “Dirty Sexy Money”, “Helium”, “Ten Feet Tall” and “New Memories. ”
Tickets are for sale online at Uepa Tickets, CCN Servicios in Supermercados Nacional, Jumbo) and the owners office at Casa de Campo in La Romana.
Celebrate the New Year dancing merengue at the Jaragua Renaissance
The Jaragua Renaissance Hotel presents “Ultra SuperMegaBaile” with merengue superstars Fernando Villalona, Toño Rosario and Rubby Pérez on Monday, 31 December 2018. Also Eddy Herrera, Miriam Cruz, David Kada, Wilfrido Vargas, Krisspy, Kinito Méndez, Mozart La Para. 9pm. Tickets are for sale online at Ticket Express and at the Jaragua box office.
New Year party at Casa de Teatro
Come celebrate the New Year as of 10pm on Monday, 31 December 2018 with the eclectic group of family and friends at Casa de Teatro in the Colonial City. Live music from 10pm at the Café Teatro.
Check out DR1 Calendar for more events and details.
https://www.dr1.com/calendar
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