DR backs Guaidó in Venezuela at the OAS
Council of the Socialist International to meet in Santo Domingo
CDEEE to switch to natural gas on some generators
Tavera Dam at critical level with no rain in sight
Study shows increase in remittances, but decrease in individual amounts
Kitten rescued at Las Americas Expressway tunnel
Traffic fatalities climbing fast
An RD$4.0 billion tax evasion discovered by DGII
Machete presented forged Venezuelan birth certificate to get his Dominican IDs
Independence justice unlikely until composition of National Council of Magistracy is changed
Airplane that crashed in Yuna was homemade
Explosion in larimar mine injures four
Bark beetle threatens national forests in Moncion, San Jose de Las Matas and Santiago Rodriguez
Bardon triumphs with novel on Jewish immigration in Dominican Republic
Rains forecast
San Pedro de Macoris celebrates Estrellas’ winning baseball championship
Where will the Caribbean Series be held?
DR backs Guaidó in Venezuela at the OAS
The Dominican Republic cast its vote to back the interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó Marquez as the official representative of Venezuela before the Organization of American States (OAS). During an extraordinary session of the OAS, 16 of the 24 members voted to reject the legitimacy of the second term of Nicolas Maduro based on what has been described as sham election in May of 2018.
Together with the Dominican Republic, countries such as the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Bahamas, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Costa Rica, Canada and Haiti voted to recognize Guaidó as the legitimate leader amid the chaos in Venezuela. These nations called upon the Armed Forces of Venezuela to guarantee the safety of Guaidó Marquez and the other members of the National Assembly, where the majority has opposed the Maduro government. The OAS also called upon its members as well as the Venezuelan Armed Forces to safeguard all of the diplomatic missions in Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the United Nations is divided on what position to take. Two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council continue to back Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...an-guaido-como-presidente-interino-AI11912992
Council of the Socialist International to meet in Santo Domingo
President Danilo Medina will be present for the opening of the meeting of the Council of the Socialist International in Santo Domingo in Santo Domingo on Monday, 28 January 2019. The agenda establishes that the visiting delegations will focus on multilateralism to ensure, the strengthening of democracy, but there are expectations the sociopolitical situation in Venezuela will be included in the talks. Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas is the world vice president of the SI and president for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Delegations from more than a hundred political parties affiliated to the Socialist International (IS) movement will be participating in the event at the convention center of the Ministry of Foreign Relations.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to participate in the meetings, arriving on Tuesday, 29 January 2019. As reported, Sanchez will be received by President Medina with whom he will sign collaboration agreements and will then leave on the next day for a two-day visit in Mexico.
The Council of the Socialist International intends to discuss three main themes --promoting multilateralism to ensure peace and sustainable development, to fight poverty, achieve greater equality and a world with more solidarity. Also, "Defending rights and freedoms against intolerance, discrimination, xenophobia and populism" and "Protecting our democracies from the new threats, the deliberate disparagement of democratic institutions and the press, 'fake news', cyber attacks and invasive technology ".
The Socialist International Party groups political parties from around the world and this is the second time that the Dominican Republic hosts the meeting of the World Council of the body, after the 2009.
The acting president of the PRD and member of the body's ethics committee, Peggy Cabral, who is the Dominican Republic ambassador in Italy, said that although the debates will focus on the aforementioned issues, each region will be able to introduce those topics that it considers of interest. In that sense, he said that he does not rule out that the issue of the Venezuelan crisis should be included in the agenda.
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2019/01...ernacional-socialista-abre-hoy-reunion-en-rd/
CDEEE to switch to natural gas on some generators
The vice-president of the Dominican Public Electricity Corporation (CDEEE), Ruben Jimenez Bichara, told reporters late last week that they were contemplating switching some 500 MW of energy production to natural gas and said that the government was preparing the international tender for the conversion. He said that the conversion of 500-600 megawatts (MW) of cleaner energy would be implemented in parallel to the government’s work on renewable energy. The tender would be announced shortly. He said that the CDEEE has been contemplating this reconversion to natural gas for over ten years, and this is the time to get it started.
Jimenez Bichara said that this move was to address the predicted higher energy demand in the years following the integration of the Punta Catalina coal-fired generator into the grid. It is estimated that Punta Catalina will contribute some 720 MW of coal-fired energy to the national grid.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/panorama/dinero/transformaran-mas-de-500-mws-gas-natural/
Tavera Dam at critical level with no rain in sight
Authorities of the Santiago Water and Sewer Corporation (CORAASAN) reported very late last week that the water level at the Tavera Dam is currently at a critically low level. The Coraasan says that they need 124 million gallons per day to satisfy the demand, but they only have 108 million available.
The former president of the North Region of CODIA, the College of Engineers, Architects, and Surveyors, warned that Santiago and perhaps the entire nation is possibly facing a period of crisis due to repeating periods of drought, that many experts attribute to climate change. Erving Vargas said that it is not only the farmers and livestock producers who will continue to feel the effects of the drought, but ordinary citizens will also suffer due to the lack of water. “We are being forced to make rational use of water,” he said. He noted that according to a study by the Inter-American Development Bank, Santiago is facing several years of dry weather and he urged Coraasan to institute and educational program to heighten public awareness.
Intense rains are forecast for this week and could bring some needed waters to relieve the present drought.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...n-estado-delicado-advierten-sequia-EI11911894
Study shows increase in remittances, but decrease in individual amounts
A recent analysis carried out by the Center for Economic Studies at the Pontifical Catholic University Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) showed a growth over the last nine years of remittances sent by expatriate Dominicans back to the country. Remittances from the United States are the biggest part of the total, but are not the largest in average remittance.
In 2017, the flow of currency from remittances totaled US$5.9 billion, with a year to year increase of 12.4% over 2016. The report says that although the final numbers from November and December are not in for 2018, it is expected that the growth trend will continue. According to the preliminary results for the Dominican economy from January-December 2018, it is estimated that the country will end up receiving funds from remittances amounting to US$6.52 billion, a very notable 10.4% increase (US$612.8 million over 2017). In October the remittances had totaled US$5.29 billion.
Regarding the origin of the funds, the United States continued to be the largest source as well as having the greatest number of transactions. Some 77.4% of everything received between January and October has come from the US. And 85% of all remittance transactions took place in the US.
Nonetheless, the US occupies the sixth position with regard to the average remittance. It is Switzerland, which is not listed among the major sources, which leads the way on average remittance at US$349.20, followed by Spain at US$342.40 and France at US$340.70.
The study also revealed that the country’s two major urban areas, the National District and Santiago are the major recipients of remittances with the National District receiving nearly a third of all of that money, 31.8%, and Santiago 14.9%. Fully three-quarters of the money comes through remittance companies (76.1%) and 23.9% comes through financial institutions.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economi...-cantidad-total-pero-no-individual-KJ11907863
Kitten rescued at Las Americas Expressway tunnel
A video shows Digesett traffic agents rescuing a baby cat from inside the tunnel of the Las Americas Expressway. The video shows the two agents capturing the scared and apparently lost kitten. Had the agents not rescued the kitten, the likelihood was that it would have been killed by the one of the thousands of vehicles that uses the tunnel.
MAPE, an organization that cares for stray pets, later took the kitten to a vet. The video apparently was shared online by a returning expat who expressed pride in seeing the action of the traffic agents.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...esett-rescatan-gato-en-autopista-las-americas
Traffic fatalities climbing fast
In less than 72 hours, 10 persons lost their lives on just the highways and roads of the Cibao Valley and its environs. In Santiago a “concho” of the F route crashed with another, private vehicle, resulting in the deaths of two persons at the scene and the later passing of a third person in a clinic. The cause? The concho driver ran a red light.
Two motorcyclists were killed by motorists. One, near the Hermanos Patino Bridge n Santiago has yet to be identified.
The other, a Haitian named Luisito Floido was killed in Montecristi. In Puerto Plata.
Four traffic accidents left a total of three persons dead and at least eight injured. The accidents occurred in Villa Isabela , Sosua and Cabarete.
On the highway between Nagua and Cabrera, in Maria Trinidad Sanchez province, two nursing students died when they were hit by a car in the community of Puerto Rico a Pie. A gruesome three days on our nation’s roads.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/destacado/accidentes-dejan-10-muertes-en-72-horas-en-el-cibao/
An RD$4.0 billion tax evasion discovered by DGII
The District Attorney for the National District carried out several raids on businesses suspect to be in violation of the Tax Code and tax evasion for over RD$4 billion. The interventions were carried out against the Tremols Group and its affiliated companies and shareholders.
Some 18 prosecutors supported by investigators and technical personnel from the Tax Agency (DGII) as well as member of the National Police Criminal Intelligence Department (DICRIM) took part in the operation.
Rosalba Ramos, the District Attorney for the National District, told reporters that the operation resulted in the arrest of several persons who had been cheating the DGII for several years and would be indicted within hours of their arrest.
Apparently, the scheme involved creating fictitious companies that were used to make huge purchases that would then be deducted from their legitimate tax bill.
When investigators found out that the “companies” supposedly supplying these million peso orders were practically non-existent, they knew there was a big problem. Some of the companies that did exist, and were legitimate enterprises, said that they had no knowledge that the Tremols Group was using their Tax Code Numbers for faking invoices for huge sums of money.
Another part of the scam was related to companies within the Tremols Group that ran distilleries (Licores Royal and Bodegas de Iberia) and avoided payment of the Selective Consumer Tax that is supposed to be paid the moment the product is manufactured.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/destacado/detectan-evasion-fiscal-por-4-mil-millones-de-pesos/
Machete presented forged Venezuelan birth certificate to get his Dominican IDs
The Central Electoral Board (JCE) commission in charge of investigating how now deported Colombian capo Jimenez Monsalve (Machete) obtained Dominican identification papers – ID (cédula), driver’s license, passport, arms holding permission – revealed that the trail for the issuing of documents started with the presentation of a forged Venezuelan birth certificate that established that Machete was the son of a Dominican. Offspring of Dominicans have the right to expedited Dominican citizenship.
The ID was first issued in the Santo Domingo Este civil registry office. An audit carried out by the JCE established there were several irregularities in the procedure followed. The director of the office, Sandra del Carmen Francisco Paniagua. has been suspended without pay for a month, and it is recommended that the three other officers Alba Elizabeth Vásquez Curiel, Zewxis Oxiades Ledesma Gonell and Yaniris Yohanni Pérez de Óleo be fired as the investigations continue. Vasquez Curiel is attributed with entering into the system the details of the forged Venezuelan birth certificate. Nevertheless, checks and controls were never applied to verify the veracity of the documents.
The Attorney General Office appointed a commission to follow through with the investigations. Members of the commission are: Regis Victorio Reyes, Mercedes Santana Rodríguez, Jennifer Scartlet Acevedo.
The investigations so far have revealed that the trail of documents began with a forged Venezuelan birth certificate that established that Machete was a son of a Dominican woman. The forged birth certificate gave Julian Alberto Jimenez Monsalve the name of David José Mateo, son of 36-year old Dolores Mateo, who it describes as a native of the municipality of Neyba, Dominican Republic, single and with housekeeper as occupation. The birth certificate establishes that the child was declared by the 36-year old Dolores Mateo on 7 February 1994 whereby she stated that her son had been born on 14 October 1989 at the Raul Leoni hospital in San Felix, Venezuela. The registration would have been made at the civil registry of El Callao, Estado Bolivar in Venezuela. The name of the father is not established in the birth certificate, just that of the mother and the names of supposed two witnesses.
Machete was arrested and deported to Colombia on Friday, 18 January 2019, in an operation with the participation of Colombian, Interpol and Dominican authorities. It is known he had been living in Punta Cana for about 10 years passing himself off as a wealthy Venezuelan rancher.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...os-en-oficialia-sde-cancelaran-a-responsables
https://elnacional.com.do/jce-analiza-sanciones-por-entrega-de-cedula-a-machete/
https://elnacional.com.do/machete-o...tacion-falsa-en-sde-someteran-a-involucrados/
https://jce.gob.do/Noticias/comisio...ete-fue-obtenida-mediante-documentacion-falsa
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-figura-en-el-acta-falsa-como-nativa-de-neyba
Independence justice unlikely until composition of National Council of Magistracy is changed
The predominance of the Executive Power in a country where the ruling party practically controls the three branches of government, could lead to the fossilization of the independence of the Judiciary, warned lawyer Felix Olivares when participating in the Political Dimension of an Independent Judicial Power organized by the Action for Justice and Security Coalition.
Olivares highlighted that the budget of the judiciary is half of what it was in 2000 making it more dependent on the Executive Branch. He said the way the National Council of the Magistracy (CNM) is designed gives a predominance of power to the Executive Branch, making it very difficult for those who aspire to rise in the justice system to make decisions that go against the political power.
In contrast, sociologist Wilfredo Lozano warned of the need for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) to exert its influence on the judiciary, due to the institutional weakening to which it has been subjected due to the conflict between its two main leaders. In his participation in the forum, Lozano says that the loser in the conflict needs to pretend to retreat in order to negotiate a decorous exit.
Others participating in the panel were Dr. Servio Tulio Castaños of Finjus, and Lic. Michel Camacho.
http://hoy.com.do/en-foro-ven-necesario-cambiar-composicion-cnm/
Airplane that crashed in Yuna was homemade
The small aircraft that crashed last week in the municipality of San Rafael de Yuna, in the province of La Altagracia, was a homemade project. Authorities say this is apparently a new step in the efforts of drug traffickers to move their cargoes in what are literally “throw-away” aircraft.
Informants within the government told reporters that “usually the traffickers change the tail numbers of the aircraft, or simply file for their retirement, but the use of “home-built” airplanes for drug trafficking marks a first for the DR. This particular aircraft, which carried sophisticated navigation equipment, tested positive for cocaine. With only two seats and a large cargo bay, the aircraft was heard by residents, but its landing went undetected in a heavy bush area later that evening. According to the IDAC, the Dominican Civil Aviation Institute, there were no reports by any control towers nor from the Air Traffic Control Center regarding this aircraft.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...-aeronaves-artesanales-para-trazas-NI11912807
Explosion in larimar mine injures four
In La Cienega, in Barahona province, at least four persons were injured when a explosion occurred in a rustic larimar mine located in Bahoruco. The injured were taken to Jaime Mota Regional University Hospital in Barahona.
Elias Cuevas Rubio, Andres Rubio Lopez, Francisco (no last name) and Luis Rubio Lopez were the victims of the explosion, suffering first and second-degree burns. The cause of the explosion was attributed to a buildup of an unidentified gas in different holes together with a deficient electricity system in the mine, which is located in Las Filipinas in Bahoruco.
Hundreds of families work in these rustic mining operations which are virtually unsupervised by the Ministry of Energy and Mines.
https://elnacional.com.do/explosion-en-mina-larimar-deja-cuatro-heridos-en-barahona/
Bark beetle threatens national forests in Moncion, San Jose de Las Matas and Santiago Rodriguez
More than 10,000 tareas (6,290,000 m2) of the nation’s National Forests are under attack by a well-known enemy: the bark beetle commonly known as the six-spined engraver beetle (Ips calligraphus).
The Ministry of the Environment has created a task force to deal with the problem. Manuel Serrano, the deputy minister for Forest Resources, told reporters that the task force will have to come up with the necessary procedures to control the outbreak. There are no known pesticides that will kill the beetle that nests inside the bark of the trees, breeding and feeding on the sap. The trees end up being commercially useless.
Serrano called upon residents of the areas of San Jose de las Matas, Moncion and Santiago Rodriguez to plant trees when the rains come, saying that establishing pest-free stocks is a long-term strategy to combat the beetle.
In the short term, newly cut wood, shavings and even sawdust should be removed as quickly as possible, since the smell of newly cut pine serves as an attraction for the beetle. According to the literature, the plague can be eradicated by piping sounds of competing beetle species into the area of infestation. Apparently this crazes the engraver beetle and they devour each other. However, prevention methods and replanting of healthy forests are more economical in the short and long term.
http://eldia.com.do/insecto-ataca-miles-de-tareas-de-pino-en-el-cibao/
Bardon triumphs with novel on Jewish immigration in Dominican Republic
French author Catherine Bardon has received praise for her first novel “Les déracinés”(The Uprooted), which is based on the real-life story of the Second World War as related to a Jewish couple that relocated to Sosua, Puerto Plata, after fleeing from Nazi persecution.
The writer told reporters that her work was “a gift” which opened the doors to her literary recognition. She heard the story of the struggles of Wilhelm and Almah first hand over thirty years ago, during her first visit to the Dominican Republic when she met them. She said: “Wilhelm told me that he arrived when he was 20 and that “I am German and Jewish, and this is my story.” That is how she came to learn how the couple fled from Nazism and arrived in the Dominican Republic, then ruled by the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina who maintained the peace through use of force.
It took many years for Bardon to marshal the time and effort needed to bring the novel to life. After the passing of Wilhelm, she said she knew the story had to be told.
Consulting documents in the Dominican National Archives as well as in Europe, she told the story about the Jewish migration to the Dominican Republic. She says that this is a part of history that is unknown or at least ignored in Europe and that is perhaps why she has garnered so many honors: the Draveil Prize, the Mennecy Prize for first novels and a place on the French book club, Loisirs’, reading list.
Now well versed in Dominican history and geography, she has also published a book of photographs of the country: Tierra mestizada.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...una-novela-sobre-emigrantes-judios-DI11910113
Rains forecast
The National Metereological Office, Onamet forecast that a frontal weather system moving from Cuba to the Dominican Republic will bring intense rains and chilly weathers for the central mountain range areas, southwest, northeast, southeast, including Greater Santo Domingo as it makes its way to the east. Low temperatures in the morning of around 18-20°C with noontime highs of 28-31ºC are forecast for the capital city and Santiago.
Weather forecast for Punta Cana is warmer, with noontime highs of 28/31ºC but early morning temperatures of 22/24ºC.
http://onamet.gov.do/m/pdto/08w-wprono/01w-wpronostico-general.php
San Pedro de Macoris celebrates Estrellas’ winning baseball championship
El Nacional reported that a “green sea” engulfed the southeastern city of San Pedro de Macoris as thousands of fans took to the streets to celebrate during the parade of the team through the city on Saturday, 26 January 2019. The Estrellas won their first tournament in 51 years and they did so by winning the regular series, the round robin and the playoffs.
The celebration parade began at the Tetelo Vargas ball park and was lead by the leading players, including Jose Siri and Fernando Tatis Jr, and team manager Fernando Tatis and the persevering board of directors of the team.
The parade ended with a grand party with several popular artists at the Malecon of the city.
https://elnacional.com.do/un-mar-verde-recorre-san-pedro/
Where will the Caribbean Series be held?
Venezuela wants to host the Caribbean Series as scheduled from 2 to 8 February 2019. And Juan Puello Herrera, president of the Confederation, said over the weekend that Venezuela said it was ready to go ahead with the hosting. The president of the Barquisimeto team, the Cardenales, announced on Saturday, 26 January 2019, that they were ready to host the tournament, and are only awaiting the decision of the Confederation. He said that they are ready, and have over 4,000 tickets sold already. He doubted that any other nation could organize the tournament in such a short time.
The Confederation of Caribbean Baseball, nevertheless, is currently in permanent session to find another host for this year’s Caribbean World Series. According to Hector Cruz, of the Listin Diario, the decision as to where to hold the series is in “limbo.” A decision should be taken on Monday, 28 January 2019.
At least three countries have offered to host this year’s tournament between the champion teams from Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba: Colombia, the DR and Mexico.
For the Dominican Champions, the Estrellas Orientales, this will be the first time that they have been c hosen to represent the country in a Caribbean Series. The team has only won three championships. Back in 1954, when they won their first, the DR was not part of the series and in 1968, when they last won again, the series had been suspended since 1960 and was not to be renewed until 1970. For the Estrellas that are on a roll and have won the regular, round robin and playoffs in the 2018-2019 Dominican Professional Winter Baseball Championship, this would have been an opportunity to make history, by also winning the Caribbean Series.
http://eldia.com.do/sede-serie-del-caribe-continua-en-veremos/
https://listindiario.com/el-deporte/2019/01/27/551110/donde-sera-la-serie-del-caribe
Council of the Socialist International to meet in Santo Domingo
CDEEE to switch to natural gas on some generators
Tavera Dam at critical level with no rain in sight
Study shows increase in remittances, but decrease in individual amounts
Kitten rescued at Las Americas Expressway tunnel
Traffic fatalities climbing fast
An RD$4.0 billion tax evasion discovered by DGII
Machete presented forged Venezuelan birth certificate to get his Dominican IDs
Independence justice unlikely until composition of National Council of Magistracy is changed
Airplane that crashed in Yuna was homemade
Explosion in larimar mine injures four
Bark beetle threatens national forests in Moncion, San Jose de Las Matas and Santiago Rodriguez
Bardon triumphs with novel on Jewish immigration in Dominican Republic
Rains forecast
San Pedro de Macoris celebrates Estrellas’ winning baseball championship
Where will the Caribbean Series be held?
DR backs Guaidó in Venezuela at the OAS
The Dominican Republic cast its vote to back the interim president of Venezuela, Juan Guaidó Marquez as the official representative of Venezuela before the Organization of American States (OAS). During an extraordinary session of the OAS, 16 of the 24 members voted to reject the legitimacy of the second term of Nicolas Maduro based on what has been described as sham election in May of 2018.
Together with the Dominican Republic, countries such as the United States, Colombia, Brazil, Chile, Bahamas, Honduras, Guatemala, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Costa Rica, Canada and Haiti voted to recognize Guaidó as the legitimate leader amid the chaos in Venezuela. These nations called upon the Armed Forces of Venezuela to guarantee the safety of Guaidó Marquez and the other members of the National Assembly, where the majority has opposed the Maduro government. The OAS also called upon its members as well as the Venezuelan Armed Forces to safeguard all of the diplomatic missions in Venezuela.
Meanwhile, the United Nations is divided on what position to take. Two permanent members of the United Nations Security Council continue to back Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...an-guaido-como-presidente-interino-AI11912992
Council of the Socialist International to meet in Santo Domingo
President Danilo Medina will be present for the opening of the meeting of the Council of the Socialist International in Santo Domingo in Santo Domingo on Monday, 28 January 2019. The agenda establishes that the visiting delegations will focus on multilateralism to ensure, the strengthening of democracy, but there are expectations the sociopolitical situation in Venezuela will be included in the talks. Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas is the world vice president of the SI and president for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Delegations from more than a hundred political parties affiliated to the Socialist International (IS) movement will be participating in the event at the convention center of the Ministry of Foreign Relations.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is expected to participate in the meetings, arriving on Tuesday, 29 January 2019. As reported, Sanchez will be received by President Medina with whom he will sign collaboration agreements and will then leave on the next day for a two-day visit in Mexico.
The Council of the Socialist International intends to discuss three main themes --promoting multilateralism to ensure peace and sustainable development, to fight poverty, achieve greater equality and a world with more solidarity. Also, "Defending rights and freedoms against intolerance, discrimination, xenophobia and populism" and "Protecting our democracies from the new threats, the deliberate disparagement of democratic institutions and the press, 'fake news', cyber attacks and invasive technology ".
The Socialist International Party groups political parties from around the world and this is the second time that the Dominican Republic hosts the meeting of the World Council of the body, after the 2009.
The acting president of the PRD and member of the body's ethics committee, Peggy Cabral, who is the Dominican Republic ambassador in Italy, said that although the debates will focus on the aforementioned issues, each region will be able to introduce those topics that it considers of interest. In that sense, he said that he does not rule out that the issue of the Venezuelan crisis should be included in the agenda.
https://www.elcaribe.com.do/2019/01...ernacional-socialista-abre-hoy-reunion-en-rd/
CDEEE to switch to natural gas on some generators
The vice-president of the Dominican Public Electricity Corporation (CDEEE), Ruben Jimenez Bichara, told reporters late last week that they were contemplating switching some 500 MW of energy production to natural gas and said that the government was preparing the international tender for the conversion. He said that the conversion of 500-600 megawatts (MW) of cleaner energy would be implemented in parallel to the government’s work on renewable energy. The tender would be announced shortly. He said that the CDEEE has been contemplating this reconversion to natural gas for over ten years, and this is the time to get it started.
Jimenez Bichara said that this move was to address the predicted higher energy demand in the years following the integration of the Punta Catalina coal-fired generator into the grid. It is estimated that Punta Catalina will contribute some 720 MW of coal-fired energy to the national grid.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/panorama/dinero/transformaran-mas-de-500-mws-gas-natural/
Tavera Dam at critical level with no rain in sight
Authorities of the Santiago Water and Sewer Corporation (CORAASAN) reported very late last week that the water level at the Tavera Dam is currently at a critically low level. The Coraasan says that they need 124 million gallons per day to satisfy the demand, but they only have 108 million available.
The former president of the North Region of CODIA, the College of Engineers, Architects, and Surveyors, warned that Santiago and perhaps the entire nation is possibly facing a period of crisis due to repeating periods of drought, that many experts attribute to climate change. Erving Vargas said that it is not only the farmers and livestock producers who will continue to feel the effects of the drought, but ordinary citizens will also suffer due to the lack of water. “We are being forced to make rational use of water,” he said. He noted that according to a study by the Inter-American Development Bank, Santiago is facing several years of dry weather and he urged Coraasan to institute and educational program to heighten public awareness.
Intense rains are forecast for this week and could bring some needed waters to relieve the present drought.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...n-estado-delicado-advierten-sequia-EI11911894
Study shows increase in remittances, but decrease in individual amounts
A recent analysis carried out by the Center for Economic Studies at the Pontifical Catholic University Madre y Maestra (PUCMM) showed a growth over the last nine years of remittances sent by expatriate Dominicans back to the country. Remittances from the United States are the biggest part of the total, but are not the largest in average remittance.
In 2017, the flow of currency from remittances totaled US$5.9 billion, with a year to year increase of 12.4% over 2016. The report says that although the final numbers from November and December are not in for 2018, it is expected that the growth trend will continue. According to the preliminary results for the Dominican economy from January-December 2018, it is estimated that the country will end up receiving funds from remittances amounting to US$6.52 billion, a very notable 10.4% increase (US$612.8 million over 2017). In October the remittances had totaled US$5.29 billion.
Regarding the origin of the funds, the United States continued to be the largest source as well as having the greatest number of transactions. Some 77.4% of everything received between January and October has come from the US. And 85% of all remittance transactions took place in the US.
Nonetheless, the US occupies the sixth position with regard to the average remittance. It is Switzerland, which is not listed among the major sources, which leads the way on average remittance at US$349.20, followed by Spain at US$342.40 and France at US$340.70.
The study also revealed that the country’s two major urban areas, the National District and Santiago are the major recipients of remittances with the National District receiving nearly a third of all of that money, 31.8%, and Santiago 14.9%. Fully three-quarters of the money comes through remittance companies (76.1%) and 23.9% comes through financial institutions.
https://www.diariolibre.com/economi...-cantidad-total-pero-no-individual-KJ11907863
Kitten rescued at Las Americas Expressway tunnel
A video shows Digesett traffic agents rescuing a baby cat from inside the tunnel of the Las Americas Expressway. The video shows the two agents capturing the scared and apparently lost kitten. Had the agents not rescued the kitten, the likelihood was that it would have been killed by the one of the thousands of vehicles that uses the tunnel.
MAPE, an organization that cares for stray pets, later took the kitten to a vet. The video apparently was shared online by a returning expat who expressed pride in seeing the action of the traffic agents.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...esett-rescatan-gato-en-autopista-las-americas
Traffic fatalities climbing fast
In less than 72 hours, 10 persons lost their lives on just the highways and roads of the Cibao Valley and its environs. In Santiago a “concho” of the F route crashed with another, private vehicle, resulting in the deaths of two persons at the scene and the later passing of a third person in a clinic. The cause? The concho driver ran a red light.
Two motorcyclists were killed by motorists. One, near the Hermanos Patino Bridge n Santiago has yet to be identified.
The other, a Haitian named Luisito Floido was killed in Montecristi. In Puerto Plata.
Four traffic accidents left a total of three persons dead and at least eight injured. The accidents occurred in Villa Isabela , Sosua and Cabarete.
On the highway between Nagua and Cabrera, in Maria Trinidad Sanchez province, two nursing students died when they were hit by a car in the community of Puerto Rico a Pie. A gruesome three days on our nation’s roads.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/destacado/accidentes-dejan-10-muertes-en-72-horas-en-el-cibao/
An RD$4.0 billion tax evasion discovered by DGII
The District Attorney for the National District carried out several raids on businesses suspect to be in violation of the Tax Code and tax evasion for over RD$4 billion. The interventions were carried out against the Tremols Group and its affiliated companies and shareholders.
Some 18 prosecutors supported by investigators and technical personnel from the Tax Agency (DGII) as well as member of the National Police Criminal Intelligence Department (DICRIM) took part in the operation.
Rosalba Ramos, the District Attorney for the National District, told reporters that the operation resulted in the arrest of several persons who had been cheating the DGII for several years and would be indicted within hours of their arrest.
Apparently, the scheme involved creating fictitious companies that were used to make huge purchases that would then be deducted from their legitimate tax bill.
When investigators found out that the “companies” supposedly supplying these million peso orders were practically non-existent, they knew there was a big problem. Some of the companies that did exist, and were legitimate enterprises, said that they had no knowledge that the Tremols Group was using their Tax Code Numbers for faking invoices for huge sums of money.
Another part of the scam was related to companies within the Tremols Group that ran distilleries (Licores Royal and Bodegas de Iberia) and avoided payment of the Selective Consumer Tax that is supposed to be paid the moment the product is manufactured.
https://elcaribe.com.do/2019/01/25/destacado/detectan-evasion-fiscal-por-4-mil-millones-de-pesos/
Machete presented forged Venezuelan birth certificate to get his Dominican IDs
The Central Electoral Board (JCE) commission in charge of investigating how now deported Colombian capo Jimenez Monsalve (Machete) obtained Dominican identification papers – ID (cédula), driver’s license, passport, arms holding permission – revealed that the trail for the issuing of documents started with the presentation of a forged Venezuelan birth certificate that established that Machete was the son of a Dominican. Offspring of Dominicans have the right to expedited Dominican citizenship.
The ID was first issued in the Santo Domingo Este civil registry office. An audit carried out by the JCE established there were several irregularities in the procedure followed. The director of the office, Sandra del Carmen Francisco Paniagua. has been suspended without pay for a month, and it is recommended that the three other officers Alba Elizabeth Vásquez Curiel, Zewxis Oxiades Ledesma Gonell and Yaniris Yohanni Pérez de Óleo be fired as the investigations continue. Vasquez Curiel is attributed with entering into the system the details of the forged Venezuelan birth certificate. Nevertheless, checks and controls were never applied to verify the veracity of the documents.
The Attorney General Office appointed a commission to follow through with the investigations. Members of the commission are: Regis Victorio Reyes, Mercedes Santana Rodríguez, Jennifer Scartlet Acevedo.
The investigations so far have revealed that the trail of documents began with a forged Venezuelan birth certificate that established that Machete was a son of a Dominican woman. The forged birth certificate gave Julian Alberto Jimenez Monsalve the name of David José Mateo, son of 36-year old Dolores Mateo, who it describes as a native of the municipality of Neyba, Dominican Republic, single and with housekeeper as occupation. The birth certificate establishes that the child was declared by the 36-year old Dolores Mateo on 7 February 1994 whereby she stated that her son had been born on 14 October 1989 at the Raul Leoni hospital in San Felix, Venezuela. The registration would have been made at the civil registry of El Callao, Estado Bolivar in Venezuela. The name of the father is not established in the birth certificate, just that of the mother and the names of supposed two witnesses.
Machete was arrested and deported to Colombia on Friday, 18 January 2019, in an operation with the participation of Colombian, Interpol and Dominican authorities. It is known he had been living in Punta Cana for about 10 years passing himself off as a wealthy Venezuelan rancher.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...os-en-oficialia-sde-cancelaran-a-responsables
https://elnacional.com.do/jce-analiza-sanciones-por-entrega-de-cedula-a-machete/
https://elnacional.com.do/machete-o...tacion-falsa-en-sde-someteran-a-involucrados/
https://jce.gob.do/Noticias/comisio...ete-fue-obtenida-mediante-documentacion-falsa
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-figura-en-el-acta-falsa-como-nativa-de-neyba
Independence justice unlikely until composition of National Council of Magistracy is changed
The predominance of the Executive Power in a country where the ruling party practically controls the three branches of government, could lead to the fossilization of the independence of the Judiciary, warned lawyer Felix Olivares when participating in the Political Dimension of an Independent Judicial Power organized by the Action for Justice and Security Coalition.
Olivares highlighted that the budget of the judiciary is half of what it was in 2000 making it more dependent on the Executive Branch. He said the way the National Council of the Magistracy (CNM) is designed gives a predominance of power to the Executive Branch, making it very difficult for those who aspire to rise in the justice system to make decisions that go against the political power.
In contrast, sociologist Wilfredo Lozano warned of the need for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) to exert its influence on the judiciary, due to the institutional weakening to which it has been subjected due to the conflict between its two main leaders. In his participation in the forum, Lozano says that the loser in the conflict needs to pretend to retreat in order to negotiate a decorous exit.
Others participating in the panel were Dr. Servio Tulio Castaños of Finjus, and Lic. Michel Camacho.
http://hoy.com.do/en-foro-ven-necesario-cambiar-composicion-cnm/
Airplane that crashed in Yuna was homemade
The small aircraft that crashed last week in the municipality of San Rafael de Yuna, in the province of La Altagracia, was a homemade project. Authorities say this is apparently a new step in the efforts of drug traffickers to move their cargoes in what are literally “throw-away” aircraft.
Informants within the government told reporters that “usually the traffickers change the tail numbers of the aircraft, or simply file for their retirement, but the use of “home-built” airplanes for drug trafficking marks a first for the DR. This particular aircraft, which carried sophisticated navigation equipment, tested positive for cocaine. With only two seats and a large cargo bay, the aircraft was heard by residents, but its landing went undetected in a heavy bush area later that evening. According to the IDAC, the Dominican Civil Aviation Institute, there were no reports by any control towers nor from the Air Traffic Control Center regarding this aircraft.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...-aeronaves-artesanales-para-trazas-NI11912807
Explosion in larimar mine injures four
In La Cienega, in Barahona province, at least four persons were injured when a explosion occurred in a rustic larimar mine located in Bahoruco. The injured were taken to Jaime Mota Regional University Hospital in Barahona.
Elias Cuevas Rubio, Andres Rubio Lopez, Francisco (no last name) and Luis Rubio Lopez were the victims of the explosion, suffering first and second-degree burns. The cause of the explosion was attributed to a buildup of an unidentified gas in different holes together with a deficient electricity system in the mine, which is located in Las Filipinas in Bahoruco.
Hundreds of families work in these rustic mining operations which are virtually unsupervised by the Ministry of Energy and Mines.
https://elnacional.com.do/explosion-en-mina-larimar-deja-cuatro-heridos-en-barahona/
Bark beetle threatens national forests in Moncion, San Jose de Las Matas and Santiago Rodriguez
More than 10,000 tareas (6,290,000 m2) of the nation’s National Forests are under attack by a well-known enemy: the bark beetle commonly known as the six-spined engraver beetle (Ips calligraphus).
The Ministry of the Environment has created a task force to deal with the problem. Manuel Serrano, the deputy minister for Forest Resources, told reporters that the task force will have to come up with the necessary procedures to control the outbreak. There are no known pesticides that will kill the beetle that nests inside the bark of the trees, breeding and feeding on the sap. The trees end up being commercially useless.
Serrano called upon residents of the areas of San Jose de las Matas, Moncion and Santiago Rodriguez to plant trees when the rains come, saying that establishing pest-free stocks is a long-term strategy to combat the beetle.
In the short term, newly cut wood, shavings and even sawdust should be removed as quickly as possible, since the smell of newly cut pine serves as an attraction for the beetle. According to the literature, the plague can be eradicated by piping sounds of competing beetle species into the area of infestation. Apparently this crazes the engraver beetle and they devour each other. However, prevention methods and replanting of healthy forests are more economical in the short and long term.
http://eldia.com.do/insecto-ataca-miles-de-tareas-de-pino-en-el-cibao/
Bardon triumphs with novel on Jewish immigration in Dominican Republic
French author Catherine Bardon has received praise for her first novel “Les déracinés”(The Uprooted), which is based on the real-life story of the Second World War as related to a Jewish couple that relocated to Sosua, Puerto Plata, after fleeing from Nazi persecution.
The writer told reporters that her work was “a gift” which opened the doors to her literary recognition. She heard the story of the struggles of Wilhelm and Almah first hand over thirty years ago, during her first visit to the Dominican Republic when she met them. She said: “Wilhelm told me that he arrived when he was 20 and that “I am German and Jewish, and this is my story.” That is how she came to learn how the couple fled from Nazism and arrived in the Dominican Republic, then ruled by the dictatorship of Rafael Leonidas Trujillo Molina who maintained the peace through use of force.
It took many years for Bardon to marshal the time and effort needed to bring the novel to life. After the passing of Wilhelm, she said she knew the story had to be told.
Consulting documents in the Dominican National Archives as well as in Europe, she told the story about the Jewish migration to the Dominican Republic. She says that this is a part of history that is unknown or at least ignored in Europe and that is perhaps why she has garnered so many honors: the Draveil Prize, the Mennecy Prize for first novels and a place on the French book club, Loisirs’, reading list.
Now well versed in Dominican history and geography, she has also published a book of photographs of the country: Tierra mestizada.
https://www.diariolibre.com/actuali...una-novela-sobre-emigrantes-judios-DI11910113
Rains forecast
The National Metereological Office, Onamet forecast that a frontal weather system moving from Cuba to the Dominican Republic will bring intense rains and chilly weathers for the central mountain range areas, southwest, northeast, southeast, including Greater Santo Domingo as it makes its way to the east. Low temperatures in the morning of around 18-20°C with noontime highs of 28-31ºC are forecast for the capital city and Santiago.
Weather forecast for Punta Cana is warmer, with noontime highs of 28/31ºC but early morning temperatures of 22/24ºC.
http://onamet.gov.do/m/pdto/08w-wprono/01w-wpronostico-general.php
San Pedro de Macoris celebrates Estrellas’ winning baseball championship
El Nacional reported that a “green sea” engulfed the southeastern city of San Pedro de Macoris as thousands of fans took to the streets to celebrate during the parade of the team through the city on Saturday, 26 January 2019. The Estrellas won their first tournament in 51 years and they did so by winning the regular series, the round robin and the playoffs.
The celebration parade began at the Tetelo Vargas ball park and was lead by the leading players, including Jose Siri and Fernando Tatis Jr, and team manager Fernando Tatis and the persevering board of directors of the team.
The parade ended with a grand party with several popular artists at the Malecon of the city.
https://elnacional.com.do/un-mar-verde-recorre-san-pedro/
Where will the Caribbean Series be held?
Venezuela wants to host the Caribbean Series as scheduled from 2 to 8 February 2019. And Juan Puello Herrera, president of the Confederation, said over the weekend that Venezuela said it was ready to go ahead with the hosting. The president of the Barquisimeto team, the Cardenales, announced on Saturday, 26 January 2019, that they were ready to host the tournament, and are only awaiting the decision of the Confederation. He said that they are ready, and have over 4,000 tickets sold already. He doubted that any other nation could organize the tournament in such a short time.
The Confederation of Caribbean Baseball, nevertheless, is currently in permanent session to find another host for this year’s Caribbean World Series. According to Hector Cruz, of the Listin Diario, the decision as to where to hold the series is in “limbo.” A decision should be taken on Monday, 28 January 2019.
At least three countries have offered to host this year’s tournament between the champion teams from Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba: Colombia, the DR and Mexico.
For the Dominican Champions, the Estrellas Orientales, this will be the first time that they have been c hosen to represent the country in a Caribbean Series. The team has only won three championships. Back in 1954, when they won their first, the DR was not part of the series and in 1968, when they last won again, the series had been suspended since 1960 and was not to be renewed until 1970. For the Estrellas that are on a roll and have won the regular, round robin and playoffs in the 2018-2019 Dominican Professional Winter Baseball Championship, this would have been an opportunity to make history, by also winning the Caribbean Series.
http://eldia.com.do/sede-serie-del-caribe-continua-en-veremos/
https://listindiario.com/el-deporte/2019/01/27/551110/donde-sera-la-serie-del-caribe