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Dolores
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DR signs aviation agreement with the Netherlands and Dutch Caribbean
Drought affects reservoirs nationwide
Ruling PLD party political committee meeting tells nothing on reelection
Majority of the population does not think the Constitution should change
PLD not happy with drag vote partial elimination
Dominican Republic still has areas of poverty
Dominicans getting fatter
Navy captures more illegals going to Puerto Rico
Drugs in toners found at Las Americas International
Heroic love in two recent tragedies
Semi-trailer kills two and injures three
German on the run recaptured for child pornography
Some rain on the way, pre-summer heat felt
Tornado causes big damages to banana plantation in northwest
Documentary tells the plight of Polish priest pedophile victims
DR signs aviation agreement with the Netherlands and Dutch Caribbean
Foreign Relations Minister Miguel Vargas signed air services agreement with the Netherlands in Europe and Curaçao and Sint Marteen in the Caribbean. The agreement calls for new regulatory frameworks to facilitate trade and cultural exchanges. The agreement is expected to facilitate the establishment of direct flights with The Netherlands and the Dutch Caribbean islands.
The ambassador of The Netherlands in the Dominican Republic, Annemieke Alexandra Verrijp, signed the agreement for the Netherlands and Curaçao. Stuart Andrew Johnson, Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications, signed on behalf of Sint Marteen.
Speaking at the signing, Foreign Minister Vargas said the agreements will bring greater air connectivity and that this will promote the development of the tourism sector, but also other areas, such as trade and investment among the signing countries.
Around 31,000 travelers came from The Netherlands last year. Data from the Foreign Trade and Administration of Trade Treaties (Dicoex) agency of the Ministry of Industry & Commerce reveals that in 2017 the Dutch market represented approximately 2% of total Dominican exports. Dominican imports from The Netherlands have grown 23% from 2013 to 2017.
Ambassador Verrijp and Minister Andrew Johnson highlighted the significance of the conventions and stated that they will benefit the signatory countries.
The signing ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Relations (Mirex). Also participating was the president of the Civil Aviation Board of the Dominican Republic, Luis Ernesto Camilo; Alejandro Herrera, director general of the Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation (IDAC); Marino Collante, executive director of the Airport Department; and Brigadier General of the Dominican Republic's Air Force (FARD), Aracenis Castillo de la Cruz, director of the Cuerpo Especializado en Seguridad Aeroportuaria y de la Aviación Civil (CESAC).
http://www.mirex.gob.do/medios/noti...-aereos-con-paises-bajos-curazao-y-san-martin
Drought affects reservoirs nationwide
Water levels are below their minimum at dams around the nation, according to a report in the Listin Diario. This means the reservoirs do not have enough water for irrigation, or power generation. The only exception is the Presa de Hatillo that has a level sufficient for irrigation.
The National Hydraulic Resources Institute (INDRHI) reports that the recent rains were not in areas where the dams are located. Olgo Fernandez, director of the Indrhi, says that minimum levels for the supply of drinking water are still maintained.
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...esas-del-pais-estan-por-debajo-de-sus-niveles
Ruling PLD party political committee meeting tells nothing on reelection
President Danilo Medina and the president of the ruling PLD party, Leonel Fernández met last night for the meeting of the Political Committee of the party that gathers 34 influential members. Fernández is campaigning to be the PLD presidential candidate, but followers of Medina want him to seek a third term.
It was reported that 31 members attended the meeting. Absent were ambassadors José Tomás Pérez and César Pina Toribio, and founding member of the PLD, José Joaquín Bidó Medina.
The committee is said to be that which decides what goes in government as the ruling party has a stronghold of those appointed to head the legislative and judicial branches of government.
Nevertheless, despite expectations, President Danilo Medina did not make an announcement of whether he will back the supporters that seek the 2015 Constitution be amended to allow him to run for a third term in office. Secretary general of the PLD, the president of the Senate Reinaldo Pared Perez said the matter was not covered during the meeting, nor is there a date when it will be covered.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-del-pld-evita-tocar-el-tema-de-la-reeleccion
Majority of the population does not think the Constitution should change
According to a poll carried out by the Mexican political consulting firm, PolNav Asesores, 71% of the Dominican electoral population thinks that President Danilo Medina should not change the Constitution in order to be able to run as President for the third time. The poll was carried out among 1,205 people of voting age between 9 and 11 May 2019.
The survey findings also revealed that 56.2% of those polled said that should Medina reform the Constitution, they would be unlikely to vote for him.
In the event that former President Leonel Fernández be chosen the presidential candidate for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) and Luis Abinader for the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM), the former would obtain 50.6% of the votes and the latter 36.1%, according to the poll.
The data were presented by PolNav president, Israel Navarro in the Hotel Radisson in Santo Domingo.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...ucion-para-releccion-de-danilo-segun-encuesta
http://www.polnav.mx/
PLD not happy with drag vote partial elimination
The secretary general of the ruling PLD, Reinaldo Pared Pérez announced at the end of the Monday, 13 May 2019 meeting of the PLD Political Committee that the party would submit a motion for the revoking of the elimination of the drag vote in 26 provinces for the 2020 general election. The Central Electoral Board (JCE) on 7 May 2019 approved that the drag vote would still apply in the National District, and in the provinces of Santo Domingo, Santiago, San Cristóbal, La Vega, and Puerto Plata. Electoral districts in those areas account for almost 59% of the national vote.
Pared Perez said the JCE in its decision went beyond its mandate. He advocated for maintaining the drag vote that allocates the votes received by deputies to the senator of the National District or the province.
The leading opposition party, the PRM, has also said it will submit a recourse to the Constitutional Court requesting the drag vote be eliminated in all voting districts.
Furthermore, Pared Perez said it will not adhere to the recent Constitutional Court ruling that called for political parties to adhere to their statutes. Pared Perez said that the party will carry out its primary with an open voting list because the Constitutional Court ruling is not retroactive. The Constitutional Court annulled the clause in Political Parties Law 33-18 that grants the leadership of political parties the power to decide the voting list to be used, the modality and the method to choose the pre-candidates for an election.
https://listindiario.com/la-republica/2019/05/14/565351/impugnaran-decision-jce-por-voto-de-arrastre
Dominican Republic still has areas of poverty
According to a recently launched program by the United Nations Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO), called 100 Territories Free of Poverty and Hunger (100-T), the Dominican Republic is one of the five priority countries in the region of Latin America and the Caribbean where there are strong differences between urban and rural areas and profound inequality in rural areas leading to hunger and poverty.
In the case of the Dominican Republic, the program will be focused along almost all of the frontier area, from Pedernales, Independencia, Elías Piña down to Bahoruco, then Azua, Barahona and El Seibo.
The other four priority countries are El Salvador, Guatemala, Colombia and Honduras.
The FAO will offer technical support and look for ways to improve public policies over a ten-year timeframe and identify the most vulnerable areas with the most poverty and hungry.
According to the FAO, despite advances in and growth of economies, there are rural areas with levels of poverty and extreme poverty of around 70% and an unacceptable level of chronic malnutrition, well below the national average.
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...ue-incluido-por-fao-en-territorios-con-hambre
Dominicans getting fatter
The urbanization of rural life is resulting in greater obesity worldwide. A recent study by the Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) reported in Nature magazine indicates that body-mass index (BMI), which is based on height and weight, has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities. This challenges the long-held assumption that the global obesity epidemic is mainly an urban problem. The study reveals that obesity worldwide is increasing more quickly in rural areas than in cities, including those in the Dominican Republic.
Data covering 200 countries and territories compiled by more than 1,000 researchers showed an average gain of roughly five to six kilos per woman and man living in the countryside from 1985 to 2017.
Interestingly, according to the findings, published in Nature, women and men living in cities, however, put on 38 and 24% less, respectively, than their rural counterparts over the same period.
At the country level, the Nature publication points to several findings that stand out. It reports that some of the largest BMI increases from 1985 to 2017 among men were in China, the United States, Bahrain, Peru and the Dominican Republic, adding an average of 8-9 kilos per adult.
The NDC Risk Factor Collaboration challenges countries around the world to create programs and policies that are rurally focused to prevent weight gain.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-01182-x
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1171-x
http://ncdrisc.org/
https://www.thedailystar.net/health/news/obesity-rising-faster-rural-areas-1741942
https://japantoday.com/category/features/health/worldwide-obesity-rising-faster-in-rural-areas
Navy captures more illegals going to Puerto Rico
Members of the Dominican Navy have attempted to arrest 45 people in the coastal community of La Culebra in Miches who reportedly were trying to travel illegally to Puerto Rico. The group included four minors with ages between 12 and 14, and they were handed over to the National Children’s Board (Conani).
Some of the people fled into the woods, but those who were captured were taken to the Head of Naval Intelligence. According to the authorities, the organizers of the trip set fire to the boat and threw the outboard motors into the water. The motors were later recovered from the La Culebra River.
https://eldia.com.do/armada-detiene...-pretendian-viajar-ilegalmente-a-puerto-rico/
Drugs in toners found at Las Americas International
The National Drug Control Agency (DNCD), with the support of the Specialized Corps of Airport Security (CESAC) and the coordination of the Attorney General Office, has confiscated five toner containers full of a substance thought to be cocaine or heroin at the Las Americas International Airport. This is a new modality for exporting cocaine.
DNCD officials and other security agencies found the suspected drugs when they were carrying out a check of the cargo area, having been alerted to the presence of drugs by canine units. There the dogs uncovered the box with the drug-filled toners.
The toners were being shipped from Santo Domingo to a man in Madrid, Spain.
The suspected drugs were sent to the National Institute of Forensic Science (Inacif) for analysis and the investigation is ongoing.
https://www.dncd.gob.do/index.php/n...-un-polvo-que-se-presume-es-cocaina-o-heroina
Heroic love in two recent tragedies
Love prevailed when a young man died after rescuing his drowning girlfriend, and a couple was electrocuted when the woman tried to save her husband last week.
The Listin Diario reports on the case of 22-year old Fabián Santana Sención, of Hato Mayor who died after rescuing his girlfriend from drowning in Maguá River. He was rescued from the waters but declared dead when taken to the hospital.
In another event, 63-year old José Manuel Contreras when at home made contact with a live wire. His spouse 60-year old Esmeralda Santos was electrocuted when trying to save him. The incident caused a fire that woke up the neighbors.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-por-amor-entre-parejas-terminan-en-tragedias
Semi-trailer kills two and injures three
On Sunday, 12 May 2019, two young people died and three were injured having been hit by a semi-trailer owned by Khoury Industrial in Cabral, Barahona. The young people were on motorcycles when they were hit by the truck, whose driver fled from the scene.
Following the accident, a crowd gathered and set fire to the semi-trailer. Those who died were 18-year old Yeiser Féliz, and 23-year old Luis Féliz Portes, who lived in the La Peñuela and Los Botados neighborhoods in Cabral. The injured were Alexander Alcántara Féliz, aged 31, Luis Yeris Medina, aged 19 and Robinson Medina, aged 20, who were taken to the Jaime Mota University hospital in Barahona.
The semi-trailer was traveling from south to north carrying concrete blocks when it met the motorcyclists who were riding behind a group of youths in a bicycle race. The accident happened in the El Brisal sector on the road linking it with Polo. Medina, one of the injured lost one of his legs and is still said to be in a delicate condition.
https://almomento.net/barahona-dos-muertos-tres-heridos-y-una-patana-incendiada-en-zona-de-cabral/
German on the run recaptured for child pornography
German national Heinrich Christlieb, alias Sacha, has been captured. He had been sentenced to 20 years for child pornography. He was captured trying to flee via Haiti to Paris, France on Friday 10 May 2019. The arrest was carried out by the Public Prosecution Service, in coordination with the National Police and Interpol.
On 1 April 2019, 76-year-old Christlieb was convicted by a Puerto Plata court of child pornography in violation of Law number 53-07 on Technology Crimes and the Children Protection Law 136-03.
At the time of his arrest, he was allowed out on bail but an exit impediment was set, meaning he could not leave the country.
Because of his attempt to leave, the Puerto Plata Prosecutor’s office has asked for bail to be revoked and for him to go into preventive custody. Hoy reported that in addition to his attempts to avoid serving jail, it appears he had continued his child pornography business while out on bail. A new case will be heard against him.
http://hoy.com.do/aleman-pretendia-...condenado-a-20-anos-por-pornografia-infantil/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...sion-en-puerto-plata-por-pornografia-infantil
Some rain on the way, pre-summer heat felt
It’s not summer yet, but temperatures and humidity have been climbing in the Dominican Republic. Early morning chills are replaced by warm temperatures around 26C.
Nevertheless, the National Meteorological Office (Onamet) has forecast rains and thunderstorms in the northwest, the north, central mountain area and the border provinces, especially in the afternoons. Reports were of heavy rains on Monday in the mountain area of San José de las Matas and Los Montones, for one, where the rains were much needed for farm produce and water supply.
Temperatures are expected to remain high while a weather front crossing the country is increasing humidity that will lead to the rains, although they will be less heavy than those over the weekend.
Onamet says that despite the rain, the population must continue to ration water, especially in the south, southwest and north west where the drought is affecting the country the most.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...aguaceros-dispersos-sobre-algunas-localidades
Tornado causes big damages to banana plantation in northwest
A tornado ripped through Guayubín municipality in northwestern Montecristi, causing considerable damage to rural town rooftops, the primary care medical unit, and banana plantations. The tornado also brought hail. The northwest has been suffering through months of drought.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-y-centro-de-atencion-primaria-en-montecristi
No charges placed against former priest who took teaching job
A follow-up report in NY’s NBC News observes that a man fired for teaching despite having a criminal record for sexual abuse in the United States could be back at the job soon. NBC says that 47-year old former priest Hadmels DeFrias in theory could seek another job at a private school in the Dominican Republic.
When he was fired, he was teaching English at the Colegio del Caribe in Punta Cana. NBC aired he had been banned from working with children in the United States. Authorities at the school said they did not know about De Frias’s criminal record when hiring him at the school. The school promptly fired the teacher as soon as the story broke on NBC News.
NBC interviewed Ministry of Education officers and was told that the case was closed against De Frias after he was fired from the school, but nothing impedes him from finding another job in the country where he does not have a criminal record.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...ersey-priest-found-teaching-children-n1005026
Documentary tells the plight of Polish priest pedophile victims
A crowd-funded documentary, “Tell No One” on pedophile priests was released on Saturday, 11 May 2019 and reached more than 11 million views in its first three days on air. The documentary is reported to have shaken up Poland, a country where 96% of the population is Catholic.
The independent documentary movie is by Tomasz and Marek Sekielski brothers who sought to tell the truth about the Catholic Church in Poland. It shows elderly priests, including Franciszek Cybula who was the chaplain of former president Lech Walesa, being confronted by people they abused as children. It presents allegations that known pedophiles were regularly shifted between parishes.
Children in the Dominican Republic were victims of Polish pedophile priests, notably the cases of the late Apostolic Nuncio to the country, Jozef Wesolowski, who died before being tried after being protected by the Vatican from standing for Justice in the Dominican Republic. Another Polish Catholic priest, Wojciech Waldamar Gil (Padre Alberto) was charged in Poland with sexually abusing at least 7 Dominican boys and similar accusations in Poland.
The documentary is in Polish with English subtitles. It reveals that there was a secret instruction (Crimen Sollicitationis) in the Catholic Church that until 2001 ordered priests to hide pedophile incidents. The documentary mentions that the provision dates back to the times of Polish priest, Pope John Paul II who is known to have not been able to deal with pedophilia in the church.
The documentary reveals that the generalized attitude of the priests was that they were “teaching about love.” The film focuses on the institutionalized protection of those accused of pedophilia in the church.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrUvQ3W3nV4
https://www.apnews.com/e773de90860d4817a246f6b294c3f991
https://www.washingtonpost.com/worl...8a43b84ee31_story.html?utm_term=.c25bcf79a373
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...rsher-sentences-for-child-abuse-idUSKCN1SI0E1
https://www.dw.com/en/us-catholic-abuse-victims-to-sue-vatican/a-48726281
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/24/...ssador-accused-of-sexual-abuse-of-minors.html
http://hoy.com.do/documental-sacerdotes-pedofilos-conmociona-polonia/
Drought affects reservoirs nationwide
Ruling PLD party political committee meeting tells nothing on reelection
Majority of the population does not think the Constitution should change
PLD not happy with drag vote partial elimination
Dominican Republic still has areas of poverty
Dominicans getting fatter
Navy captures more illegals going to Puerto Rico
Drugs in toners found at Las Americas International
Heroic love in two recent tragedies
Semi-trailer kills two and injures three
German on the run recaptured for child pornography
Some rain on the way, pre-summer heat felt
Tornado causes big damages to banana plantation in northwest
Documentary tells the plight of Polish priest pedophile victims
DR signs aviation agreement with the Netherlands and Dutch Caribbean
Foreign Relations Minister Miguel Vargas signed air services agreement with the Netherlands in Europe and Curaçao and Sint Marteen in the Caribbean. The agreement calls for new regulatory frameworks to facilitate trade and cultural exchanges. The agreement is expected to facilitate the establishment of direct flights with The Netherlands and the Dutch Caribbean islands.
The ambassador of The Netherlands in the Dominican Republic, Annemieke Alexandra Verrijp, signed the agreement for the Netherlands and Curaçao. Stuart Andrew Johnson, Minister of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications, signed on behalf of Sint Marteen.
Speaking at the signing, Foreign Minister Vargas said the agreements will bring greater air connectivity and that this will promote the development of the tourism sector, but also other areas, such as trade and investment among the signing countries.
Around 31,000 travelers came from The Netherlands last year. Data from the Foreign Trade and Administration of Trade Treaties (Dicoex) agency of the Ministry of Industry & Commerce reveals that in 2017 the Dutch market represented approximately 2% of total Dominican exports. Dominican imports from The Netherlands have grown 23% from 2013 to 2017.
Ambassador Verrijp and Minister Andrew Johnson highlighted the significance of the conventions and stated that they will benefit the signatory countries.
The signing ceremony was held at the headquarters of the Ministry of Foreign Relations (Mirex). Also participating was the president of the Civil Aviation Board of the Dominican Republic, Luis Ernesto Camilo; Alejandro Herrera, director general of the Dominican Institute of Civil Aviation (IDAC); Marino Collante, executive director of the Airport Department; and Brigadier General of the Dominican Republic's Air Force (FARD), Aracenis Castillo de la Cruz, director of the Cuerpo Especializado en Seguridad Aeroportuaria y de la Aviación Civil (CESAC).
http://www.mirex.gob.do/medios/noti...-aereos-con-paises-bajos-curazao-y-san-martin
Drought affects reservoirs nationwide
Water levels are below their minimum at dams around the nation, according to a report in the Listin Diario. This means the reservoirs do not have enough water for irrigation, or power generation. The only exception is the Presa de Hatillo that has a level sufficient for irrigation.
The National Hydraulic Resources Institute (INDRHI) reports that the recent rains were not in areas where the dams are located. Olgo Fernandez, director of the Indrhi, says that minimum levels for the supply of drinking water are still maintained.
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...esas-del-pais-estan-por-debajo-de-sus-niveles
Ruling PLD party political committee meeting tells nothing on reelection
President Danilo Medina and the president of the ruling PLD party, Leonel Fernández met last night for the meeting of the Political Committee of the party that gathers 34 influential members. Fernández is campaigning to be the PLD presidential candidate, but followers of Medina want him to seek a third term.
It was reported that 31 members attended the meeting. Absent were ambassadors José Tomás Pérez and César Pina Toribio, and founding member of the PLD, José Joaquín Bidó Medina.
The committee is said to be that which decides what goes in government as the ruling party has a stronghold of those appointed to head the legislative and judicial branches of government.
Nevertheless, despite expectations, President Danilo Medina did not make an announcement of whether he will back the supporters that seek the 2015 Constitution be amended to allow him to run for a third term in office. Secretary general of the PLD, the president of the Senate Reinaldo Pared Perez said the matter was not covered during the meeting, nor is there a date when it will be covered.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-del-pld-evita-tocar-el-tema-de-la-reeleccion
Majority of the population does not think the Constitution should change
According to a poll carried out by the Mexican political consulting firm, PolNav Asesores, 71% of the Dominican electoral population thinks that President Danilo Medina should not change the Constitution in order to be able to run as President for the third time. The poll was carried out among 1,205 people of voting age between 9 and 11 May 2019.
The survey findings also revealed that 56.2% of those polled said that should Medina reform the Constitution, they would be unlikely to vote for him.
In the event that former President Leonel Fernández be chosen the presidential candidate for the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) and Luis Abinader for the Modern Revolutionary Party (PRM), the former would obtain 50.6% of the votes and the latter 36.1%, according to the poll.
The data were presented by PolNav president, Israel Navarro in the Hotel Radisson in Santo Domingo.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...ucion-para-releccion-de-danilo-segun-encuesta
http://www.polnav.mx/
PLD not happy with drag vote partial elimination
The secretary general of the ruling PLD, Reinaldo Pared Pérez announced at the end of the Monday, 13 May 2019 meeting of the PLD Political Committee that the party would submit a motion for the revoking of the elimination of the drag vote in 26 provinces for the 2020 general election. The Central Electoral Board (JCE) on 7 May 2019 approved that the drag vote would still apply in the National District, and in the provinces of Santo Domingo, Santiago, San Cristóbal, La Vega, and Puerto Plata. Electoral districts in those areas account for almost 59% of the national vote.
Pared Perez said the JCE in its decision went beyond its mandate. He advocated for maintaining the drag vote that allocates the votes received by deputies to the senator of the National District or the province.
The leading opposition party, the PRM, has also said it will submit a recourse to the Constitutional Court requesting the drag vote be eliminated in all voting districts.
Furthermore, Pared Perez said it will not adhere to the recent Constitutional Court ruling that called for political parties to adhere to their statutes. Pared Perez said that the party will carry out its primary with an open voting list because the Constitutional Court ruling is not retroactive. The Constitutional Court annulled the clause in Political Parties Law 33-18 that grants the leadership of political parties the power to decide the voting list to be used, the modality and the method to choose the pre-candidates for an election.
https://listindiario.com/la-republica/2019/05/14/565351/impugnaran-decision-jce-por-voto-de-arrastre
Dominican Republic still has areas of poverty
According to a recently launched program by the United Nations Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO), called 100 Territories Free of Poverty and Hunger (100-T), the Dominican Republic is one of the five priority countries in the region of Latin America and the Caribbean where there are strong differences between urban and rural areas and profound inequality in rural areas leading to hunger and poverty.
In the case of the Dominican Republic, the program will be focused along almost all of the frontier area, from Pedernales, Independencia, Elías Piña down to Bahoruco, then Azua, Barahona and El Seibo.
The other four priority countries are El Salvador, Guatemala, Colombia and Honduras.
The FAO will offer technical support and look for ways to improve public policies over a ten-year timeframe and identify the most vulnerable areas with the most poverty and hungry.
According to the FAO, despite advances in and growth of economies, there are rural areas with levels of poverty and extreme poverty of around 70% and an unacceptable level of chronic malnutrition, well below the national average.
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...ue-incluido-por-fao-en-territorios-con-hambre
Dominicans getting fatter
The urbanization of rural life is resulting in greater obesity worldwide. A recent study by the Non-Communicable Disease (NCD) Risk Factor Collaboration (NCD-RisC) reported in Nature magazine indicates that body-mass index (BMI), which is based on height and weight, has increased steadily in most countries in parallel with a rise in the proportion of the population who live in cities. This challenges the long-held assumption that the global obesity epidemic is mainly an urban problem. The study reveals that obesity worldwide is increasing more quickly in rural areas than in cities, including those in the Dominican Republic.
Data covering 200 countries and territories compiled by more than 1,000 researchers showed an average gain of roughly five to six kilos per woman and man living in the countryside from 1985 to 2017.
Interestingly, according to the findings, published in Nature, women and men living in cities, however, put on 38 and 24% less, respectively, than their rural counterparts over the same period.
At the country level, the Nature publication points to several findings that stand out. It reports that some of the largest BMI increases from 1985 to 2017 among men were in China, the United States, Bahrain, Peru and the Dominican Republic, adding an average of 8-9 kilos per adult.
The NDC Risk Factor Collaboration challenges countries around the world to create programs and policies that are rurally focused to prevent weight gain.
https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-01182-x
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1171-x
http://ncdrisc.org/
https://www.thedailystar.net/health/news/obesity-rising-faster-rural-areas-1741942
https://japantoday.com/category/features/health/worldwide-obesity-rising-faster-in-rural-areas
Navy captures more illegals going to Puerto Rico
Members of the Dominican Navy have attempted to arrest 45 people in the coastal community of La Culebra in Miches who reportedly were trying to travel illegally to Puerto Rico. The group included four minors with ages between 12 and 14, and they were handed over to the National Children’s Board (Conani).
Some of the people fled into the woods, but those who were captured were taken to the Head of Naval Intelligence. According to the authorities, the organizers of the trip set fire to the boat and threw the outboard motors into the water. The motors were later recovered from the La Culebra River.
https://eldia.com.do/armada-detiene...-pretendian-viajar-ilegalmente-a-puerto-rico/
Drugs in toners found at Las Americas International
The National Drug Control Agency (DNCD), with the support of the Specialized Corps of Airport Security (CESAC) and the coordination of the Attorney General Office, has confiscated five toner containers full of a substance thought to be cocaine or heroin at the Las Americas International Airport. This is a new modality for exporting cocaine.
DNCD officials and other security agencies found the suspected drugs when they were carrying out a check of the cargo area, having been alerted to the presence of drugs by canine units. There the dogs uncovered the box with the drug-filled toners.
The toners were being shipped from Santo Domingo to a man in Madrid, Spain.
The suspected drugs were sent to the National Institute of Forensic Science (Inacif) for analysis and the investigation is ongoing.
https://www.dncd.gob.do/index.php/n...-un-polvo-que-se-presume-es-cocaina-o-heroina
Heroic love in two recent tragedies
Love prevailed when a young man died after rescuing his drowning girlfriend, and a couple was electrocuted when the woman tried to save her husband last week.
The Listin Diario reports on the case of 22-year old Fabián Santana Sención, of Hato Mayor who died after rescuing his girlfriend from drowning in Maguá River. He was rescued from the waters but declared dead when taken to the hospital.
In another event, 63-year old José Manuel Contreras when at home made contact with a live wire. His spouse 60-year old Esmeralda Santos was electrocuted when trying to save him. The incident caused a fire that woke up the neighbors.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-por-amor-entre-parejas-terminan-en-tragedias
Semi-trailer kills two and injures three
On Sunday, 12 May 2019, two young people died and three were injured having been hit by a semi-trailer owned by Khoury Industrial in Cabral, Barahona. The young people were on motorcycles when they were hit by the truck, whose driver fled from the scene.
Following the accident, a crowd gathered and set fire to the semi-trailer. Those who died were 18-year old Yeiser Féliz, and 23-year old Luis Féliz Portes, who lived in the La Peñuela and Los Botados neighborhoods in Cabral. The injured were Alexander Alcántara Féliz, aged 31, Luis Yeris Medina, aged 19 and Robinson Medina, aged 20, who were taken to the Jaime Mota University hospital in Barahona.
The semi-trailer was traveling from south to north carrying concrete blocks when it met the motorcyclists who were riding behind a group of youths in a bicycle race. The accident happened in the El Brisal sector on the road linking it with Polo. Medina, one of the injured lost one of his legs and is still said to be in a delicate condition.
https://almomento.net/barahona-dos-muertos-tres-heridos-y-una-patana-incendiada-en-zona-de-cabral/
German on the run recaptured for child pornography
German national Heinrich Christlieb, alias Sacha, has been captured. He had been sentenced to 20 years for child pornography. He was captured trying to flee via Haiti to Paris, France on Friday 10 May 2019. The arrest was carried out by the Public Prosecution Service, in coordination with the National Police and Interpol.
On 1 April 2019, 76-year-old Christlieb was convicted by a Puerto Plata court of child pornography in violation of Law number 53-07 on Technology Crimes and the Children Protection Law 136-03.
At the time of his arrest, he was allowed out on bail but an exit impediment was set, meaning he could not leave the country.
Because of his attempt to leave, the Puerto Plata Prosecutor’s office has asked for bail to be revoked and for him to go into preventive custody. Hoy reported that in addition to his attempts to avoid serving jail, it appears he had continued his child pornography business while out on bail. A new case will be heard against him.
http://hoy.com.do/aleman-pretendia-...condenado-a-20-anos-por-pornografia-infantil/
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...sion-en-puerto-plata-por-pornografia-infantil
Some rain on the way, pre-summer heat felt
It’s not summer yet, but temperatures and humidity have been climbing in the Dominican Republic. Early morning chills are replaced by warm temperatures around 26C.
Nevertheless, the National Meteorological Office (Onamet) has forecast rains and thunderstorms in the northwest, the north, central mountain area and the border provinces, especially in the afternoons. Reports were of heavy rains on Monday in the mountain area of San José de las Matas and Los Montones, for one, where the rains were much needed for farm produce and water supply.
Temperatures are expected to remain high while a weather front crossing the country is increasing humidity that will lead to the rains, although they will be less heavy than those over the weekend.
Onamet says that despite the rain, the population must continue to ration water, especially in the south, southwest and north west where the drought is affecting the country the most.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...aguaceros-dispersos-sobre-algunas-localidades
Tornado causes big damages to banana plantation in northwest
A tornado ripped through Guayubín municipality in northwestern Montecristi, causing considerable damage to rural town rooftops, the primary care medical unit, and banana plantations. The tornado also brought hail. The northwest has been suffering through months of drought.
https://listindiario.com/la-republi...-y-centro-de-atencion-primaria-en-montecristi
No charges placed against former priest who took teaching job
A follow-up report in NY’s NBC News observes that a man fired for teaching despite having a criminal record for sexual abuse in the United States could be back at the job soon. NBC says that 47-year old former priest Hadmels DeFrias in theory could seek another job at a private school in the Dominican Republic.
When he was fired, he was teaching English at the Colegio del Caribe in Punta Cana. NBC aired he had been banned from working with children in the United States. Authorities at the school said they did not know about De Frias’s criminal record when hiring him at the school. The school promptly fired the teacher as soon as the story broke on NBC News.
NBC interviewed Ministry of Education officers and was told that the case was closed against De Frias after he was fired from the school, but nothing impedes him from finding another job in the country where he does not have a criminal record.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-new...ersey-priest-found-teaching-children-n1005026
Documentary tells the plight of Polish priest pedophile victims
A crowd-funded documentary, “Tell No One” on pedophile priests was released on Saturday, 11 May 2019 and reached more than 11 million views in its first three days on air. The documentary is reported to have shaken up Poland, a country where 96% of the population is Catholic.
The independent documentary movie is by Tomasz and Marek Sekielski brothers who sought to tell the truth about the Catholic Church in Poland. It shows elderly priests, including Franciszek Cybula who was the chaplain of former president Lech Walesa, being confronted by people they abused as children. It presents allegations that known pedophiles were regularly shifted between parishes.
Children in the Dominican Republic were victims of Polish pedophile priests, notably the cases of the late Apostolic Nuncio to the country, Jozef Wesolowski, who died before being tried after being protected by the Vatican from standing for Justice in the Dominican Republic. Another Polish Catholic priest, Wojciech Waldamar Gil (Padre Alberto) was charged in Poland with sexually abusing at least 7 Dominican boys and similar accusations in Poland.
The documentary is in Polish with English subtitles. It reveals that there was a secret instruction (Crimen Sollicitationis) in the Catholic Church that until 2001 ordered priests to hide pedophile incidents. The documentary mentions that the provision dates back to the times of Polish priest, Pope John Paul II who is known to have not been able to deal with pedophilia in the church.
The documentary reveals that the generalized attitude of the priests was that they were “teaching about love.” The film focuses on the institutionalized protection of those accused of pedophilia in the church.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BrUvQ3W3nV4
https://www.apnews.com/e773de90860d4817a246f6b294c3f991
https://www.washingtonpost.com/worl...8a43b84ee31_story.html?utm_term=.c25bcf79a373
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-...rsher-sentences-for-child-abuse-idUSKCN1SI0E1
https://www.dw.com/en/us-catholic-abuse-victims-to-sue-vatican/a-48726281
https://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/24/...ssador-accused-of-sexual-abuse-of-minors.html
http://hoy.com.do/documental-sacerdotes-pedofilos-conmociona-polonia/