Through presidential decree 155-96 issued on 14 May, President Joaquin Balaguer made important changes in the National Police and the Armed Forces. Major General Ivan Hernandez Oleaga was named Minister of the Armed Forces in place of Admiral Ivan Vargas Cespedes of the Navy. Gen. Hernan Disla González was named Chief of the Army, but the biggest surprise was the appointment of Enrique Perez y Perez as chief of the National Police. General Perez y Perez, who had been in retirement since 1978, was “re-integrated” into the armed forces via the presidential decree and replaces Gen. Antonio Segundo Imbert Tesson, who was not reassigned to another position.
Gen. Perez y Perez was one of the most feared military officials during the first presidential term of Dr. Balaguer (1966-1978), the so-called “12 years” of political repression in the D.R. He was retired by Dr. Balaguer’s successor, President Antonio Guzman Fernandez, in 1978, and most observers doubted that Gen. Perez y Perez would ever resurface in public life. Many have interpreted the appointment of Gen. Perez y Perez, who is Chief of Police for the second time, as a warning by Dr. Balaguer against any attempt to foment political unrest during and after the 16 May presidential election. Apparently in response to the president’s move and to show that they were not intimidated by the measure, high-ranking members of the Partido Revolucionario Dominicano (PRD), including its presidential candidate Dr. Jose Francisco Peña Gómez, received the president of the Organization of American States Cesar Gaviria in the presence of Ramon Emilio Jimenez, who was also known as a military strongman during Dr. Balaguer’s first term, and widely regarded as a rival to Gen. Perez y Perez.
24-30 May 1996