The three leading political parties are expected to sit down to talks as the second round of talks mediated by the Roman Catholic Church begins this afternoon. The leading opposition party, the Partido Revolucionario Dominicano has said it is privy to increasing the number of members of the board of the Junta Central Electoral as a way to resolve the present political crisis. The other two majority parties, the Partido Reformista Social Cristiano and the Partido de la Liberación Dominicana, the government party, contest the appointment by the Senate of five judges, of which several are known as PRD activists. The judges were unilaterally elected by the PRD which is majority in the Senate, in violation with an unwritten agreement that established that the judges would be chosen by consensus of the parties.
