2003 – Page 33

A series of associations representing the banking, hotel, export and free zone sectors are asking the Dominican people to maintain their confidence and optimism in the face of the economic crisis affecting the country. In the press release, the various associations say it is important to recognize that the economy has shown signs of strength, …

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The Listin Diario reports that the United States FAA has issued a report that says the airport at La Isabela is not fit to operate due to the large quantity of birds and the existence of several garbage dumps and lagoons in the vicinity. Edward C. Cleary and Richard A Dolbeer, the FAA technicians responsible …

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While the city of Cotui, in the province of Sanchez Ramirez, is the leading exporter of frogs to the international market, there is a problem with its produce. It seems that these Dominican frogs are too big for many importers who prefer the smaller version from Asia. According to Hoy, the export of frogs has …

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President Hipolito Mejia will visit the areas affected by heavy rainfall and flooding in the northeast of the country today, accompanied by an agricultural assessment team. Yesterday the President told reporters he felt the authorities had done all they could to provide assistance to the victims. In response to complaints from local people that the …

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Father Rogelio Cruz yesterday accepted the government’s insistence that they had not sought his transfer to the Vatican, as has been widely reported. Cruz met with President Mejia yesterday, after which encounter the President’s Technical Secretary Sergio Grullon read out a statement saying that no such request had ever been made and that the government …

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Under the new penal code district attorneys will no longer be able to order the imprisonment of a criminal suspect. Resolution 14873-2003 comes from the Attorney General’s office, which says that this common practice is unconstitutional and violates the legal rights of citizens. This includes people detained in police round-ups, as in the case of …

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The accused in Baninter’s RD$55-billion fraud case, former bank president Ramon Baez Figueroa, will seek release on bail on the grounds that the Constitution grants him the right to liberty, following the issue of Resolution 1920-03 on Monday. Juan Antonio Delgado, of the Baninter legal defense team, said that both Baez Figueroa and Marcos Baez …

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An increasing number of PRD deputies are opposing President Hipolito Mejia’s re-election plans, for fear that his candidacy may lead them back into opposition, report the newspapers. Even the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Alfredo Pacheco, has distanced himself from the PPH (Proyecto Presidencial Hipolito, internal PRD campaign for the President’s re-election), although he …

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It is reported that the negotiations between the International Monetary Fund delegation and the government are not progressing, and that the IMF is unwilling to accept the government’s position that its reacquisition of the power supply companies from Union Fenosa will not affect the country’s debt burden. The IMF commissioned research by independent experts, which …

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The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved a US$6-million loan to the Dominican banking sector, with the aim of strengthening the financial system. This is part of a program designed in the aftermath of the collapse of Baninter, the result of alleged fraud on a grand scale. The measures funded by this loan will include …

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