The Latin American Faculty of Social Studies (FLACSO) claims that the Police is not qualified to confront crime. As reported in El Caribe, the organization carried out a study that found that crime in the DR is closely linked to the corruption levels within the police and the unskilled police officers. FLACSO believes that the government’s recent announcement that it was providing US$24 million to purchase equipment for the Police only solves part of the problem. FLACSO says that the problem requires a reform of the policemen themselves. “The Police is part of crime, from the bribes they extort from citizens to those high ranking officials who misuse political and economic influence,” said investigator Daniel Pou who carried out the investigation together with the current deputy minister of Foreign Relations Alejandra Liriano. Pou said that the study will be published in February by the Centro Franklin, of the United States Embassy. He insisted that the report shows that the police is not qualified to combat crime. Pou explained that the police operates like a marginal body at the service of certain interests that engineer crime in this country. He explained that the ties that exist between crime and the police are not within the control of the force itself.
Servio Tulio Castanos, executive director of the Foundation for Institutionality and Justice (FINJUS) said that in order to fight crime, the police needs to be purged, to remove law-breaking officers from its own ranks. Castanos defined the police as a distorted body that assumes military functions. He said that there need to be major changes if the institution is to restore its credibility.