At 2:30am on Thursday, 31 October 2019, a National Police unit forcefully removed the poor from La Culebra, El Seibo that had camped out for six days in front of the Presidential Palace. The farmers had traveled to the capital city with the hope of meeting with President Danilo Medina to demand their rights to the land from which they have been evicted in the eastern province.
The farmers were received by an assistant of a deputy minister of the Presidency who reportedly told them they needed an appointment to meet the President. The farmers that represent 613 victims of the land eviction request that President Danilo Medina make one of his “surprise visits” to their community to hear their story. The farmers had requested for months the appointment with no avail.
As reported, the farmers protested the actions of a Pedro Guillermo Varona (Cubano) who says he has a legal document giving him ownership to the land (20,000 tareas, where 1 tarea is equal to 629 square meters) and was able to evict the farmers. The farmers claim the lands became the property of the Dominican Agrarian Institute in 1975.
The farmers were divided in three groups and taken to the public hospitals Dario Contreras, Moscoso Puello and Armed Forces for “check ups.”
Follow the story in Spanish:
Altagracia Salazar Sin Maquillaje
Listin Diario
Hoy
31 October 2019