Thousands of residents in Greater Santo Domingo showed up on Sunday, 3 March 2019 to watch the national carnival parade that gathers carnival groups from all around the country. They were disappointed. A boycott to the organizers left city residents without being able to see many of the most popular carnival groups, a major disappointment for the large turnout on the Malecón boulevard. This is the first time the groups boycott the carnival.
Many of the 80 carnival groups that were scheduled did not come to the city protesting the reduction of the stipend of RD$1,000 per participant to RD$300 this year. The groups also protested the reduction of the cash prizes. While in the past these had been RD$100,000, R$150,000, RD$200,000, RD$500,000 and RD$1,000,000, this year all categories would receive a maximum cash award of RD$50,000. Likewise, the Ministry of Culture did not cover the transport of the groups from the towns, leaving this responsibility up to the city governments.
Earlier it had been known that Puerto Plata, to whom the carnival would be dedicated this year, had announced it would not participate. The Ministry of Culture announced the carnival would be dedicated to Barahona that participated with a colorful group. During the carnival, tribute was rendered to Casandra Damirón, a native of Barahona best known for her contributions to Dominican folklore music and dance.
Read more in Spanish:
Diario Libre
El Dia
Hoy
Listin Diario
4 March 2019