The year that is coming to a close has seen significant advancements in the organization of municipal, congressional, and presidential elections, although voter turnout has declined.
The Dominican Republic’s economic performance has been a standout in the region, boasting a growth rate of around 5% and stable inflation control. However, the country’s debt levels continue to rise.
Among the year’s negative highlights are the slow progress in corruption cases and the judiciary’s attempt to restrict access to information about the identities of defendants.
The fight against corruption has slowed this year, as evidenced by the lack of action from oversight bodies such as the Chamber of Accounts, the Ethics Agency, the National Congress, and the Comptroller General.
Participacion Ciudadana writes that the presidential and municipal elections were successes in 2024, with the Central Electoral Board and the Superior Electoral Court demonstrating exceptional work in organizing the processes and resolving disputes. While challenges were fewer than in previous elections, political patronage and the high cost of politics continue to hinder further progress. Voter abstention increased, a trend that the Central Electoral Board has pledged to investigate.
The year 2024 was marked by a slowdown in the oversight function of government agencies, although there were advancements in the regulatory framework, such as the enactment of the Law No. 18-24 on the Chamber of Accounts and the entry into force in February 2024 of Decree No. 416-23, which approves the new regulations for the application of Law No. 340-06. In terms of internal control bodies, significant progress has been made in the regulatory and monitoring work of the Procurement Agency.
Regarding democratic institutions, the approval of a constitutional reform that makes it more difficult to remain in the Presidency beyond two terms stands out. Participacion Ciudadana writes that another positive change was the exclusion of the Attorney General from the National Council of the Magistracy, the appointment of the Attorney General and their deputies through a proposal that the president will present to the National Council of the Magistracy and the inclusion in this body of the president of the Constitutional Court.
Participación Ciudadana regrets that the term of the Attorney General will now be for only two years, with the possibility of being confirmed for another similar period, which reduces its independence. Nor does it share the decision to unify elections on a single date.
PC laments that the opportunity for a national agreement on tax reform has been lost, given that the country has a long list of investment needs to improve the lives of the population. It urges the government to resume this reform in 2025 and advance in other priority areas such as social security, health, political parties, public safety, police reform, the criminal code, and amendments to the Public Procurement Law. The important Asset Forfeiture Law, enacted in 2022, has not yet been implemented due to the lack of regulations.
Participación Ciudadana highlights as positive elements of the year the ratification of the president and three other members of the Central Electoral Board, the renewal of the Constitutional Court, and hopes that progress will continue, with transparency and the primacy of the collective interest, in the selection of various positions in the Supreme Court of Justice and in the selection of the Superior Electoral Tribunal. With regards to the Chamber of Accounts, PC expresses the need for the National Congress to change the old practice of distributing its members by political forces or by interest groups, which has done terrible damage to this important body and has plunged it into inaction.
While sharing the concern about the Haitian issue, PC understands that the country must be prudent, balanced, and firm in addressing the difficult situation we face in sharing the island with a country that is suffering a deep economic, political, institutional, and social crisis, but that, at the same time, maintains and must continue to maintain both a commercial relationship and a controlled supply of the labor force that the country requires for agricultural production, construction, and other services.
With firmness but respecting due process and human rights, we must continue to protect our borders, end corruption in the trafficking of Haitians, and establish institutional mechanisms for the stability of those Haitian workers who contribute to the sustainability and growth of the Dominican economy.
The Dominican economy resumed its growth rate in 2024 and is expected to end the year around five percent, the highest in Latin America. Inflation in October was 3.2%, and it is estimated to end the year around 3%. Participación Ciudadana believes that the government should reduce the pace of public debt and address investment needs with a modification and streamlining of taxes.
One of the most concerning issues in 2024 has been the slowness in the knowledge of public corruption cases by the courts with jurisdiction, as both preliminary hearings and trials have been hindered by dilatory tactics, postponing hearings for months for unjustified reasons.
In cases such as the so-called “Camaleón,” it was surprising that a defendant’s pre-trial detention was changed, despite the fact that a list of judges and assistants was found in his vehicle in a clear attempt to influence the cases, endangering the evidence and the integrity of the members and assistants of the judiciary.
The worrying picture of the justice sector was further exacerbated recently when a regulation was announced that contributes to undermining transparency through a data protection policy that prioritizes privacy and the dissociation of data that would prevent the identification of defendants in corruption cases and other lawbreakers, when the Constitution establishes the public nature of trials as the rule, except in exceptional and specified cases or conditions that could compromise the process in some aspect.
Dominican society has undergone changes since 2017. A higher level of social participation is taking place in Dominican society. Social vigilance is expressed through challenges to anything considered contrary to the institutional order, respect for norms, and existing laws. From this perspective, there was widespread rejection of the DNI Law, as well as the president’s decree appointing the director of purchases and contracts in the presidency of the Public-Private Alliance to hold both positions simultaneously.
Participación Ciudadana reiterates its commitment for 2025 to continue contributing to the strengthening of democracy in the Dominican Republic, monitoring the use of public resources and the application of justice in corruption cases, and above all, accompanying the Dominican people in their aspirations for a better life and in respect for their rights.
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Participacion Ciudadana
17 December 2024