2000 – Page 39

Jorge Ivan Ramirez will fill the presidency of the nation?s oldest and largest telephone company, which has been vacant since March. The announcement was made by Fares Salloum, head of the Americas division of Verizon Corporation, Codetel?s parent. Verizon is the company formed by the union of GTE and Bell Atlantic, which took place this …

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The United States and the DR will work ?closely? to combat corruption, reduce poverty, improve, improve health and education, foster judicial and police reform, and maintain economic stability. So said Peter Romero, U.S., Under-Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, after meeting with President Hipolito Mejia and top government officials. Speaking to the press after …

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At one point during the meeting between government officials and a high ranking U.S. delegation, President Hipolito Mejia was briefly called away to receive with Carlos Andres Perez. The former Venezuelan President has been meeting with Haitian dissidents in an attempt to effect reconciliation between political factions in the neighboring country. Today?s newspapers indicate that …

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After a session with former Venezuelan President Carlos Andrez Perez in Santo Domingo yesterday, the ex-Mayor of Port-au-Prince, Evans Paul, denied that there had been a recent attempt at a coup d?etat. According to Paul, the coup is an invention of the government of Prime Minister Edouard Alexis to justify repression of political dissent. Paul, …

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The Director General of Immigration reports that more than a million Haitians reside in the Dominican Republic, the greater part of them illegally. According to Trajano Moreta Cuevas, round-ups of Haitians residing in the country illegally number between 60 and 100 each day. Despite beefed up security at border crossings, impoverished individuals and families find …

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The CEO of one of the nation?s largest corporations is opposed to the new tax proposals being advocated by the government. Jose Leon Asencio, CEO of the A. Leon Jimenez Group, believes that a more efficient use of current public funds is preferable to the imposition of new taxes that will thwart corporate growth. Any …

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Salaried employees have experienced a decline of 17.3% in the spending power of their incomes during the previous three months. In a story appearing on the front page of Listin Diario, Rafael Tomas Jaime attributes the decline to recent increases in the cost of food, transportation, education, and rent, all variables that impact family budgets …

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Schoolchildren enjoyed an unofficial holiday yesterday at public schools in Santo Domingo. Due to the policy recently adopted by the Ministry of Education, teachers are required to appear in person at district offices in order to collect their paychecks. Traditionally, teachers? paychecks have been distributed at the schools where they teach. The new policy, which …

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Yesterday, the head of the Dominican Olympic Committee (COD), Jose Joaquin Puello, convened a meeting of the National Sports Federation – comprising the heads of the DR?s sports organizations – to explain planning measures in advance of the Pan Am Games, scheduled to be held in Santo Domingo in 2003. Puello gave the assembly details …

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