2001 – Page 79

The government will build 12,000 dwellings on State Sugar Council lands near the communities of San Luis and El Tamarindo. The dwellings will be allotted to residents now living in the Ozama and Isabela riverside slums. Other dwellings will be built along the Carretera Mella. The Instituto Nacional de la Vivienda and the Inmobiliaria BHD, …

Read more…

Statistics show that about 80 crashes occur each day in the DR, making it especially important for drivers to be always on the defensive. From January to May, the Police Transit Department lists 6,954 accidents. Most occur in Santo Domingo, Santiago, San Pedro de Macoris and Puerto Plata. Fundacion Maricely Estrella says that around 2,000 …

Read more…

Multimedia Teleradio America (HIZ-UHF 45) has announced that it will no longer broadcast on radio or TV the talk show, “Los Hechos y su Historia” (the facts and their stories) hosted by Rafael Flores Estrella and Tomas Castro. The channel says “the highest echelons of the government suggested removing the program from the air immediately.” …

Read more…

The chief of the Puerto Rico Police, Pierre Vivoni, has ordered an investigation into the complaint that a boat carrying 34 Dominicans and one Haitian attempting to illegally enter Puerto Rico could have been rammed into by the Puerto Rican Rapid Defense Force. The 24 people who reached land after their ship capsized claimed the …

Read more…

The Miami Herald reports on the plight of Haitians who encounter hardships when migrating to the DR. The newspaper highlights their worse situation at home and also focuses on the high social cost to the DR of the massive immigration of impoverished people and the Dominican government’s efforts to improve living conditions in Haiti. “We …

Read more…

Conservation International, The New York Botanical Garden, The Cornell Biodiversity Laboratory, the Punta Cana Ecological Foundation and the Ministry of the Environment will host an ecological conference to address urgent biodiversity issues in the Caribbean. The conference will be held 26-29 July in Punta Cana. It will focus on the fact that only 11.3% of …

Read more…

The government announced reaching an agreement with most private generators for the payment of debts for US$63.6 million during a three-year period. The money would be primarily deducted from the 50% share of the state in privatized power companies. The agreement is expected to diminish blackouts. The agreement establishes the government will pay: Electricidad de …

Read more…

The Direccion General de Impuestos Internos (DGII) had collected RD$15,656 million as of 30 June 2001, 30.64% or RD$3,672 million more than revenues for the first six months last year. The government income tax department says that the collections reflect results of the applying of 1.5% on gross sales.

El Caribe reports that it is likely that the presidential commission appointed to propose changes to the Constitution will recommend reducing the 50%+1 vote requirement to win the presidency in the first round to 45%. Agripino Núñez Collado, coordinator of the commission said that there was consensus on this point. El Caribe says that victory …

Read more…