2001 – Page 86

Former president of the USSR, Mikhail Gorbachev is expected to arrive today via Punta Cana International Airport to give a series of conferences on the Russian transformation process, El Siglo newspaper reports. The National Palace announced President Hipolito Mejia would decorate him and hold a reception in his honor. Born in 1931, Gorbachev was elected …

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Listin Diario reports that despite 10-hour blackouts of yesterday, relief could be coming soon. The newspaper says that the government announced it will soon sign a payment agreement with generators and distributors that will end the conflict which has led generators to shut down plants for lack of funding to pay for fuel. In a …

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The president of the National Council of Drugs, Antonio Martinez, board members businessman Ernesto Vitienes, TV producer Freddy Beras Goico, Monsignor Jesus Maria de Jesus Moya, and Mary Perez de Marranzini resigned from the National Council of Drugs as reported in the Listin Diario. The board resigned following public debates that lead to questioning of …

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An appeal made by the 17 bishops and Cardinal Nicolas Lopez Rodriguez of the Catholic Church served to slow down the rush of a group of senators and deputies to reform the Constitution. Civil society sectors fear that behind the rush is the attempt by congressmen to extend their terms beyond 2002. The excuse would …

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It was too good to be true. Now the Central Electoral Junta has ruled that electoral districts will not apply for the 2002 municipal election. Only for the electing of the congressional election of deputies. The JCE says there is only time to instate the system whereby voters can choose their candidates, not being subject …

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The Chamber of Deputies approved yesterday government borrowing for US$65.5 million. Press reports mentioned that of the money, US$20.8 would go to finance highways signposts, US$8.8 million to equip the Dario Contreras Trauma Hospital, US$15.4 million to equip the troops of the Armed Forces and US$10.2 to purchase 11 helicopters (protested for being used helicopters) …

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Economist Frederic Emam Zade highlights today in an article published in the Listin Diario that the PRD senators and deputies that are pushing to pass the US$500 million issue of sovereign bonds would become tomorrow’s kamikaze politicians. He warns that the issuing of the bonds would just result in burdensome indebtedness for the country and …

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Listin Diario points out that Dominican banks are paying considerably more than US banks for deposits in dollars. Money deposited in savings accounts and certificates of deposit in the DR yields 4-7.2%. This is considerably more than the 2.44-3.25% US Federal Reserve savings rates. The newspaper points out that the outlook for savings in dollars …

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El Siglo newspaper denounced that following the government announcement of a US$368 million program to build 12,000 dwellings for those residing on the Ozama riverbanks, dozens of new dwellings are springing up. The builders of the new dwellings hope to be included among the 12,000 new home hopefuls. Traditionally, having a home in the risky …

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The United Nations lists the Dominican Republic in 86th place of 160 nations in its Human Development Report 2001 released yesterday in Mexico. The report uses data from 1999. Among Latin American countries the DR only ranks above Guyana (93), El Salvador (95), Bolivia (104), Nicaragua (106), Honduras (107), Guatemala (108) and Haiti (134) in …

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