2004 – Page 225

Hoy reports that the international Dublin Group has offered to assist the Central Electoral Board (JCE) with the election process. The proposal was made during a meeting with the Supervisory Committee for the Electoral Process, chaired by Monsignor Agripino Nunez Collado at the PUCMM in Santo Domingo. The delegate from the European Union, Miguel Amado, …

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The “La Vida” section of the Listin Diario highlights two swimming holes in Bayaguana that are now being offered up for the enjoyment of tourists. The rivers Comate and Comatillo are surrounded by impressive vegetation, and the waterfalls on the Comatillo River are an impressive stop for tourists, both local and foreign. Residents of the …

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The Dominican Republic will not participate in the interim international security force the United Nations is coordinating for Haiti, said Foreign Relations Minister Francisco Guerrero Prats. He said the DR will maintain a neutral position in the crisis, while offering Dominican territory as a bridge for the dispatch of humanitarian aide to the Haitians. Nevertheless, …

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Dominican Ambassador in Washington, D.C. Hugo Guiliani Cury, as reported in El Caribe, feels that Haiti has a greater need for support in rebuilding its institutions and economy than it does troops. Guiliani Cury rejected that Dominican territory be used for Haitian refugee camps. He said the international community has a new opportunity to help …

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President Hipolito Mejia swore in his new Presidential Consulting Council made up of high-profile Dominican businesspeople. The new advisory group was announced in his state of the republic speech on 27 February. Members are Alejandro Grullon (Banco Popular Dominicano), Elena Viyella (Caterpillar energy company), Manuel Enrique Tavares (Itabo free zone, Tavares construction material), Roberto Bonetti …

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Manuel Maria Mercedes, president of the National Commission of Human Rights, said he would renounce his seat on the Commission for Prison Pardons due to the serious irregularities of the process. Mercedes says the government chose to pardon 10 people who had been rejected by the commission, and excluded others that had been approved. Mercedes …

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Government arrears in the subsidy payments to propane gas importers is said to be the main reason for the renewed propane gas scarcity, according to a report in El Caribe. “They are not paying weekly. If they did so, this situation would not happen,” said one source who felt that scarcity is now the norm. …

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The President’s legal advisor, Guido Gomez Mazara, announced his resignation from the post to dedicate himself fully to the eastern region’s re-election campaign for President Hipolito Mejia. Gomez’ notice follows that of another Hipolito Presidential Project (PPH) group proponent, Agriculture Minister Eligio Jaquez. Gomez, viewed as one of President Mejia’s strongest supporters, made headlines recently …

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The US State Department released on 1 March the 2003 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR), an annual statement from the Department of State to Congress, prepared in accordance with the Foreign Assistance Act. It describes the efforts of key countries to counteract all aspects of the international drug trade in 2003. The US sees …

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Dominican historian and sociologist Ruben Silie Valdez is the new secretary general of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS). He succeeds Jamaican Norman Girvan and will serve a four-year term. Silie was elected unanimously at the Third Special Meeting of the Ministerial Council of the Association of Caribbean States held in Panama on 12 February. …

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