2005 – Page 9

Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) representative Moises Pineda has informed that the organization will be investing over US$610 million to strengthen governance, competitiveness, and the creation of infrastructure for the prevention of natural disasters in the DR. Listin Diario reports that the first disbursement of US$150 million will be made during the first months of 2006. …

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The Haitian authorities have presented a formal apology to the Dominican government for the protests which took place during President Leonel Fernandez’s visit to Port-au-Prince last Monday. Diario Libre reports that the Dominican government accepted the apology immediately, declaring that the Haitian government was not responsible for the incidents. Fernandez’s visit to Haiti had to …

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District Attorney Jose Manuel Hernandez Peguero said that as of 5 December some 3,000 signatures had been collected in a petition against the recently passed law that authorizes the installation of slot machines in sporting betting shops. He hopes that President Leonel Fernandez will present a recourse of violation of the Constitution of the law …

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Attorney Tomas Castro has asked the Department for the Prevention of Corruption (DEPRECO) to open an investigation concerning a RD$9 billion fraud detected at Banco del Progreso, which is allegedly the main reason behind the removal of the bank’s president Pedro Castillo. According to Listin Diario, DEPRECO Director Octavio Lister says that the fraud was …

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One of the promoters of the artificial island to be built off the shore of Santo Domingo was convicted earlier this year by the First Criminal Chamber of the National District for presenting checks with insufficient funds to the tune of RD$300,000. Listin Diario reports that Augusto Rafael Menendez was also sentenced by the Civil …

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The alliance being negotiated between PRSC and PRD will include unified efforts to define important issues still pending in Congress, among those the selection of the Ombudsman. The parties also contemplate the approval of the law which regulates government purchases and contracting, and other legislation pertaining to migratory policy, the environment and natural resources. After …

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The shortage of Haitian workers for the coffee harvest in the municipality of Villa Trina, as a result of them fleeing after local neighborhood associations gave them a deadline to leave, has led to the loss of almost 40% of this year’s harvest. According to Diario Libre, the Haitians were forced to leave Villa Trina …

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The son of the suspended Dominican Consul in Puerto Rico has been indicted by US federal authorities two and a half months after his arrest on 26 September 2006, when he was caught preparing portions of heroin and cocaine in an apartment complex in Rio Piedras, as reported by Listin Diario. Edison Espinal Genao, the …

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Bones found in a seven-meter pit during the excavations for the Metro station in the Olympic Center in Santo Domingo are those of an animal, according to technicians of the Dominican Anthropological Museum (Museo del Hombre Dominicano). Diario Libre reports that Glenys Tavarez, Director of the Department of Physical Anthropology who was in charge of …

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The Presidents of the Central American nations, Mexico and the Dominican Republic got together in Cancun, and agreed to put into motion the preparations needed to achieve regional energy integration by May 2006. They also agreed to meet in the Dominican Republic in 2006. The Presidents set up a technical committee that will meet in …

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