2006 – Page 285

Seven canon shots marked the burial in San Pedro de Macoris of Sergio Mercedes Sosa, 22, who died serving the United States Army in Iraq on 5 February 2006. His widow, Joselin Giron, who is pregnant, could not hide her grief at the loss of her husband. Mercedes Sosa had joined the US Army in …

Read more…

Santo Domingo’s Duarte Bridge, which links the western and eastern parts of the capital across the Ozama river, is scheduled to reopen on Friday, 24 February, at 5:00pm. The bridge will have been closed for one month for essential repair works, as reported by Diario Libre. Refurbishment of the 50-year-old bridge cost US$16 million and …

Read more…

Former US President George Bush Sr. arrived in Casa de Campo, La Romana, yesterday. This is his fifth visit to the Dominican Republic in the last few years. According to Listin Diario, he arrived on a private flight amidst a discreet but effective security operation, and went straight to a private villa where he is …

Read more…

AMET officers have been given instructions to stop retaining driver’s licenses for traffic violations as of last Friday, announced director general, Major General Jose Sigfredo Rodriguez Fadul. He announced that the traffic violation system has been automated. As of Friday, motorists who are stopped for traffic violations will have to pay their fine to get …

Read more…

The Fernandez government has taken a commercial loan with the ABN AMRO banking group and a pool of Scandinavian banks for US$65.9 million, to build the Guaigui dam in La Vega. The government entrusted the construction of the dam to the Italian-Dominican firm, Impreglio-Yarull. It will cost US$59.4 million. Design and supervision of the dam …

Read more…

The Central Bank reports that inflation increased by 1.55% in January. The report on the behavior of the Consumer Price Index shows that annualized inflation from January 2005 to January 2006 was 8.25%. This is significantly lower than the 18.79% inflation reported for the similar period a year ago. The 12-month inflation rate has continued …

Read more…

Former US President Bill Clinton will put in a good word for the Dominican Republic in India. Foreign Relations Minister Carlos Morales Troncoso was in the Indian capital New Delhi recently, to open new channels for attracting Indian investment and trade towards the Dominican Republic where he coincided with Clinton. Morales said that Clinton offered …

Read more…

Andres Vanderhorst, director of the Airport Department says the government is going ahead with the opening of the Joaquin Balaguer Airport at Higuero (previously known as La Isabela airport), located in the northern part of the Province of Santo Domingo. The airport was built primarily to service domestic flights. Herrera International Airport will be closed …

Read more…

The president of the Association of Builders and Real Estate Promoters (Acoprovi), Jose Rodriguez Caceres and the president of ReMax Dominicana Melido Marte are optimistic about the real estate market in the Dominican Republic, as reported by Listin Diario. They say that there has been a definite recovery in sales since the end of last …

Read more…

Agriculture Minister Amilcar Romero will stand for election as senator for the Province of Duarte (San Francisco de Macoris) in the 16 May 2006 congressional and municipal elections. His candidacy has the support of the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) party. He is a leading figure in the newly created Popular Reform Party (PRP), a …

Read more…