2008 – Page 114

Yesterday, tanker ships arrived in the DR to deliver propane gas. More tankers are expected this week to restore supplies and ease the present propane shortage. Propane distributors have closed shop because they have depleted their inventories. Public transport unions say that half their vehicles are out of service because they have not been able …

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The European Partnership Agreement process is once again dragging on with no timetable set for when the agreement will formally come into play. Issues with the EPA have developed in all stages of process. Originally it was the negotiations that caused problems, with smaller Caribbean nations asking for larger concessions. Opposition to the agreement is …

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Aside from dealing with the normal issues facing the nation, President Leonel Fernandez must now deal with the internal strife caused in his party over the allocation of well-paid government posts. Fernandez has continued naming party members to various positions, but many party members are unhappy with the allocations. Given the situation, the PLD held …

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Ines Aizpun of Diario Libre writes today of the need to de-politicize politics in the DR. She comments that the plan for a professionalized bureaucracy has been thwarted by pressures on the government to find jobs for those that campaigned for the reelection of President Leonel Fernandez, regardless of their qualifications, and despite the fact …

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It’s been nine months and still Haitian authorities have yet to allow Dominican chickens and eggs to be sold legally in Haiti. Authorities in the neighboring nation originally prohibited the sale of Dominican chickens and eggs because isolated incidents of Avian flu were reported in the DR. Dominican authorities took drastic measures to contain the …

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A regional comparison of test scores in math, science and language demonstrate the DR is below the regional average in all three categories, while Cuba is above the regional averages. The SERCE study, administered by UNESCO, compared the skills of third and sixth grade students in 16 Latin American countries. According to the study only …

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The highly anticipated trial of former Dominican military captain Quirino Ernesto Paulino Castillo, versus the US for their participation in a DR-based drug-trafficking organization is scheduled to be heard by Judge Kimba Woods today at the New York’s Southern District Court. Paulino Castillo was extradited after being arrested on 18 December with a shipment of …

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Dominican American soldier Jorge Luis Felix Nieves was killed in a traffic accident in Baghdad, Iraq, as reported in Diario Libre. The Puerto Plata native will be flown back to the DR for burial, as per the wishes of his mother, Victoria Nieves. Little information has been released regarding how the young soldier has died. …

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Police have arrested Colombian Alexander Restrepo Carmona for his alleged involvement in the 4 August drug-related massacre of six in Bani. As a preventive measure, Restrepo was sent to jail for 18 months. Police have also arrested Police Major Frederick Guillermo Abud for his involvement in the massacre. Six men were killed and another injured …

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September is the peak month for hurricanes in the Caribbean. It is also the month when the most storms develop, with those beginning off Cape Verde in Africa having the highest potential for becoming storms that could affect the West Indies. This is also a time when rates at resorts are the lowest, and the …

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