2011 – Page 85

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a US$10 million loan to the Dominican Republic to help the Ministry of Agriculture improve the prevention and control of plant and animal pests to safeguard the quality of food consumed locally or exported. The resources will help the Dominican Republic raise standards in its agriculture sector, improve access …

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The Fernandez administration is keeping mute on revelations in WikiLeaks documents containing critical descriptions of top military officials. So far, only senator Wilton Guerrero (PLD, Peravia) has spoken out on the issue. Guerrero was the first government official to denounce drug trafficking penetration of high offices following the Paya 6-person murder case in Bani in …

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13 Supreme Court justices need to be chosen. The Foundation for Institutionalism and Justice (Finjus) together with several universities has organized meetings for presentations by leading legal experts to help the selection process to meet expectations of transparency and achieve high level of legitimacy and citizen acceptance. The talks are to be known as “Following …

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The Senate of the Republic passed three pieces of legislation in its last session, ranging from marriages celebrated by Protestant pastors to the division of the spoils from drug seizures and the modifications to the national budget law. The Senate accepted a modification introduced by the Chamber of Deputies to the legislative proposal of the …

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The president of the National Association of Hotels and Restaurants (Asonahores), Juan Llibre, revealed yesterday that the national tourism sector is losing ground to its competitors in the Caribbean, the main sign being that in the first half of the year tourist arrivals grew by barely 3.5% against a 5% growth in the region. “It …

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An investigative article in today’s Diario Libre describes just how difficult, frustrating and time-consuming it is to obtain a clear title to a property received through one of the government’s housing projects. On one level there is a notorious lack of effort by the government to collect the money owed on the apartments and on …

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Proposals are on the table for changing the status of 43 villages across the country, basically a form of gerrymandering. (Gerrymandering is the political use of geographic boundaries to strengthen a party’s hold on an area or a seat in Congress. It dates back to XIX century US politics.) What all this means is that …

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The National Consumer Protection Institute (ProConsumidor) has issued a warning against the use of Oral B mouthwash manufactured in Colombia, due to possible contamination by microorganisms that could cause the death of patients with diabetes, HIV or a weak immune system. ProConsumidor issued the warning after receiving notification from the Network of Consumer Health and …

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PLD presidential candidate Danilo Medina met with former Brazilian President Lula Da Silva in Brasilia yesterday, as reported in El Caribe. A press note from Medina’s political office said that Medina strives to achieve a considerable reduction in poverty in the DR as Lula did in Brazil during his administration. Medina’s Brazilian tour schedule includes …

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The trial of Sobeida Felix Morel and seven other defendants accused of links with Puerto Rican capo Jose David Figueroa Agosto’s money laundering network is now entering its final phase. The deputy prosecutors and the lawyers for the defense will present their final arguments and make their appeals to the judges Diario Libre says that …

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