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The president of the Junta Central Electoral, Manuel Ramon Morel Cerda explained that social peace and political equilibrium were behind his rulings in the cases of the Partido Reformista Social Cristiano and Bloque Institutional Socialdemocrata. The PRSC ruling confirmed the leadership of former president Joaquin Balaguer. Party members had disputed this in their scramble to …

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Falconbridge has announced a three month suspension of production at its Bonao plant. The closing is due to the drastic reduction in international nickel-iron prices caused by the slowdown of the steel industry in the US and Japan. Production will stop on 28 October. From January to July 2001, Falconbridge’s gross profits were US$2.7 million …

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Judge Eduardo Sanchez Ortiz has ordered the former Minister of the Armed Forces Major General Constantino Matos Villanueva to appear before a criminal court regarding his knowledge of the arrest of Narciso Gonzalez. The journalist was reported missing on 26 May 1994 shortly after publishing a very critical expose on former President Joaquin Balaguer. The …

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Years of visits by hundreds of thousands of German tourists are bearing fruit. German Ambassador Eva Alexandra Countess Kendeffy says in Listin Diario newspaper that German cooperation, investment and travel continue to be at high levels in the DR. The German ambassador, who has been in the DR for two years now, says investments of …

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The expansion of the military and a bulging government payroll seem to have cut into the funding available to access matching funds that would make it possible to distribute loans from multilateral lending institutions. El Siglo reports that the government income has fallen short not only because of lower-than-expected tax revenues but also because it …

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Orlando Gil, a political commentator for El Siglo newspaper, laments that the election of new judges for the Supreme Court has gone political. “The initial discussions leave clear the panorama. It is not about finding good, capable and fair justices. Instead, each party wants to maintain their quota of power in the judiciary,” he concludes. …

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The builders don’t have the right permits from the Ministry of Public Works or the Municipality, but work continues on the construction of a fast food stop and gas station (parador) in the middle of the green area that divides the eastbound and westbound lanes of the Las Americas Highway next to the Las Americas …

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Economist Frederic Emam-Zade backs the forecast of a 3% year end growth for the DR predicted by the Economic Commission for Latin America (ECLAC). He bases his forecast on the Dominican Republic’s dependency on the performance of the US economy. In a report in the Listin Diario, he says parallels can be historically drawn between …

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The National Council of Business, the nation’s largest business organization, published its Report No. 170 in which it says the economy is on a growth track again. However, it says further growth depends on the government rectifying first year errors. To read the report in full, see http://www.dr1.com/business/conep0801.shtml

Long line ups on Sunday surprised even the owners of La Sirena Multicentro on the east side of Santo Domingo. Opening last week on the east bank of the Ozama River, the large shopping center became the first to cater to the needs of the area’s more than one million people. Previously, residents had to …

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