DR News
Following 9 years of sold-out, successful festivals at sea, Kid Rock and Sixthman, the industry leader in music festival vacation experiences, are bringing the “Chillin’ The Most” Party to the beaches of Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. Kid Rock’s “Dysfunctional Family” will trade the seas for the shores and converge on the stunning Hard Rock Punta Cana for four food and drink inclusive days, during which they’ll enjoy 2 headline shows by Kid Rock, multiple shows by special guests to be announced in the future, and $750 in Hard Rock resort credits.
Put your worries in the rearview, set your sights on a carefree vacation, and come fly high at the wildest island party of all time! Rooms for the Flyin’ High Island Jam are on sale NOW at http://www.kidrockbeach.com and selling quickly!
After producing 116 music festivals at sea, Flyin’ High Island Jam marks the first time Sixthman will bring their innovative, community-centered festivals to a land resort.
“Our mission is to compliment and capture the magic that occurs on our music festivals at sea and provide fans the opportunity to escape on aresort festival vacation to exotic locations, soaking in the sand, sounds and special feeling of being together with their favorite artists and others who share their same spirit and passions,” says Sixthman CEO Anthony Diaz.
Accommodations for Flyin’ High Island Jam begin at $1,999 per person, and are inclusive of all food and beverages (alcoholic and non-alcoholic) for the duration of the festival, all amenities of the resorts and ground transportation to and from Punta Cana International Airport. Low deposits and flexible payment plans are available on this once in a lifetime vacation experience.
Source: broadwayworld.com
Oct 2, 2018
Statistics from the weekly bulletin from the Epidemiology Department (DIGEPI) of the Ministry of Public Health show that 793 babies have died in the first three months of this year compared to 601 over the same period last year that is an increase of 31.9%.
In the maternity hospital, San Lorenzo de Los Mina, of the 796 registered births up to 31 March this year, 22% died before reaching one month.
The Ministry of Health announced a program to reduce infant and maternal deaths 12 years ago, but so far it has had no success. Teenage pregnancies, absence of prenatal checks and hundreds of births to Haitian woman who come to the hospitals to give birth directly from Haiti have been cited as the reasons for the high infant mortality rate in the country. According to the director of Los Mina hospital, Paulino Díaz Ozoria, the rate of infant mortality in the first quarter of the year was 22.8% for Haitian babies and 26.3% of babies whose mothers were teenagers.
Director of the Maternal-Infants and Adolescents Program at the Ministry of Public Health, Juan Carlos De Jesús, said that they are working on a new plan of action which would shortly be announced. De Jesus declined to give details of the new strategy to combat infant mortality.
In addition, the director of the Presidente Estrella Ureña Hospital in Santiago, Francisco Hernández, and the president of the Dominican Medical College (CMD), Wilson Roa, attribute the high rate of infant deaths to several factors include premature births and the precarious situation in many hospitals, attributed to crumbling facilities, the lack of equipment and supplies as well as a shortage of medical personnel.
Most of the deaths of premature infants are caused by respiratory problems and septicemia.
Last year, 2017 there were 2,932 infant deaths of which 78% (2,280) occurred within the first month of life, with the majority being from 0 to 6 days old.
Source: DR1, DiarioLibre
April 19, 2018
Ocean World Adventure Park in Puerto Plata has achieved certification through the global American Humane Conservation program for the welfare and humane treatment of the animals under its care. Ocean World passed a rigorous third-party audit to become the first institution in the Caribbean to earn the prestigious Humane Certified seal of approval.
The American Humane Conservation program is the first-ever certification program solely devoted to helping verify the humane treatment of animals living in zoos, aquariums, and conservation centers across the globe. The program enforces rigorous, evidence-based standards of comprehensive animal welfare, developed by an independent Scientific Advisory Committee comprised of world-renowned leaders in the fields of animal science, animal behavior, animal ethics, and conservation.
“Our entire team is honored to be the first institution in the Caribbean to achieve this prestigious certification for animal welfare,” said Stefan Meister, Vice President of Ocean World Adventure Park. “Our animals’ care and well-being have always been our priority. Receiving the Humane Certified seal from the world’s most respected humane organization shows our commitment to meeting the highest standards of humane animal care.”
“It is our responsibility as the trusted and expert guardians of more than 2,000 animals to always provide them with exceptional and humane care,” added Kees DeGroot, zoological director at Ocean World. “Our team of professionals is truly dedicated and passionate about the well-being of our beloved animal family and as a result, they are thriving under our care.”
The American Humane Conservation program’s extensive criteria exhaustively verify the many dimensions of animal welfare and well-being, with areas of evaluation including: excellent health and housing; positive social interactions within groups of animals, as well as between animals and handlers; safe and stimulating environments, with concern for factors such as appropriate lighting, sound levels, air quality, and thermoregulation; and evidence of thorough preparation and protocols established to prevent and manage medical or operational emergencies.
Source: DR1, https://www.benzinga.com/
April 17, 2018
According to the Second National Immigrant Survey, carried out in 2017, the foreign population in the Dominican Republic is 570,933, which is equivalent to 5.6% of the total population. Of these some 497,825 were born in Haiti, for 87.2% and the remaining 73,108 are from other countries.
In addition the study reveals that in the last five years the numbers of immigrants, mainly Haitians and Venezuelans has increased by 50,000 (some 9,260 persons a year).
Economy Minister Isidoro Santana said that this year the descendants of immigrants reached 277,046 of which some 253,255 were of Haitian origin.
The increase in the number of immigrants year to year is basically due to arrivals of Haitians and Venezuelans who come for work reasons. 80% of Haitians and Venezuelans are aged between 15 and 45. Over the last five years the number of Haitians has increased by nearly 40,000 from 458,233 in 2012 to 497,825 in 2017 which is 8.6% over five years.
Over the same period the number of Venezuelans has increased by over 653% from 3,434 in 2012 to 25,872 in 2017. The numbers of other foreigners is more or less unchanged.
Source: DR1, Almomento
April 17, 2018
The Police reported the arrest of the brother of the former director of Customs Agency, Roberto Jesus Bisonó Cabrera, for the death of the latter and his son-in-law Eliceo Darío Esteban Martínez Aquino. The two were found dead inside a vehicle in La Lomota de Altamira in Puerto Plata.
The spokesman for the Police, Frank Durán Mejía, said that units of the Criminal Investigations Agency (Dicrim) collected sufficient evidence that incriminates Apolinar Federico Bisonó Pérez as intellectual author of the murder of Bisonó Cabrera and his son-in-law Martínez Aquino. Surveillance video and telephone conversations in the sector of Villa Nueva Arriba, Navarrete helped the Police reach these conclusions. When arrested, Bisonó Pérez said he had planned the death of his brother for two years due to a clash over the management of a family farm. He decided to order the killing of his brother because he was very difficult and would not share the yields of the farm.
Also under arrest are Ceferino Durán Arias (El Gringo) and Reynaldo Vargas Reyes, among others.
Source: DR1, Metrord
April 17, 2018
According to information published last week by the Central Bank, the Price of the products and services which make up the family basket for the poorest in the country registered the highest increase during the last year.
Over the last 12 months the most basic basket has risen in price from RD$13,220.72 in March 2017 to RD$13,783.77 at the end of March this year.
On analyzing the increase, economist Miguel Collado Di Franco said that it is obvious this will cause a major impact in the homes of families with the highest level of poverty.
The main reason for the increase was a 5.3% spike in food prices plus alcoholic beverages which have increased by 6.2% in the year, followed by 4.5% increase in transport and housing is also up by 4.2%.
There are different family baskets depending on social strata with the average costing RD$30,149.07 at the end of March this year. However those in the highest social class spend more with the basket costing RD$61,586.58. Those in the level below pay RD$31,461.53 that is an increase of 3.9% over the last year, and the level below that pay RD$24,119.01. The second lowest basket is at RD$19,661.61.
Source: DR1, DiarioLibre
April 17, 2018
A heart-warming episode of the Ellen Degeneres show featured Dominican Diana Aquino, who moved to the US seven years ago and says she learned English watching the show.
“Be Kind,” remembers Aquino, she picked up from show host, comedian and actresss Degeneres. Aquino knew only two words — hello and goodbye — when she arrived to the US. Today she is a math tutor and works in a retail shop.
On the show, Aquino received a US$10,000 donation to apply to her studies.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNIXRXikYDc
Source: DR1, Lisitndiario
April 17, 2018
Only 12% of third graders in public schools did satisfactory in the diagnostic tests carried out by the Ministry of Education that monitor reading and math levels (Evaluación Diagnóstica Nacional de Tercer Grado de Primaria). Another 38% of students tested had acceptable performance and 50% showed only basic level.
Ancell Scheker, director of quality control for the public school system, said the purpose of the evaluation was to test performance levels resulting from the new curriculum, support educational centers and use this information to develop programs to train teachers, plans and policies for improving quality. “Quality and equity are the great challenges of our educational system. The results of this evaluation indicate that there is diversity in the performance of the students and that it is necessary to continue the efforts putting all the emphasis on the improvement of learning, “said Scheker.
The president of the Dominican Public Schools Guild (ADP), Eduardo Hidalgo, said that all the blame cannot be placed on the third grade school teachers – these shortcomings must to be shared by the teachers of the early grades. He said the biggest weakness is in reading-writing skills. “The guild sees these scores as a challenge to work to change this situation,” he said. He said improvements are needed in the education teachers are receiving at the university level.
Some 180,000 students were tested. The educational centers will receive their individual report of the results and an analysis guide to bring together the management team and teacher of the first cycle of primary school and families to identify the factors that affect the results so plans for improvement can be drafted.
Diario Libre managing editor Ines Aizpun in an editorial on Monday, 16 April 2018, says the low scholastic levels contrast with doubling of funds available for the public school system. Aizpun appreciated that Education Minister Andres Navarro made the results known to the public. “It’s not poverty, nor low wages, nor lack of technology in the classrooms, nor lack of classrooms, nor masters education for the teachers, nor the conflicts over the choosing of the regional directors,” she comments. “To teach how to read and write, throughout the centuries, 4% of GDP has not been necessary.”
Source: DR1, Diariolibre
April 17, 2018
SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – A Dominican court sentenced a businessman to 20 years in prison Tuesday for being the mastermind of the 2011 kidnapping and murder of a journalist who had promised to reveal information about the man’s alleged links to drug trafficking.
The killing of Jose Silvestre, who edited a magazine and had a program on a local television station in La Romana province, was the first case of a journalist in the Dominican Republic being murdered directly for his statements against members of organized crime.
Matias Avelino Castro, 47, was found guilty of being the mastermind behind Silvestre’s murder. Six other people have been arrested and prosecuted in the case. Three of them were sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Castro was a fugitive until his 2016 capture in Colombia. He was extradited to the Dominican Republic last year.
His lawyers did not immediately say if they would appeal the ruling. During the trial in San Pedro de Macoris, 47 miles (75 kilometers) east of Santo Domingo, the defense argued the prosecution had not presented sufficient evidence of Castro’s involvement in the killing.
Silvestre was kidnapped and murdered after his television program announced that the next edition of The Voice of Truth magazine would carry the journalist’s report revealing details of a recent homicide involving a businessman presumably linked to drug traffickers.
At the time, police estimated Castro had assets worth about $130 million.
Source: http://www.foxnews.com
April 17, 2018
Founder Rolf R. Schulz of the Mundo King museum has unfortunately deceased on January 9 this year. Fortunately, his sons and daughter decided to preserve this remarkable project for Sosúa.
The remarkable building is a museum for Haitian and Dominican art. The building looks like a combination of a fairy tale castle and a spacecraft. However, some say it looks like a mosque. The entire building, all the dozens of halls and rooms and cellars are full of sculptures of often large size and colorful paintings. Visiting this particular museum is well worth the effort. You will be amazed about all these remarkable sculptures and paintings.
The museum is open daily from 8 AM to 6 PM. The administrator Leonel (of Haitian descent), is happy to give a tour.
Entrance is 300 pesos per person.
Source: Sosua News
April 17, 2018
