DR News
The Ministry of Foreign Relations is promoting abroad the Oscar de la Renta Award for Dominican expats. Nominations for the award are being received until 21 May 2018. The International Dominican Migrant Award Mr. Oscar de la Renta was created to recognize the positive contributions of Dominicans living and working abroad.
Nominations can be sent to the Ministry of Foreign Relations and Dominican missions abroad. The award nominations are open to first and second generation Dominicans.
The awards have the support of the Oscar de la Renta company and family. The award was created by the Dominican government in Decree 242-17.
Source: Dr1, http://www.premioemigrantedominicano.gob
March 26, 2018
Dominicans eligible to vote in the 2020 presidential election told Gallup-Hoy pollsters they do not share the enthusiasm of Medina administration officials for a possible reelection of President Danilo Medina. To the question if the polled person was in agreement with President Danilo Medina amending the constitution for a second time, the response was overwhelmingly against this. 22.6% said they were totally in disagreement, 44.3% in disagreement, 1% neither in agreement or disagreement, 23.1% in agreement, 6.6% in total agreement, and 2.5% no comment.
President Medina is banned by the 2015 Constitution from running for President in 2020. This is the same constitution that was amended so he could run for reelection in 2016.
Answering to the question of who the polled would like to be the next President of the Republic, Luis Abinader of the leading opposition party received 18.8% of preferences, President Danilo Medina and former President Leonel Fernandez of the ruling PLD tied with 14.8%, Vice President Margarita Cedeño received 7.2% and Guillermo Moreno of Alianza País, a minority party, received 6.6%.
Answering to the question of who should be the PLD presidential candidate, 19.7% said Danilo Medina and 18.7% former President Leonel Fernandez, 4.4% Vice President Margarita Cedeño, while most of those who were polled uncertain who would be the candidate.
Source: DR1, Hoy
March 26, 2018
In January 2018, family members in the Dominican Republic received a total of US$522.4 million in remittances, an increase of 18.5% over January in the previous year. According to data from the Central Bank, this is the largest percentage increase from January one year to the next for the past eight years.
The majority of the remittances, 74.31% of the total, came from the United States. Experts believe that the tightening of the immigration policy and the threat of potential deportations have led expat Dominicans to increase in the amount of money flowing into the country from the US. Expats in Spain sent back 12.81% of remittances.
In January the average per transaction was US$228, but some countries had a higher average such as Switzerland with US$403, Spain with an average of US$383, France with US$360, Germany with US$309 and Italy with US$291.
Source: DR1, DiarioLibre
March 26, 2018
An estimated 300,000 Dominicans do not have legal identities, a situation that affects entire families. A recent effort to correct the situation is bringing together ten universities and several government institutions to take actions to help these socially excluded persons.
Signing the agreement are the Attorney General Office, the Supreme Court of Justice, the Specials Programs of the Presidency, the Central Electoral Board, the Federation of Dominican Municipalities, among others.
In the Dominican Republic, parents have 30 days to declare a child. When this doesn’t happen in time, a lengthy and sometimes costly procedure must be undertaken.
The participating universities are: Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo (UASD), Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra (PUCMM), Universidad Pedro Henríquez Ureña (UNPHU), Universidad APEC (UNAPEC), Universidad del Caribe (UNICARIBE), Universidad Federico Henríquez y Carvajal (UFHEC), Universidad Tecnológica de Santiago (UTESA), Universidad Central del Este (UCE), Universidad Abierta para Adultos (UAPA), and Universidad de la Tercera Edad (UTE).
Source: DR1, pgr.gob
March 26, 2018
The story of a young female slave forced to work on a Jamaican plantation in the mid-19th century will be filmed at Pinewood Studios in Juan Dolio, Dominican Republic this summer. It is a BBC One adaptation of Andrea Levy’s novel “The Long Song”. Heyday Television is producing with the company’s David Heyman and Rosie Alison joining Williams, Levy and the BBC’s Elizabeth Kilgarriff as executive producers.
http://www.kftv.com/news/2018/03/14/…nican-republic
Source: Dr1, kftv.com
March 26, 2018
With more than two years to go for the May 2020 general election, a Gallup poll published in Hoy newspaper reveals that most Dominicans are uncertain over who they would vote for President in 2020. The poll was carried out by Gallup Dominicana for Hoy newspaper from 5 to 11 March 2018. Some 1,200 persons eligible to vote were polled in Greater Santo Domingo, the south, north and eastern regions. The poll results have an error margin of plus or minus 2.8%.
PLD voters: 46% of PLD voters said they are uncertain who would be the party’s candidate. 19.7% understand incumbent President Danilo Medina should be the PLD candidate for President, even when the 2015 Constitution bans him from opting for another term. Former President Leonel Fernández was mentioned by 18.7% of those polled. 4% mentioned Vice President Margarita Cedeño. Nevertheless, when the name of President Medina was removed, her numbers increased to 27%.
PRM voters: 49.9% of eligible voters in the Dominican Republic do not know who should be the PRM candidate in the 2020 presidential election. 31.8% believe this should be Luis Abinader, and 7.8% favor former President Hipólito Mejía. David Collado, who is the mayor of the National District, had a preference of 3.3% among those polled.
PRD voters: The PRD allied with the PLD in the 2016 general election. Now the Gallup poll reveals that among PRD voters there is an uncertainty of 66.5% regarding who would be the presidential candidate for that party. 10.8% mentioned Miguel Vargas Maldonado, the party president and incumbent foreign minister.
PRSC voters: The PRSC is the political party with the most uncertainty. 83.8% of PRSC voters said they were clueless who would be that party’s presidential candidate. The president of the party, Federico Antún Batlle appears with 6.3% following, and La Altagracia senator Amable Aristy Castro received 3.3% preference in the poll.
Among the minority parties, Guillermo Moreno of Alianza País did best, with 46% of voters thinking he would run for president on that party’s ticket. Among the minority parties, 26% mentioned Eduardo Estrella of Dominicanos por el Cambio and 3.4% mentioned Max Puig of Alianza por la Demoracia.
President Danilo Medina and former President Leonel Fernandez were tied to 14.8% to the question of “who would you prefer” of the two. 18.8% of PRM voters said they would like PRM presidential candidate to win the 2020 presidential election. Vice President Margarita Cedeño was preferred by 7.2% of the population. And Guillermo Moreno of AlPais received 6.6%. Former President Hipólito Mejía received 6.2%, and Ramfis Domínguez (grand child of dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo) got 5.4%. David Collado, mayor of the National District, received 2.8% of the preferences.
Source: DR1, Hoy
March 26, 2018
Americans who travel abroad are sometimes injured in accidents, just like at home. Perhaps the most common accident is a slip and fall at a hotel or resort. Upon returning to the United States for treatment, the injured party may call a lawyer and ask if her or she can sue in the United States. The answer is probably no.
A good illustration is Goldstein v. Hard Rock Cafe International (USA) 2012 WL 13035390 (U.S.D.C., M.D., Florida). In Hard Rock plaintiffs stayed as guests at a Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Punta Cana. Plaintiff alleged that while walking from the guest room to the resort’s casino, he slipped and fell on a walkway that was pooled with water. As a result of the fall, the plaintiff suffered a severe injury requiring a total knee replacement. The hotel is part of various hotels and resources that are owned by or partnered with Hard Rock Café International (USA). Plaintiff, a resident of New Jersey, sued the Hard Rock Café International (USA) a Florida corporation, in Florida.
G. Kendall Sharp, Senior US District Court Judge, dismissed the case on the grounds of forum non conveniens, which he described as follows:
“Under the federal doctrine of forum non conveniens, when an alternative forum has jurisdiction to hear a case, and when the trial in the chosen forum would establish oppressiveness and vexation to a defendant out of all proportion to the plaintiff’s convenience, or when the chosen forum is inappropriate because of considerations affecting the court’s own administration and legal problems the case may, in an exercise of its sound discretion, dismiss the case even if jurisdiction is in a proper venue or established.” (Am. Dredging Co. v. Miller, 510 U.S. 443, 447-48 (1994) [quoting Piper Aircraft Co. v. Reyno, 454 U.S. 235, 241 (1981)].
The Judge based his decision on a number of factors. Hard Rock submitted an affidavit from an attorney licensed in the Dominican Republic who explained that it is a democratic nation with a multitiered judicial system that provides for appellate review. The Dominican attorney also asserted that plaintiffs have a remedy in tort under Dominican law and there is a court there that could exercise subject matter jurisdiction over the case and personal jurisdiction over the defendants and in which venue would be proper.
The court then enumerated various “private interest factors.” These factors were the relative ease of access to proof, the availability of witnesses, the fact that Dominican law would probably apply, and that Dominican law would have to be translated from Spanish for the case to be handled in the United States.
The Judge also addressed the issue of unwilling witnesses who might not be compelled to come from the Dominican Republic to testify. The court also referred to the need to view the premises although the court did not find that to be too much of a factor. There are also other practical problems such as that persons who should have testified or be impleaded into the action would be beyond the jurisdiction of the U.S. court.
There are also public interest factors which include local interests and local controversies, familiarity with governing law, problems with the conflict of laws and application of foreign laws and the burden on jurors in the plaintiff’s chosen forum.
The court did not dismiss without conditions, including requiring the defendants to submit to the jurisdiction of the court in the Dominican Republic, make witnesses available and not plead a statute of limitation defense or any jurisdictional bar in the courts of the Dominican Republic. The law on this subject is nationwide. For example, California where in Loya v. Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide, Inc., 583 F.3d 656 (9th Cir. 2009) the court affirmed the dismissal on forum non conveniens grounds based on an accident that occurred in Baha, California Sur Mexico.
Do these decisions forever close the door? Not necessarily. State courts may not apply such a strict view of forum non conveniens. But any Federal Court will apply the same factors to the case in virtually any suit involving an accident in a foreign country.
Source: https://www.jdsupra.com
March 26, 2018
550 pesos per adult “All you can eat Buffet”!! Not only eggs…. choose your favorites on eggs, omelettes, hush Brown, Bacon, sausages etc ..our Chef prepares it right at the buffet. Then, of course, croissants and other various delicious breads, tropical fruits, variety of cheese, egg-shrimps salad, salmon and much more…
Parada Tipica El Choco restaurant is located on the highway Sosua – Cabarete, km 2 (opposite Sosua Ocean Village).
The annual lobster ban is officially underway! Craving the savory sea critter? Well you’re going to have to wait until June 30th! From March until June it is mating and reproduction season for Caribbean lobster. Eight years ago, in 2010, the ban was placed on these crustaceans during their breeding season because of over fishing causing a decrease in the numbers of the species. Placing this “No Lobster” ban is an attempt to balance out the numbers and avoid Caribbean lobster extinction!
Even if you are in a place that offers lobster, even if you’re out for an afternoon boat trip and see plenty of lobster, do not buy them! Vendors selling them are disregarding the ban and threatening the existence of Caribbean lobsters such as spiny lobsters, spotted spiny lobsters, and spiny rock lobsters.
The ban is respected across the Caribbean and Central America, and to protect the delicious shellfish it is essential to support this ban for the next few months! Anyone that is found disrespecting this ban could be fined up to US$50,000 as well as serve a jail sentence of up to 10 years. By saying no to lobster for a few months, you are guaranteeing the continuation of enjoying the savory shellfish for years to come! Just think about how rewarding that first lobster will taste, post ban, knowing you did your part in saying NO to lobster!
Source: Casa de Campo Living
Mar 21, 2018
Supermercado Playero is a well established since 1985, family owned, large grocery store / supermarket in Sosua. The supermarket located right next to the highway (entering El Batey section of Sosua). Additionally, there is a smaller Playero grocery store on Pedro Clisante street.
At Playero they will unload your cart, bag & carry out your groceries & much more!
Conveniently opened 7 days a week from 8:00 AM to 9:00 PM
- Fresh Produce including local & imported
- Meat Department featuring homemade sausages and meat cut daily
- Deli serving rotisserie chicken, salads, sandwiches, desserts, speciality cheeses & more
- Dairy Department including all natural, organic and gluten free products
- Large Frozen Foods section
- Everyday & Speciality Groceries, household items and personal care products
- Fresh Bakery from neighborhood bakeries
- Liquor and beverages store (national and imported brands)
- Dog products section including famous brands food, accessories, care products
- Hardware department
- Household appliances
- Local telephone providers Altice and Claro
- Cafeteria
- We accept all credit cards
- Gift Certificates available for purchase
- Cell phone prepaid machines
- Currency Exchange service at the cashier
- A large extensive parking place, including a roofed space.
Playero runs regular Xmas and Mother’s day lotteries, with the main prize – a brand new car.
They also offer a “Playero card” that earns you points, which you can redeem at any time.
Contact Details:
Carretera Sosúa-Cabarete, Km 1
Sosúa, Dominican Republic
Tel: (809) 571-1821
