DR News
WhatsApp, the messaging platform has announced that they will withdraw service from several models of cell phones from 1 July 2019. The application will no longer be available on Blackberry, Windows Phone and those with a version before Android 2.3.3, Windows Phone 7 and iOS 7. Besides, phones with Blackberry OS, Blackberry 10, and Windows Phone 8 will only have service until the end of this year. Those phones with a version of Android 2.3.7 up to Android 4 will continue to receive assistance until February 2020.
According to Statista.com, the social network most used by Dominicans is not Facebook, Instagram or YouTube, but rather WhatsApp.
Whatsapp is the preferred social network, with 77% of the social network users in the country.
This is followed by Facebook with 73%, YouTube at 46% and Instagram with 41%.
Even though Instagram is in fourth place, the Dominican Republic is one of the countries with the highest penetration of the app.
In fifth place is Snapchat with 23%, then Twitter with 21%, and finally LinkedIn and Tumblr with 4% each.
Source: DR1, DiarioLibre
July 6, 2019
The Constitutional Court ruled that the articles of the Civil Code and the Code of Civil Procedure that impose restrictions on foreigners to sue or be part of a judicial process are null and void. These had forced many foreigners who did not own real estate here to post bond to litigate. The cost of the bond or real estate was pegged to the amount of what was being disputed in the legal case.
The Constitutional Court declared the provisions contained in articles 16 of the Civil Code and 166 and 167 of the Code of Civil Procedure to be inconsistent with the Constitution. It stated that these violated articles 39, 40, paragraph 15 and 69 of the Constitution of the Republic, which establish the right to equality, liberty and personal security and adequate judicial protection and due process.
With the ruling, the Constitutional Court upheld a direct action of unconstitutionality filed on 26 December 2000 by the Fundacion Fesore, Inc.
Source: DR1, Listindoario
July 6, 2019
The National Police announced the arrest on Friday, 28 June 2019, of two of three persons still sought in the case where Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz was almost killed on 9 June at the Dial Bar & Lounge of Av. Venezuela. That evening, Ortiz was engaged in conversation with his friend Sixto David Fernández Vásquez when he was shot in the back at close range by a man who had gotten off a motorcycle. The authorities say Ortiz was mistakenly shot. The authorities say that Fernández Vásquez was the target, not David Ortiz, but this was botched up by the contracted killer. Fernández was a regular at the Dial Bar & Lounge.
Arrested on Friday were the alleged attempted murder mastermind Victor Hugo Gómez Vásquez and his accomplice Alberto Miguel Rodriguez Mota.
Gómez Vásquez was arrested at a house located in the Residencial Carmen Renata III, in Pantoja, Santo Domingo West. As reported, Gómez Vásquez was sought in the US for his alleged role with a Texas drug trafficking ring related to Mexico’s Gulf Cartel and had arrived recently from on a boat trip from Puerto Rico.
Rodríguez Mota was detained off the coast of Samaná as he attempted to flee in a boat to Puerto Rico. Authorities said he carried an adulterated ID. The ID had Rodríguez Mota’s photo, but the data indicated it belonged to Jorge Enrique Leroux Matos.
Shortly before his arrest, Gomez Vasquez released a video statement denying that he was involved in the June 9 attack. “I don’t harm people. I’ve never harmed anyone,” he said in the video. Gómez said he would “never” order to kill Big Papi. He used the video, nevertheless, to tell on his cousin, Fernández Vásquez.
In the video he tells that his cousin dealt with capos. Fernández is known to be the owner of the Auto-Paint shop in Villa Consuelo, Santo Domingo. “Sixto David Fernández is not such a saint, he is not simply a businessman who does nothing wrong, he dedicates himself to approach travelers, Dominicanyorks, and introduces them to the local capos of the Dominican Republic,” said Gómez in the 7-minute video that is circulating on social media. Gómez said the Dominicanyorks return to the US and then send his cousin money to pay for luxury cars and apartments. He said sometimes his cousin did not use the money as he had agreed to and then would run into debt because he lives a lavish life of expensive women and expensive cars.
In the video, Gómez says that in Santo Domingo people know who David Fernández is. Gómez said that those who don’t believe him just have to check 10 past years of shipments that Fernández has received from Dominicanyorks. He explained Fernández is compensated for connecting the vendor and the buyer.
In turn, the other arrested on Friday, Rodríguez Mota is accused of hiring the contract murder. A surveillance video showed him at the Santo Domingo nightclub hours before the shooting and how he stalked Fernández as the later waited for his close friend David Ortiz and others to arrive.
Police say that Gómez Vásquez sought to kill his cousin, Sixto David Fernández, because Fernández had reported him to police years ago, leading to his arrest in 2011. Reports are now that Gómez had made a comment that he did not want to see Fernández, concerned that he could tell the authorities that he had come to the country, escaping arrest in the United States. This would have set off the move to kill Fernández.
The Police have arrested around 14 people in the shooting yet say one suspect is at large: Luis Alfredo Rivas Clase (El Cirujano). In this case, others under arrest are: Franklin Junior Merán (Rubirosa), José Eduardo Ciprián Lebrón, Carlos Rafael Álvarez, Lanny Estefanny Pérez Reyes, Rolfi Ferreira Cruz (the man who fired the shot at David Ortiz), Joel Rodríguez de la Cruz (Calamardo), Porfirio Ayendi Dechamps Vásquez (Nene), Reynaldo Rodríguez Valenzuela, Oliver Moisés Mirabal, Eddy Vladimir Féliz García (El Nata) and Gabriel Alexander Pérez Vizcaíno (Hueso) and Junior César La Hoz Vargas.
Over the weekend, a court ordered a year pre-trial custody to the three arrested on Friday, 28 June 2019 that were Alberto Rodríguez Mota, Julio César de la Hoz and Víctor Hugo Gómez Vásquez.
In a new development, the authorities say the price of the “job” was US$30,000 and not the RD$400,000 Police director General Ney Aldrin Bautista had said during a previous press conference.
Source: DR1, Bostonglode
July 6, 2019
The Ministry of Environment rejected granting permission to the city government of Puerto Plata for construction of the sanitary landfill in the Cofresí area. The new site that is practically adjacent to the old one met with widespread opposition from the tourism sector in Puerto Plata due to its proximity to hotel enclaves.
The Ministry is evaluating two other sites, including one in the community of Loma de La Bestia that is some three kilometers from the closed landfill in Maggiolo.
Mayor Walter Musa said he had not been notified. In the report, the environmental technicians warn of the severe consequences that the location chosen by the city government would bring.
On the weekend, activists in Puerto Plata protested the construction of the sanitary landfill in the area planned by the municipal authorities and Dominicana Limpia. The 140,000 square meter site had been purchased by the Puerto Plata city government at the cost of RD$52 million.
Recently, Jose Natalio Redondo, president of the Northern Hotels Association (ASHONORTE) reported that the designated delegation is reviewing nine options, which were technically evaluated by the expert in the area, the Mexican Pilar Tello.
Source: DR1, Elcaribe
July 6, 2019
The government of the People’s Republic of China is working with the Ministry of Tourism to facilitate the arrival of Chinese tourists to the Dominican Republic as part of the agreements between the two nations following the new diplomatic relations that began on 30 April 2018.
A Chinese delegation, headed by the president of the China Tourism Academy and the deputy general manager of Hainan Airlines, the main Chinese private airline and the fourth largest air passenger mover in Asia, are visiting to meet with representatives of the Dominican tourism sector.
Dai Bin, who in addition to being the president of the Chinese Academy of Tourism is also director of the National Tourism Data Center, will lead a day of work with Dominican tourism entrepreneurs so that they can adapt their facilities to the demands of the Chinese traveler.
Meanwhile, Pubin Liang, deputy general manager of Hainan Airlines, is coming to discuss the possibilities of creating routes to facilitate air connections between China and the Dominican Republic. The airline has several routes to the United States.
The mission, completed by Xiangyan Liu, Huang Juang, Yang Zhang, María Brava and Zhang Ye, is accompanied by Dominican ambassador in China, Briuni Garabito.
“For this, we are collaborating with the Dominican business sector so that it can be attractive to them. This mission, important for understanding how the Chinese tourism market works, has been promoted by the Dominican Ministry of Tourism,” explained Garabito.
Garabito said the Chinese government is especially interested in the Dominican Republic getting a share of the 130 million a year Chinese tourist market. Earlier this year, representatives of Ctrip visited. The Chinese company handles more than 60% of China’s tourism and travel operations.
The Chinese delegation is also scheduled to meet with President Danilo Medina and leading representatives of the tourism industry at the Presidential Palace.
The mission has already met with Minister of Tourism, Francisco Javier Garcia, and the Ambassador of China in the Dominican Republic, Zhang Run.
During the work visit, Dai Bin told Diario Libre in an interview that if all goes well the Dominican Republic could receive 50,000 Chinese tourists a year. He said that among the recommendations made is the facilities for visas, increase in promotion in China and the start of flights of a more direct air connection between both countries.
Source: DR1, Eldia
July 6, 2019
Dominican citizens can now purchase a tourist card to enter Panama visa-free for 30 days. The card is valid for one entry to Panama and costs US$20. The card can be purchased at the Consulate of Panama in the Dominican Republic.
President Juan Carlos Varela signed the decree on Monday, 24 June 2019, authorizing the new travel card. A requirement is that the person have previously visited Panama or another authorized country. President Varela expects the new facility will increase the number of Dominicans who go on shopping tours to Panama.
In October 2018, the government of Panama had announced a 5-year multiple entry visa for citizens of Cuba, People’s Republic of China, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and India.
According to sources, there is an oversupply of accommodations.
Source: DR1, DairioLibre
July 6, 2019
El Salto del Limón, an internationally known waterfall, of the tourist attractions of greatest symbolism in the province of Samaná, is about to disappear due to the low influx of water.
Jean Suriel, Meteorological Analyst said that “the emblematic Salto El Limón, in Samaná, northeast of the Dominican Republic, is almost running out of water. Last Sunday he was caught with a weak free fall. Several factors have affected it: the drought that has developed in the Dominican Republic since the end of 2018 and the logging in the mountainous area where the river is born. »
Source: Somospueblo
June 26, 2019
Local press is urging the population to back reproduction of turtles in the Caribbean. The Caribbean nesting season runs from May to July. The species that nest here are Hawksbill (Carey), Green (Verde), Leatherback (Tinglar) and Loggerhead (Caguama or Cabezona).
Cristiana de la Rosa, in charge of the Program for Restoration of Coastal and Marine Ecosystems at the Ministry of Environment and marine biologist Omar Shamir Reynoso of the National Authority of Maritime Affairs said turtles survival is threatened by human activities. They spoke during the Biennial 9th Conference of Parties to the Inter-American Convention for the Protection and Conservation of Sea Turtles (IAC) that was held 12-14 June 2019 in Santo Domingo.
The presentations focused on how the reproduction of the turtles is threatened by practices such as bycatch, capture, looting of eggs, destruction or alteration of their habitats by urban coastal development and climate change.
Sea turtles lay their eggs on all the coasts of the Dominican Republic. Among beaches known for turtle nesting are La Vacama, Playa Muerta, El Valle, Cosón, Parque Nacional Jaragua, Cabarete, Los Yayales, Manresa, Isla Saona, Isla Catalina, Punta Cana, Guibia, Los Pescadores, Estero Hondo, and Sosua.
Source: DR1, https://conserveturtles.org/
June 24, 2019
The recent prohibition on the use and installation of used, remodeled or out-of-date tires has reduced the sale of these tires by 70% in the local market. Francisco Ramirez, who owns a used tire store in Villa Juana, told El Dia that this decree by the National Institute for Ground Transportation and Transit (Intrant) is affecting both the seller and the clients, since new tires cost upwards of RD$3,000 and more, and not everyone is willing to pay that price.
Ramirez asks: “If they allow the import of tires made in 2015, what are they going to do with them in January of 2020? With five or six million tires imported, what are they going to do?
Moises Vidal says that used tires are affordable since prices vary with the size of the tire. A “concho” can buy tires that cost betweenRD$500 and RD$700, and tires for the hundreds, maybe thousands of Hyundais on the road cost between RD$1,200 and RD$1,400. The cost of these tires to the wholesalers varies with the size and the year of manufacture.
According to the Customs office, there were nearly 1.4 million used, light vehicle tires imported in 2018. Only a little over 11,000 truck tires were imported. Most of the tires come from South Korea, China, Spain and Germany. Fines for the use of unsafe tires can be over RD$5,000.
Source: DR1, Eldia
June 24, 2019
Attorney General Jean Alain Rodríguez Sánchez and the director of the National Police, Ney Aldrin Bautista, shared their preliminary conclusion that the shooting that injured David Ortiz at the Dial Bar & Lounge of Av. Venezuela on Sunday, 9 June 2019, was a case of mistaken identity. They made the statement during a press conference on 5:30pm on Wednesday, 19 June 2019, before the Corpus Christi holiday in the Dominican Republic.
The Attorney General and the Police director say the target of the hired killer was David Ortiz’s close friend, Sixto David Fernández Vásquez, who was seated at the same bar table with him on the evening of the shooting. Fernández had arrived early to prepare for the get-together with Ortiz at the bar. David Ortiz was a frequent visitor at the bar.
At the time of the shooting, Sixto David Fernandez shared a table with David Ortiz, TV commentator Jhoel Lopez, urban singer Secreto El Famoso Biberón, and María Yeribel Santiago García.
According to the hypothesis of the Attorney General and Police, a 25-year old hitman was hired to shoot Fernández. The accused hitman Rolfy Ferreras Cruz (who has also been referred to as Ramon Martinez Perez, Bayan, Sandy) has a criminal record in the United States and had just arrived a month before from the US.
The authorities say the motive was a long-time grudge carried by fugitive Victor Hugo Gomez Vásquez, a cousin of Sixto David Fernández Vásquez. Fernández Vásquez is the owner of an autopaint shop in the National District. Gómez Vásquez blamed his cousin for telling on him to the National Drug Control Agency in 2011. This led him to serve time in La Victoria jail. The authorities presented Gómez Vásquez as the intellectual author of the crime. Gómez Vásquez is at present a fugitive of US justice sought for drug trafficking.
Surveillance camera footage was presented to back the hypothesis the authorities reached after the arrest of around a dozen people.
The Police identified Alberto Miguel Rodriguez Mota as the crime coordinator. He was at the scene of the crime hours before Sixto David Fernandez and then David Ortiz arrived.
The Police presented a video and the blurred smartphone photo sent to the hitman two hours before the crime to justify how the accused hitman, Rolfy Ferreras Cruz, had confused Ortiz with Fernández. When the picture was sent, David Ortiz had not arrived to the bar.
The surveillance video presented by the Police also shows how Rodríguez Mota is the only person at the scene of the crime who did not run for cover after the shot was fired, and instead watched over how Ortiz collapsed and even picked up his beer for another drink.
The Police explained that Alberto Miguel Rodríguez Mota and Victor Hugo Gómez Vásquez met in the La Victoria jail when they both served time.
As reported in El Dia, the Dominican authorities have not been able to locate the whereabouts of the three identified as the masterminds in the case: Luis Alfredo Rivas Clase (El Cirujano), Alberto Miguel Rodríguez Mota and Víctor Hugo Gómez Vásquez. Police director Bautista said during the Wednesday press conference that they are in contact with the US Marshals Service and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents to locate the fugitives.
The hypothesis presented on 19 June 2019 by the Police and Attorney General has been met with generalized local and international skepticism. TV investigative journalist Nuria Piera in her investigative show on Saturday, 22 June 2019, presents many questions the Police and Attorney General version leave unanswered. Piera asks why the hitman would wait for Dial Bar to fill up with patrons when his alleged target, Sixto David Fernández was hanging out there for two hours before the crowds and the arrival of David Ortiz?
CNN journalist Patrick Oppmann was shut up by Attorney General Jean Alain Rodríguez when he referred to a clause in a Monday, 17 June 2019 prosecutor request for pretrial custody against Gabriel Alexander Perez Vizcaino (El Hueso), one of the 11 under arrest in the case, that referred to David Ortiz being followed by the criminals. Radio talk show host Marino Zapete airs the incident. After that question, Rodriguez would practically close the floor to more questions. Subsequently, the Attorney General would send an explanatory letter to Oppman citing the pretrial custody document was written before the new evidence that convinced the authority Ortiz was not the target.
Meanwhile, in Boston, Tiffany Ortiz, wife of David Ortiz shared that her husband was moved out of the intensive care unit at Massachusetts General Hospital. Tiffany Ortiz said in a statement released by his former team, the Boston Red Sox: “He remains in good condition and continues to recover under the care of Drs. David King and Larry Ronan.”
Source: DR1, Nbcnews
June 24, 2019
