National Trade Data Bank ITEM ID : ST BNOTES DOMREP DATE : Oct 28, 1994 AGENCY : U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE PROGRAM : BACKGROUND NOTES TITLE : Background Notes - DOMINICAN REPUBLIC Source key : ST Program key : ST BNOTES Update sched. : Occasionally Data type : TEXT End year : 1992 Date of record : 19941018 Keywords 3 : Keywords 3 : | DOMINICAN REPUBLIC DOMINICAN REPUBLIC BACKGROUND NOTES, 12/91 PUBLISHED BY THE BUREAU OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS US DEPARTMENT OF STATE December 1991 Dominican Republic PROFILE Geography Area: 48,442 sq. km. (18,704 sq. mi.), about the size of Vermont and New Hampshire. Cities: Capital--Santo Domingo (pop. 2.4 million). Other city--Santiago de los Caballeros (490,000). Terrain: Mountainous. Climate: Maritime tropical. People Nationality: Noun and adjective--Dominican(s). Population (1990 est.): 7.1 million. Annual growth rate (1990 est.): 2.4%. Ethnic groups: Caucasian 16%, African origin 11%, mixed 73%. Religion: Roman Catholic 95%. Language: Spanish. Education: Years compulsory--6. Attendance--70%. Literacy--80%. Health: Infant mortality rate--63/1,000. Life expectancy--67 yrs. Workforce: Agriculture--35%. Industry--13%. Services and government--23% (includes parastatal corporations). Unemployment--29%. Government Type: Representative democracy. Independence: February 27, 1844. Constitution: November 28, 1966. Branches: Executive--president (chief of state and head of government), vice president, cabinet. Legislative--bicameral Congress (Senate and Chamber of Deputies). Judicial--Supreme Court of Justice. Subdivisions: 29 provinces and the National District of Santo Domingo. Political parties: Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD), Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC), Dominican Liberation Party (PLD), Independent Revolutionary Party (PRI), others. Suffrage: Universal and compulsory, over 18 or married; military may not vote. Central government budget (1990): $938 million. Defense (1990 est.): 5% of GDP. National holiday: February 27, Independence Day. Flag: Two red and two blue sections divided by a white cross with the Dominican coat of arms centered. Economy GDP (1990): $7.1 billion. Real annual growth rate (1990): -5%. Per capita GDP (1990): $998. Inflation (1990 CPI): 100%; (1991 est.: 9%). Natural resources (4% of GDP): Nickel, gold, silver. Agriculture (11% of GDP): Products--sugar, coffee, cocoa, tobacco, rice, plantains, beef, flowers. Industry (including manufacturing and construction, 22% of GDP): Types--sugar refining, pharmaceuticals, cement, light manufacturing, off-shore assembly operations (esp. textiles). Services, transportation, and others (1990): 63% of GDP. Government budget (1990): 13% of GDP. Trade (1990): Exports (excluding processing zones)--$704 million: sugar, coffee, gold, silver, ferronickel, cacao, tobacco, meats. Partners--US, Netherlands. Imports--$1.8 billion: foodstuffs, petroleum, industrial raw materials, capital goods. Partners--US, Japan, Germany, Venezuela, Mexico. Exchange rate (1990 avg.): US$1=RD$9. Fiscal year: Calendar year. Economic aid received: Non-US (1989)--$44 million. US assistance (1990): economic--$37.6 million; military--$1.9 million; counter-narcotics $448,000. International Affiliations UN and some of its specialized and related agencies, including World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF), International Labor Organization (ILO), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO); Organization of American States (OAS), Inter-American Development Bank, INTELSAT. PEOPLE About 50% of the people live in rural and agricultural areas; many are small landholders. Haitians form the largest foreign minority group, with Spanish and West Indians the other important ethnic groups. About 60,000 US citizens reside in the Dominican Republic, mostly around the capital. All religions are tolerated; the state religion is Roman Catholicism, recognized formally in 1954, when a concordat with the Vatican was signed. HISTORY The island of Hispaniola, of which the Dominican Republic forms the eastern two-thirds and Haiti the remainder, was originally occupied by members of the Taino tribe, a branch of Arawak-speaking peoples who anthropologists speculate originated in South America. When Columbus and his companions landed there at the end of their first voyage in 1492, the people welcomed them. The hospitality was not reciprocated by subsequent colonizers. Brutal colonial conditions reduced the Taino population from an estimated 1 million to about 500 in only 50 years. To assure adequate labor for plantations, the Spanish began bringing African slaves to the island in 1503. In the next century, French settlers occupied the western end of the island, which Spain ceded to France in 1697. In 1804, this became the Republic of Haiti. The Haitians conquered the whole island in 1822 and held it until 1844, when forces led by Juan Pablo Duarte, the hero of Dominican independence, drove the Haitians out and established the Dominican Republic as an independent state. In 1861, the Dominicans voluntarily returned to the Spanish Empire; in 1865, independence was restored. In 1905, after years of financial trouble largely brought about by civil wars, the US Government established a receivership over the Dominican customs service on behalf of US bondholders. More difficulties with foreign creditors, the threat of European intervention, and continuing internal disorders led to US occupation in 1916 and establishment of a military government there. This ended in 1924, when a freely elected Dominican government took office. In 1930, Rafael L. Trujillo, who had come to prominence as commander of the army, took power and maintained absolute political control until his assassination on May 30, 1961. Trujillo promoted economic development (chiefly to the benefit of Trujillo and his supporters) as well as intervention in the affairs of neighboring states and severe repression of domestic human rights. Before Trujillo's death, however, mismanagement and corruption resulted in severe economic problems. In August 1960, the Organization of American States (OAS) imposed diplomatic sanctions against the Dominican Republic as a result of Trujillo's complicity in an attempt to assassinate President Romulo Betancourt of Venezuela. These sanctions remained in force after Trujillo's death. In November 1961, the Trujillo family was forced to leave the country. In January 1962, a Council of State (which included moderate opposition elements with legislative and executive powers) was formed. OAS sanctions were lifted January 4, and, after the resignation of President Joaquin Balaguer on January 16, the council, under President Rafael E. Bonnelly, became the effective Dominican Government. Following free elections in December 1962, Juan Bosch, of the Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD), was inaugurated as President. Despite his reform program and respect for human rights, conflicts arose between him and various opposition groups, and political controversy grew progressively more bitter nationwide. On September 25, 1963, President Bosch was overthrown in a military coup. Another military coup, on April 24, 1965, led to an outbreak of violence between military elements favoring the return to government of Bosch (the "Constitutionalists") and those who proposed a military junta committed to early general elections (the "Loyalists"). On April 28, US military forces landed to protect US citizens and to evacuate US and other foreign nationals. The situation in Santo Domingo deteriorated into near anarchy. It was feared that communist leaders, many of whom were trained in Cuba, were increasingly taking control of the revolutionary movement. More US forces landed on April 30 to prevent what appeared to be a complete communist takeover. On May 6, the OAS formed an Inter-American Peace Force to cooperate in establishing peace and conciliation. The peace force included the US troops in the Dominican Republic and military elements from Brazil, Costa Rica, Honduras, Paraguay, and El Salvador. Negotiations with both sides by an OAS ad hoc committee resulted in the installation of an interim government headed by provisional President Hector Garcia-Godoy. In June 1966, this government held elections witnessed by OAS observers, in which Balaguer defeated Bosch for the presidency, receiving 57% of the vote. Balaguer assumed office on July 1, 1966, and the Inter-American Peace Force was withdrawn by September 21, 1966. President Balaguer, leader of the Reformist Party (now called the Social Christian Reformist Party--PRSC), was re-elected to office in May 1970 and May 1974, both times after major opposition parties withdrew late in the campaign. In the May 1978 election, Balaguer was defeated in his bid for a fourth successive term by Antonio Guzman of the PRD. Guzman's inauguration on August 16 marked the country's first peaceful transfer of power from one freely elected President to another. The PRD presidential candidate, Salvador Jorge Blanco, won the 1982 elections, and the PRD gained a majority in both houses of Congress. Before Jorge assumed office, however, the nation was shocked by the suicide of Guzman. Vice President Jacobo Majluta became President and completed Guzman's term. As President, Jorge sought solutions for the country's economic problems. Growing trade deficits, caused in part by low world prices for sugar and other commodity exports and a mounting debt service, combined to create balance of payments difficulties. In response, the Jorge Administration carried out economic adjustment and recovery policies, including an austerity program in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The rising costs of basic foodstuffs and public uncertainty about austerity measures led in April 1984 to several days of the worst riots since the 1960s. Balaguer, once again the presidential candidate of the Reformist--now PRSC--Party, won the May 1986 national elections, defeating PRD candidate Jacobo Majluta and the third-place finisher, former President Bosch of the Dominican Liberation Party (PLD). Although the voting process itself was generally seen as fair, the situation deteriorated as the votes were counted, and the functioning and composition of the Central Electoral Board were called into question. A commission of electoral advisers, designated by President Jorge and led by the archbishop of Santo Domingo, played an important role in keeping the electoral process on track. Upon taking office, Balaguer tried to reactivate the economy through a public works construction program. The economy rallied initially, but by 1988 growth had slowed, inflation approached 60%, and the currency was devalued. Economic difficulties, coupled with serious problems in the delivery of basic services (electricity, water, transportation, etc.), generated popular discontent that resulted in frequent protests--occasionally violent--including a paralyzing nationwide strike June 19-20, 1989. Balaguer was re-elected in 1990, garnering a little more than one-third of the vote in what was essentially a four-way race. His victory was clouded, however, by unproven allegations that fraud had occurred. Political tensions following the election coincided with further deterioration in the economy. Economic reforms announced by Balaguer in early August of that year triggered a 2-day national strike on the eve of his inauguration. Another national strike took place November 19-21 amid calls by some organizations, including the PLD, for Balaguer's resignation. Balaguer subsequently indicated he would take further measures to resolve the economic crisis, including negotiating a stand-by agreement with the IMF. POLITICAL CONDITIONS The Dominican Republic is geographically the largest and the most populous democracy in the Caribbean. It has a stable multiparty political system featuring national elections every 4 years. On May 16, 1990, the Dominican people exercised their right to vote for the seventh time in the democratic process begun in 1966, with about two-thirds of the 3 million registered going to the polls. At stake were the presidency, the vice presidency, congressional seats, and the municipal positions (mayors and council members). Candidates representing 16 political parties and two dozen independent provincial and municipal movements registered with the Central Electoral Board (JCE), the independent body charged with administering the elections, and appeared on the ballot. The four parties that led in the polls were: the PRSC, tied to the International Christian Democratic political movement, whose candidate was President Joaquin Balaguer; the PLD, whose candidate was former President Juan Bosch; the PRD, affiliated with the Socialist International, whose candidate was Jose Francisco Pena Gomez; and the PRI, whose candidate was former President Jacobo Majluta. Many of the smaller groups formed alliances with these parties. Election day was largely peaceful and incident-free. Early tallies on May 17 gave Bosch a slight lead, but later bulletins showed that Balaguer had gained a narrow advantage. The opposition PLD immediately charged the Electoral Board and the PRSC with fraud. The opposition PRD also alleged fraud, although it complained principally about congressional races and acknowledged that Balaguer had won the presidency. The Electoral Board and the PRSC denied all allegations. Following a highly controversial vote counting process, the Electoral Board officially announced on July 13 that Balaguer had been re-elected with 35% of the vote. According to the official figures, Bosch came in second with 34%, while Pena Gomez was third with 23% and Majluta received 7%. The PRSC succeeded in capturing a majority in the Senate, winning 16 seats, while the PLD won 12 and the PRD 2. The PLD obtained a slim plurality in the Chamber of Deputies, however, winning 44 seats to the PRSC's 42 seats, while the PRD won 32 seats and the PRI won 2 seats. GOVERNMENT Under the present constitution of 1966, the Dominican Republic is a representative democracy whose national powers are divided among independent executive, legislative, and judicial branches. The president appoints the cabinet, executes laws passed by the legislative branch, and is commander in chief of the armed forces. The president and vice president run for office on the same ticket and are elected by direct vote for 4-year terms. Legislative power is exercised by a bicameral Congress. As of the 1986 elections, the Senate is composed of 30 members--one for each province and the National District of Santo Domingo. The Chamber of Deputies has 120 members--a minimum of 2 from each province and/or 1 for each 50,000 inhabitants or fraction above 25,000. Congressional, municipal, and presidential elections are held simultaneously. The nine-member Supreme Court of Justice is appointed by the Senate. The Court has sole jurisdiction over actions against the president and members of Congress and hears appeals from lower courts. Each of the 29 provinces is headed by a presidentially appointed governor. Elected mayors and municipal councils administer the National District (Santo Domingo) and the 103 municipal districts. Principal Government Officials President--Joaquin BALAGUER Ricardo Foreign Minister--Juan Aristides TAVERAS Guzman Ambassador to the United States--Jose del Carmen ARIZA GomezAmbassador to the United Nations--Hector Virgilio ALCANTARA Ambassador to the OAS--Eladio KNIPPING Victoria The Dominican Republic maintains an embassy in the United States at 1715 22d Street, NW, Washington, DC 20008 (202-332-6280). ECONOMY The Dominican Republic is a middle-income developing country depending primarily on agriculture, trade, and services, especially tourism. Agriculture is the most important sector in terms of employment and output for domestic consumption, but it has fallen to second place (behind mining) in terms of export earnings. Tourism accounts for almost $1 billion in annual earnings and, along with exports from the export processing zones, represents the main growth area. Remittances from Dominicans living in the United States are estimated to be about $800 million per year. In 1990, real gross domestic product fell by 5% from the previous year, and consumer price inflation from December 1989 to December 1990 reached an unprecedented 100%. Debt arrearages led to a virtual cutoff in new foreign aid activities and sharply reduced investment in the Dominican Republic. An overvalued exchange rate contributed to a drastic shortfall in energy supplies and other vital imported good and services, which did serious damage to industrial and agricultural output during the last quarter of 1990. Central Bank measures to control monetary aggregates reduced the availability of credit to the private sector during the last two quarters; there was a significant drop in new construction in 1990. Since August 1990, the Dominican Government has successfully confronted widespread shortages of consumer goods and increasing inflation by enacting several key market-orientated reforms. The government eliminated costly consumption subsidies, standardized customs duties, adopted a floating exchange rate, curtailed monetary growth, abolished interest rate ceilings and resumed payments on the foreign debt. These policies were adopted without the financial assistance generally made available to countries undertaking such programs and had the deflationary impact usually associated with IMF-sponsored adjustment programs. For example, GDP fell by 5% in 1990 and by roughly 2.5% during the first quarter of 1991. In the first half of 1991, the government successfully eliminated its payment arrears to all multilateral lending institutions. It also made payments to the United States, thereby lifting restrictions to new assistance under the Brooke-Alexander Amendment (imposed in 1990 when arrears exceeded 1 year). In July 1991, after implementing this series of significant economic reforms, President Balaguer signed an 18-month standby agreement with the IMF in which the Dominican Republic unified the two-tier exchange rate and committed itself to make good on external debt arrears by the end of 1992, and adopt reforms of monetary policy in financing public sector deficits. DEFENSE The military consists of approximately 23,500 active-duty men and women, commanded by the president. Its principal mission is to defend the nation's independence and territorial integrity, but in the absence of a significant external threat, it serves more as an internal security force. The army, twice as large as the other services combined, consists of 4 infantry brigades and a combat support brigade; the air force operates 3 flying squadrons; and the navy maintains 30 aging vessels. The Dominican Republic's military is second in size to Cuba's in the Caribbean. The armed forces participate fully in the government's commitment to counter the movement of illegal drugs into and through the republic. They are also active in efforts to control contraband and illegal immigration from Haiti to the Dominican Republic and from the Dominican Republic to the United States. FOREIGN RELATIONS The Dominican Republic associates closely with the United States and with the other states of the inter-American system. It has accredited diplomatic missions in most Western Hemisphere countries and in principal European capitals. In 1991, it resumed diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. It does not maintain diplomatic relations with Cuba, although there is contact in fields such as commerce, culture, and sports. Dominican relations with its closest neighbor, the Republic of Haiti, have never been extensive. The Haitian community resident in the Dominican Republic, made up mostly of illegal immigrants seeking greater economic opportunities, is estimated to include several hundred thousand people. US-DOMINICAN RELATIONS The United States has excellent relations with the Dominican Republic. US policy is based on the principle of cooperation in international affairs, including appropriate support for the Dominican Republic's economic development program. In addition, bilateral trade is important to both countries, and US firms account for nearly all foreign private investment in the Dominican Republic. One important element of the bilateral relationship between the two countries is the Dominican community residing in the United States. According to some estimates, 1 million Dominicans live in the United States, the majority in New York City. Principal US Officials Ambassador--Robert S. Pastorino Deputy Chief of Mission--V. Manuel Rocha AID Mission Director--Raymond F. Rifenburg Consul General--Harry E. Jones Political Counselor--Francis Scanlan Economic Counselor--William Falkner Public Affairs Advisor (USIA)--Sheldon H. Avenius Agricultural Counselor (USDA/FAS)--Forrest K. Geerken Commercial Counselor (DOC/FCS)--Richard Ades (based in Miami) Defense Attache--Lt. Col. Gary R. Wright The US Embassy in the Dominican Republic is located at Calle Cesar Nicolas Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo (809-541-2171). Climate and clothing: Lightweight clothing suitable for hot, humid weather is appropriate in Santo Domingo year-round. Customs: A valid passport or tourist card is required of visitors. The tourist card, valid for 20 days, can be extended for an additional 70 days. The charge for the card at airline offices is $10; proof of citizenship, such as a birth certificate, is required. Visas are free of charge. No immunizations are required of tourists. Health: Santo Domingo has many American-trained, English-speaking doctors and dentists who speak English. Tapwater is not potable. Telecommunications: Telephone service links all major points in the country. Long-distance connections can be made to the US and other countries without difficulty or undue delay. Transportation: Flights are available from the US to Santo Domingo's International Airport, with or without stopovers in Haiti or Puerto Rico. Flights from the US are also available to the north coast resort area of Puerto Plata. Some companies in Santo Domingo arrange chartered, air-conditioned bus tours for groups. A group can charter a car at a reasonable cost.