Care for tourism
February 16, 2012
Jose Luis Chavez
SANTO DOMINGO. - In 2003, when the Dominican economy was severely affected by the bankruptcy of three major banks in the country, tourism is not only managed to go beyond the immediate impact of the crisis, but also reached a record high in the visitors and increase foreign exchange earnings.
In that year, the tourist flow increased by 19.5 percent, representing about 450 000 additional tourists compared to 2002. The total flow of nonresident visitors reached 3 million 282 thousand, exceeding for the first time the figure of 3 million tourists.
In foreign exchange earnings, tourism contributed $ 380 million more than in 2002, totaling 3 000 110 million, also topping the mark for the first time the 3 billion dollars. To measure the significance of tourism in our economy, it would suffice to note that exports of traditional products only in the same year reached U.S. $ 847.3 million, far less than a third of that recorded the call without chemenea industry.
But the Dominican tourism performance in the year of the Great Depression was not only good for tour operators and hoteliers, but also for many other related sectors, including government, industry, construction, trade, transport, agriculture, agribusiness, handicrafts, culture, economy, and the hundreds of thousands of direct and indirect employees that depend on this activity.
A neglected area
The point comes to mind about internal events that show the state of helplessness experienced by the country's main industry, despite being the engine of the economy and main ally of the other productive sectors.
It is not just that the Government denied the industry a budget consistent with their needs and their importance as flagship of the economy, as reflected in 2012 maintaining the same budget that had the Ministry of Tourism in 2005 but also the persistence of policies that reduce the competitiveness of the industry in a region where all countries that compete with the Dominican Republic adopted increasingly aggressive strategies to improve their offerings and attract more visitors.
Tourism seems to have no suffering in the state, as reflected in the indifference with which it was assumed the dramatic appeal made last October by Frank Rainieri, Puntacana Group, who urged the authorities to remove the onerous indexation that applies the rule the price of aviation fuel used in tourism and cargo, a factor which has increased considerably the cost of air travel to and from the Dominican Republic.
He said the practice is illegal because it prohibits an international treaty and said so with the airports, "which are zones anywhere in the world, from the most backward country to the most modern." No authority was not given the hint.
The claim of the Barceló Group
Traditionally conservative in managing their public image, the Barceló Group, a pioneer of Spanish tourism investment in the Dominican Republic thundered recently to complain about the issue of legal certainty, after five of its top executives in the resort of Bavaro were convicted to five years' imprisonment in a civil litigation and commercial character, in a move that has all the features of a conspiracy between the prosecution, the appellate court judges and representatives of a customer defaulting Barceló whose property had been seized by non-payment and for refusing to hand over the keys of premises occupied after the lease expired.
On a fairly strong and with a statement to the President and the President of the Supreme Court, the Barceló Group claimed certainty for their investments in the Dominican Republic.
Recalling that the corporation has invested hundreds of millions of dollars in renovation and reconstruction of its facilities in Punta Cana, the consortium said the court decision was appealed by their attorneys and be known by an appeals court in San Pedro de Macoris, but said that by the way it has been handling the justice in the case, their executives have no assurance that the appeal will be handled fairly.
Punta Cana, one of the most prestigious destinations in Latin America, had been the scene in 2011 of so-called "assault foreclosures" practiced by lawyers based complacent judgments, notices in the air and the obvious connivance of the police were able to occupy and forcibly evict several resort hotels, creating panic and astonishment of thousands of tourists who could not understand that this could happen in a country renowned abroad as a safe destination for visitors and investors.
Given this sequence of events and while Fernandez is in the final stretch of his administration, the obvious question is whether the authorities will be maintained until the end of the bias notoriously hostile to the most economically successful activity has been reported to the country the last 20 years. (11 February 2011)
The roads unusable block Miches tourism development
August 11, 2011
By Luis Jose Chavez 
MICHES, Dominican Republic. - In 2009, the Dominican-Venezuelan businessman Gustavo Cisneros announced the decision to invest about 2 billion dollars in a sustainable tourism project in the town of Miches, which according to the projections of their group business initially would generate more than 3 000 jobs and more than 14 thousand direct jobs in the long term.
Cisneros's announcement as part of a luncheon at the American Chamber of Commerce and in the presence of President Leonel Fernandez could not be more hopeful for a very poor community but with sufficient resources to become one of the main tourist resorts in the country . However, it has been over two years since then and the project progress has been made firm.
Mr. Cisneros has not offered a formal explanation, but Miches to the humblest of the people know that tourism development in that area has been blocked by poor road access to that community.
The iconic electric experience of Las Terrenas
July 11, 2011
In the country's widespread belief that Dominicans are unable to administer a system of adequate generation to meet national demand, and also lack a culture of payment to ensure the financial viability of this important service. Add to this the poor performance of the sector authorities to implement or facilitate various projects to develop alternative sources to reduce dependence on petroleum fuels.
A government unresponsive and distant
July 1, 2011
By Luis Jose Chavez.
SANTO DOMINGO. - "With its efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East, President Leonel Fernandez reaffirmed his prestige and international leadership," opined columnist recently awarded the national press. He was referring to the recent visit by the Dominican president to the Gaza Strip with the proclaimed purpose of promoting a peaceful solution to the old conflict between Jews and Palestinians.
Fernandez stop in the Middle East was part of an extensive international tour, which included three continents, as a digital newspaper Dominican defined as "a journey through the world in luxury and communities of sheiks."
The other legacy of Peña Gómez
May 10, 2011
When Dr. Jose Francisco Pena Gomez completed his term as trustee of the National District does not own a house or a vehicle in good condition. Many differences with Staff Members first, second, third and fourth categories now are enriched in the blink of an eye and in many cases not even receive a moral sanction!
Juan Bosch, Joaquin Balaguer and Jose Francisco Pena Gomez, the most trascedentes leaders of the Dominican Republic during the second half of the twentieth century, despite their marked differences in many aspects of political life, in his life showed a distinctive feature common: personal honesty and little attachment to material goods.
A necessary relief to Enmanuel Esquea Guerrero
April 25, 2011
By Luis Jose Chavez
Does it deserve Guerrero Dr. Emmanuel Esquea the infamous punishment of summary expulsion imposed by the Disciplinary Committee of the PRD for its responsible role as a referee in the PRD convention of March 6?
You really made Dr. Esquea Guerrero, along with members of the organizing committee who accompanied him, a moral offense or serious disciplinary so that everyone, inside and outside the PRD, as legal and just accept that decision?.
I understand and accept the prudent stance by the PRD's presidential candidate, Hipolito Mejia engineer in connection with this case. After the gesture of moderation Party Chairman, Miguel Vargas, Hippolytus does not apply to tarnish the atmosphere of reconciliation, so necessary to redirect the course to victory in 2012.
The hard work of Miguel Vargas
March 23, 2011
The hard task ahead Miguel Vargas is to demonstrate that the efforts made during the internal campaign to attract support from voters of other parties do not really favored him, but ... Hipolito Mejia, and also believe it.
As part of their arguments for not accepting the results of the convention of the PRD, the engineer Miguel Vargas has concentrated all its efforts to show that in the event voted hundreds of thousands of registered voters on the rolls of the LDP, the PRSC and other parties .
Offensive noise
March 21, 2011
The sounds are one of the main factors of environmental pollution in the Dominican Republic.
Santo Domingo has the unenviable privilege to be on the list of the noisiest cities in the world, and that the noises have become part of everyday life.
It is scientifically established that in addition to reducing hearing and lead to other physical and emotional disorders, noise created serious problems of living in our communities.
Specialized medical reports state that the noise produced deafness, headaches, difficulty sleeping, nervous tension, cardiovascular disease, impaired concentration, increased aggressive tendencies and reduced work productivity.
The big question
March 17, 2011
SANTO DOMINGO. - During the last few days, whenever I encounter a known PLD, I make the big question: How did you managed to get 200 000 PLD in the PRD convention? ...
The first answer was offered by a journalist of long militancy in the LDP. First I laughed as if I had made a joke. Then he became serious and said, "you know that's a story, some explanation must be sought to defeat, but in the LDP knew who would win in the PRD and not just the one we suited us."
The PLD and PRD convention
March 12, 2011
The leading sector in the PRD Miguel Vargas has refused to recognize the results of the last national convention on the grounds that voting in the March 6, attended by members of the LDP and other parties who allegedly decided the victory for Hipolito Mejia
But the only reason given to substantiate this position is the suspicion or affirmation without content, because the facts and evidence speak otherwise public. As input should be noted that despite all the warnings made by the group of Vargas on the possible presence of PLD, voting only 872 thousand votes were observed by both parties to over one million voters. What happened there?
