Santo Domingo – elections and a few photos
05/18/2008
Just a few impressions from Santo Domingo, the capital of the Dominican Republic.
The Dominican Republic is a representative democracy with a presidential system much like the one in the US. The President is elected by popular vote in elections held every four years, always on 16 May. The latest elections took place two days ago and the main candidates running for office were the incumbent Leonel Fernandez Reyna (Dominican Liberation Party/ Partido de la Liberación Dominicana; the “violet party”), Miguel Vargas Maldonado (Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD) / Partido Revolucionario Dominicano; the “white party”) and Amable Aristy Castro (Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC) / Partido Reformista Social Cristiano; the “red party”). (See more at the end of this post.)
I was lucky enough to have spent some time in this beautiful country of breathtaking nature, great music and cheerful people who let me bug them about their views of politics and the presidential candidates. Here are a few photos that may not be as sexy as the palm-adorned sandy beaches or perfectly cut grass of spectacular golf fields to most, but I needed some contact with real life.
One thing is certain, though… the people of Santo Domingo know how to parteeeeeeee!
Not everyone can afford a home, but none of the homeless freeze to death. Or die of hunger, I was told.
The less-frequently visited hoods of the city.
What gives?
One of the most famous streets of Santo Domingo: Calle Las Damas.
The Prez’s ride and escort in front of the Presidential Palace.
Two days ago, the incumbent Leonel Fernandez won the elections in the first round, securing about 53% of the vote. During both his previous terms, the country has done well and much progress has been made. Watching this lawyer on TV, I was impressed with the way he addressed complex legal and political issues in such a colourful and simple manner, that even I with my poor command of Spanish could follow his line of reasoning. For example, he debated the various types of judicial systems with regard to the role of the Constitutional or Supreme court and went as far as to explain his view of regional autonomy on the case of Kosovo.
For the sake of Jose Miguel and his friends I hope the old new President keeps the country on track to the prosperity that the entire island (yes, the entire island) and its people deserve.
Oooook so here comes one of the more typical Dominican photos just for you, my friends:
Punta Espada, a signature golf course of Jack Nicklaus at Cap Cana, where the first PGA tournament (Champions Tour) in the Dominican Republic took place in April 2008.
pengovsky said,
May 18, 2008 @ 1:59 pm
Hey, great post!
I’m quite impressed that a presiednt of a small Carribeean nation, half-way across the world can be bothered with Kosovo, especially since his country (and its immediate neighbour) is not exactly lacking problems…
Camille said,
May 18, 2008 @ 2:04 pm
Thank YOU!!! I love getting your perspective on your travels.
dr.filomena said,
May 18, 2008 @ 10:26 pm
@P: Hey, thanks! Written in haste, so please pardon the post’s unpolished nature. There is so much to tell about this country. I do hope Haiti catches up somewhat. I didn’t understand the details on Kosovo so will refrain from commenting on that, but I did understand Kosovo, Albanians, Serbs, lots of children, autonomy, independence. Will not jump to conclusions despite the urge to do so with the clearly evident attitude Dominicans have towards Haitians, many of whom are in the DR as illegal aliens.
@Camille: So glad you enjoyed this 😉 Hope I find the time to share more.
pijanec said,
May 19, 2008 @ 7:42 pm
Nice photos.
Haiti can’t catch up anymore. When there is no more forest cover in the tropical (typically)bad weather, soil is washed away. Instead of lush green island Haiti is now a “stone country” where they can’t have agriculture and where they can’t even cook anymore, because there is no electricity and no woods to make a fire. Hence the problems are permanent…
dr.filomena said,
May 19, 2008 @ 9:33 pm
@pijanec: I’ve heard this about Haiti before and do hope there is a chance that the destroyed part of the island recovers sometime in the future. It should serve well to remind us all of what lasting damage man is doing to the Earth.
pijanec said,
May 23, 2008 @ 1:29 am
Well then they need to invent magical formula for making soil. Their whole island is devastated. They tried to fix it (by massive planting of trees) some years back when there was still a chance but failed. Here is an typical example what it is like today.
http://www.ired.com/pix/news/mkt/haiti.jpg
You can’t fix that in tropical climate. No wonder you can find a lot of Haitians on every Caribbean island. A lot of Haitians also die trying to leave their country.
dr.filomena said,
May 23, 2008 @ 9:40 am
Thanks for the link, pijanec, although I do not believe in “can’t be done”. The only question is that of the will (an financial support) to do it. That and time.
It seems rather perverted to see millions of dollars being spent on the construction of dreamlike golf courses by the ocean where the greens are made of special grass that can be watered by salty water pumped directly from the sea, just a few dozen kilometres from the site photographed above.
Dr. Filomena » The Shoeshine Boy Act said,
November 22, 2009 @ 12:23 am
[…] Jose Miguel caught my attention in the Dominican Republic a year ago with that sunny smile and entrepreneurial spirit. Which is not even a tiny fraction of the attention the Slovenian Prime Minister Borut Pahor is getting exactly on the one-year-in-office anniversary. What has he done? Apparently, he made good on his promise to clean the national football team’s shoes if they won in the decisive match against Russia, which took place last Wednesday. It was stated immediately that the PM kept his word, but no material evidence was provided, except for a sad-looking shoe brush, which immediately raised doubts regarding the claims of the PM cleaning up. […]