DOMINICAN REPUBLIC APPROVES NEW POLICE LAW

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001943

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KCRM KJUS PHUM DR
SUBJECT: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC APPROVES NEW POLICE LAW


1. Summary. As part of the March 2 ceremony celebrating the
68th anniversary of the National Police, President Mejia
signed the National Police Institutional Law (Law 96-04),
also known as the Police Reform Bill. One of the most
significant changes under the new law is the transfer of the
Metropolitan Transport Authority (AMET) agents to police
control from a transportation function. Other important
changes include stricter prerequisites for the police chief
position, such as 20 years of uninterrupted service to
qualify, a two-year term limit as police chief, an article on
gender equality, and a ranking system commensurate with their
education, experience and time served in grade. Civil
society opponents think the law gives too much control to the
Police Chief, criticizing the law as a "step backwards" for
not incorporating important initiatives that had received
public approval. Although the law has been on the books for
several weeks, AMET is still headed by former Police Chief,
Pedro de Jesus Candelier. End Summary.

POLICE REFORM BILL BECOMES LAW


2. Almost three years after it was first introduced in
Congress, on March 2 President Mejia signed a new National
Police Institutional Law, also known as the Police Reform
Bill. The new law transfers control of Metropolitan
Transport Authority (AMET) agents to police control.
Additional changes include the following: stricter
prerequisites for the police chief position, a provision
prohibiting an active duty member of the armed services from
being named police chief, a provision prohibiting repeat
terms for the police chief, an article on gender equality, a
ranking system commensurate with education and experience,
and a 17-member Superior Council to review infractions. The
law defines the National Police as a non-partisan, apolitical
civil organization that strictly adheres to the Constitution
of the Dominican Republic.


3. Prior to the its promulgation Senator Tonty Rutinel,
chairman of the Committee on Interior and Justice, invited
emboffs for a briefing on the most significant aspects of the
law. According to Rutinel, previously police officers who
were fired or suspended could return to their posts, but the
new law prohibits such action. Rutinel said one of the most
important changes in the law is that it establishes promotion
precepts, because now officers are required to have four
years in rank and a clean record in order to be promoted. He
acknowledged the rumors that some officers commit human
rights abuses in order to achieve rank -- a practice he hopes
will be corrected in part by the new law. He further
acknowledged that the article granting police authority over
AMET was the most contentious, and he appeared bothered that
other improvements would be overshadowed by the AMET
controversy.

CIVIL SOCIETY NOT PLEASED


4. Civil society opponents claim the new Police law has
shortcomings for several reasons, primarily because it vests
too much control in the Police Chief. Opponents also believe
the Government excluded civil society from its deliberation.
Some argue that the law contradicts measures in pre-existing
laws such as the Criminal Procedures Code, which replaces a
Napoleonic system to one more similar to U.S. standards.
Civil society representatives charge that the law is
bureaucratically cumbersome, because it creates a Superior
Council of 17 officials (from law enforcement and other
agencies) to formulate policy. This, in civil society
opinion, threatens the institutionality of the National
Police.

COMMENT


5. (SBU) Passage of the new National Police Institutional Law
was long overdue. Reactions have been mixed. AMET chief
Gen. Candelier had confidently told the press that President
Mejia would not sign the law; in fact, Mejia did so but on
the last possible day. Most agree that reforms were
necessary but opinions differed on approaches. It might have
been more sensible to leave the responsibility of AMET agents
as a transportation function rather than a police one, but it
remains to be seen whether the institutions can adapt and
work together.
HERTELL