DOMINICAN POLITICS III, 11: SANTIAGO: CRIME, PARTY

C O N F I D E N T I A L SANTO DOMINGO 003601 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA, WHA/CAR, INR/IAA; USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD; TREASURY FOR OASIA-JLEVINE; DEPT PASS USDA FOR FAS; USDOC FOR 4322/ITA/MAC/WH/CARIBBEAN BASIN DIVISION; USDOC FOR 3134/ITA/USFCS/RD/WH; DHS FOR CIS-CARLOS ITURREGUI E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/07/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL KJUS VE DR SUBJECT: DOMINICAN POLITICS III, 11: SANTIAGO: CRIME, PARTY POLITICS AND, ABOVE ALL, THE TRASH Classified By: Economic-Political Counselor Michael A. Meigs, Reasons 1 .4(b),(d) ¶1. (C) Summary. The early November visit of POLOFFs to Santiago (est. population 700,000),the Dominican Republic's second largest city, provided some surprises, but also confirmed many of the trends we see in Santo Domingo. The Mayor openly admitted having "ghost employees" on the payroll, while civil society representatives gave an interesting analysis of this long-standing practice. Officials from the ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) revealed their differing outlooks, and also predicted that President Fernandez would win the party's presidential nomination for 2008 because of his electability. The city's Chief Prosecutor noted police dysfunction in implementing the revised criminal procedures code, while the Police Deputy Commander spoke blithely of police cooperation and refurbishing facilities. End Summary. National Police -------------- ¶2. (U) The day's meetings began with Lt. Col. Martin Montano Caceres, Assistant to the Regional Director of Police, pinch-hitting for absent Commanding General Raudo Ariosto Ramirez Comas. Montano, a veteran of 20-odd years on the force, provided little insight into the workings of the National Police in Santiago other than to relay a staggering statistic -- 700 officers comprise the entire National Police contingent in Santiago. Given that it is members of the National Police that combat all non-narcotics related crime (the Metropolitan Transit Police (AMET) Tourism Police (Politur),and National Drug Control Directorate (DNCD) having other, specialized functions),the true per capita ratio of police to citizenry in Santiago for the vast majority of cases is 1 to 1,000. To give some sense of scale, there are approximately 38,000 police officers serving a population of 8 million people in the City of New York -- a ratio of 1 to 211. ¶3. (C) In all fairness, Montano was gracious in discussing cooperation between the Police Palace in Santo Domingo and the Regional Command in Santiago, as well as in describing the long-overdue renovation of the central police offices where he is located. Likewise, he was open about his past experiences, speaking of the difficulties of border duty (e.g., lack of personnel and equipment) and even admitting that local political parties can interfere with good policing when they are in the opposition. Given this, and considering a previous conversation with a local Embassy employee where he expressed great hesitance in discussing substantive issues, Montano's lack of candor when speaking about contemporary events appears linked to his role as "assistant" in a rigidly hierarchical and militaristic police department. Simply put, he has prospered over the last 20 years by not speaking out of turn or stealing the spotlight from his superiors. Public Prosecutor -------------- ¶4. (SBU) Santiago's Public Prosecutor, Raul Arturo Martinez Martinez, presented an opposite picture, dissecting current legal and political issues with ease. Martinez, the "last appointed Public Prosecutor for Santiago" (the next will have risen through the ranks of a career prosecutorial service), discussed the difficulties of working under an accusatory code that prizes evidence when, despite the best efforts of the Embassy, police officers lack basic skills in evidence collection and crime scene preservation. He warned of an increasing trend by judges to dismiss cases for procedural errors -- something necessary to preserve individual civil rights, but which has already provoked a revisionist outcry from the general public. ¶5. (C) In terms of the political scene, Martinez, a member of the PLD Political Committee, noted that, while former presidential chief of staff Danilo Medina is well-positioned within the party structure, he believed President Fernandez would win the nomination in 2008. Fernandez will come out on top, according to Martinez, because he is the only PLD candidate ever to have won the presidency in the party's 30-year history (Medina lost by a wide margin in 2000). Regarding provincial politics, Martinez said that the region did not have a tradition of voting for one party and, demonstrating interest in the U.S. system, the Public Prosecutor contrasted Santiago with the "red" and "blue" states in the United States. For example, the Mayor of Santiago is a member of the Social Christian Reformist Party (PRSC),which is in decline nationally; however, the mayor has enjoyed repeated electoral success because of his ability to "get the job done" at City Hall. Mayor -------------- ¶6. (SBU) Portly and gregarious, Mayor Jose Sued Sem is clearly interested in higher office. He stated bluntly that he hoped to be the PRSC's presidential candidate in 2012, while noting that all three of the PRSC's current likely presidential candidates (Eduardo Estrella, Amable Aristy Castro and Luis Toral) want him to be their vice presidential running mate. He even hinted that he had been approached about forming a coalition ticket with Miguel Vargas Maldonado of the Dominican Revolutionary Party, who is currently the strongest challenger to the ruling PLD. However, national politics aside, Sued -- like mayors all over the world -- knows that if the trash is not collected he could be out of a job. Going into some detail on the refuse issue, Sued said that he innovates to get the job done, citing a landfill project for which the national and city governments could not allocate sufficient funds. Sued worked with the private sector to come up with the remaining resources, and now the project is on track. ¶7. (C) The Mayor also wanted to impress upon poloffs that he runs a transparent operation, or at least one that is more transparent than others. He said that the law permits him to spend 30 percent of his budget on salaries; however, he spent less and used the remaining funds to purchase ten garbage trucks. The discussion of salaries led to the topic of "ghost employees" or "botellas" (i.e., individuals, usually party stalwarts, who receive salaries as a political favor but do not work). Sued openly admitted to having "ghost employees" on the payroll, but said he had fewer than most mayors -- "Yo tengo mis botellitas, pero pocas." (The fact that Sued admitted this is an indication of how widespread the "botella" system is in the Dominican Republic.) Fundacion Solidaridad -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Representatives of the NGO Fundacion Solidaridad, Arturo Reyes and Percy Alvarez, said that the political system is rife with clientism. In their view, the "botella" system starts with political campaigns, where candidates use neighborhood operatives to drum up votes. It is understood that the operatives will use their own resources to produce these votes; if the candidate is elected, he will reward the operative with a no-work salaried position paying $100-150 USD per month. Reyes and Alvarez are also carrying out a municipal budget transparency project in small towns in Santiago province. They expressed optimism regarding results to date, and said the next step would be to increase transparency in the awarding of contracts. Governor and PLD Officials -------------- ¶9. (C) Our meeting with officials of the ruling PLD revealed internal party divisions, at least in political outlook. The aptly named Governor, Jose Izquierdo, (izquierda meaning the direction "left") discussed a recent visit to Venezuela in positive terms. Izquierdo said that Chavez is popular, and did not comment on the Venezuelan President's anti-democratic behavior or his foreign policy adventurism. In contrast, Julian Serulle and Micalo Bermudez, senior officials in the PLD provincial operation, gave the impression of being businessmen first and political operatives second. They discussed economic conditions extensively, and brushed off the Dominican government's good relations with Venezuela as simply a necessity, given Caracas' provision of economic assistance via Petrocaribe. Good-natured debate on the much-maligned Metro project reinforced the idea that the PLD provides a "big tent" for its supporters: the Governor defended the project when poloffs raised familiar opposition criticisms, while Bermudez admitted to privately counseling President Fernandez against the idea. ¶10. (U) This report and extensive other material can be consulted on our SIPRNET site, http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/wha/santodomingo/ HERTELL