URGENT PRIORITY LEAHY VETTING REQUEST - CHDS

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 001287 SIPDIS SIPDIS WHA/CAR FOR DAVID SEARBY E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: MARR PGOV PHUM DR SUBJECT: URGENT PRIORITY LEAHY VETTING REQUEST - CHDS COORDINATION AND COUNTERTERRORISM, JUNE 4 ¶1. Embassy Santo Domingo requests, exceptionally, URGENT PRIORITY attention to human rights vetting for the Dominican MFA Director of International Organizations Amb. Michele Cohen, to participate in preparation at the Center for Hemispheric Defense Studies for a National Security Plan senior level in-country meeting tentatively scheduled for late June. This training directly upholds highest-priority Embassy goals and involves a key Foreign Ministry contact. Embassy regrets that paperwork on this request was submitted to clearing agencies in Santo Domingo on April 25 but one clearance was mislaid. ¶2. This is an action request. Please see para. 3. ¶3. Embassy requests the Department's assistance in conducting human rights screening pursuant to the Leahy Amendment for the following subject who has been nominated for training. Post has no derogatory information. Please slug response for EcoPol. ¶4. Name and identifying information of the proposed candidate(s) for the CHDS coordination and counterterrorism course beginning June 4 is as follows: NAME: COHEN, Michelle CEDULA: 047-0126992-2 DOB: 18 June 1976 POB: La Vega, Dominican Republic RANK: Ambassador, Director of International Organization Affairs UNIT: Foreign Ministry, Dominican Republic BULLEN