NewsWhore
08-28-2009, 02:10 PM
Dominican participation in the Central American Parliament costs taxpayers RD$65 million a year, as reported in El Dia. The US$1.8 million a year the DR pays to be an observer in the Parlacen is questioned. Resolutions of the symbolic parliament are not enforceable. Each of the 22 members the DR appoints to the Parlacen receives US$4,200 monthly (US$2,800 in expenses and US$1,200 in wages). The members have only to travel to Guatemala the last week of every month to participate in the "important" monthly meeting.
El Dia reports that the conclusions of the meeting are rarely communicated, and much less enforced.
Panama announced it would abandon the organization. New Panama President Ricardo Martinelli says the organization is "inoperant. "
El Dia reports that in the case of the DR, the leading opposition party PRD is at ends with the government pushing for a greater number of Dominican representations among its members in the Dominican delegation. President Fernandez had appointed three PRD members to the organization.
Parlacen, established in 1991, is a body composed of 20 deputies from each member state, former presidents and former vice presidents of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, and 22 Mps appointed by the Dominican Republic. Other countries sending observers are Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina and Taiwan. Costa Rica is the only Central American country that has not integrated into the regional forum. The Costa Rican government considers it unworkable and expensive, as reported in El Dia.
The newspaper points out that former presidents Arnoldo Aleman (Nicaragua) and Alfonso Portillo (Guatemala) have used the parliamentary immunity granted by the organization to evade being tried for corruption in their respective countries.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)
El Dia reports that the conclusions of the meeting are rarely communicated, and much less enforced.
Panama announced it would abandon the organization. New Panama President Ricardo Martinelli says the organization is "inoperant. "
El Dia reports that in the case of the DR, the leading opposition party PRD is at ends with the government pushing for a greater number of Dominican representations among its members in the Dominican delegation. President Fernandez had appointed three PRD members to the organization.
Parlacen, established in 1991, is a body composed of 20 deputies from each member state, former presidents and former vice presidents of Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama, and 22 Mps appointed by the Dominican Republic. Other countries sending observers are Mexico, Puerto Rico, Argentina and Taiwan. Costa Rica is the only Central American country that has not integrated into the regional forum. The Costa Rican government considers it unworkable and expensive, as reported in El Dia.
The newspaper points out that former presidents Arnoldo Aleman (Nicaragua) and Alfonso Portillo (Guatemala) have used the parliamentary immunity granted by the organization to evade being tried for corruption in their respective countries.
More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#3)