Traffickers winning the drug war

[NewsWhore]

Though Dominican officials have increased their surveillance around Dominican territory in the fight against the illegal narcotics trade, drug traffickers have also increased their attempts to introduce drugs into the country, and seem to be succeeding. In the last thirteen months the DR has been bombarded by an increase in drugs from South America. Officials have seized more than eight tons and arrested 17,133 people during this period. South American cartels are using the DR as a drug hub, or stopover point for drugs on their way to Europe or the US. Diario Libre quotes a story that came out in the Colombian newspaper El Dia, which explains that minutes after the drugs are packaged in Colombia they are in the air on their way to Venezuela where they are then be transported to the DR. According to the National Drug Control Department (DNCD) the eastern and southern coasts of the DR are the most vulnerable. But the DR is not alone in its troubles with the drug trade. Most marijuana, according to Diario Libre, is entering from Haiti, and of the 17,133 arrested 245 were from Haiti, the most from any country. US citizens were next on the list with 39, Dutch with 37, Colombians with 21, Spanish with 20 and Puerto Ricans with 14. Officials have seized RD$3,928,079 and US$520,762 in cash at national level and in the National District RD$1,325,525, US$463,210, EU900,110, RD$869,299 in cash, 30,000 Venezuelan Bolivares and 240,000 Colombian Pesos.
During his stopover in Washington, D.C. as part of a 13-day US tour, President Leonel Fernandez met at the Department of State with Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and expressed his concern of the consequences in the DR of the increase in drug trafficking.

More... (http://www.dr1.com/index.html#10)