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Country Name: conventional long form: Dominican
Republic; conventional short form: The Dominican
local long form: Republica Dominicana ; local short
form: La Dominicana
Government type: Democratic Republic
Capital:: Santo Domingo
Geographic coordinates: 18 28 N, 69 54 W
Time difference: UTC-4 (1 hour ahead
of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Administrative divisions: 31 provinces (provincias,
singular - provincia) and 1 district* (distrito); Azua, Bahoruco,
Barahona, Dajabon, Distrito Nacional*, Duarte, El Seibo, Elias
Pina, Espaillat, Hato Mayor, Independencia, La Altagracia, La Romana,
La Vega, Maria Trinidad Sanchez, Monsenor Nouel, Monte Cristi,
Monte Plata, Pedernales, Peravia, Puerto Plata, Salcedo, Samana,
San Cristobal, San Jose de Ocoa, San Juan, San Pedro de Macoris,
Sanchez Ramirez, Santiago, Santiago Rodriguez, Santo Domingo, Valverde
Independence: 27 February 1844 (from Haiti)
National holiday: Independence Day, 27 February
(1844)
Constitution: 28 November 1966; amended 25 July
2002
Legal system: Based on French civil codes; Criminal
Procedures Code modified in 2004 to include important elements
of an accusatory system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age, universal and compulsory;
married persons regardless of age; note - members of the armed
forces and national police cannot vote
Executive branch: chief of state: President
Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael
ALBURQUERQUE de Castro (since 16 August 2004); note - the president
is both the chief of state and head of government
Head of government: President Leonel FERNANDEZ
Reyna (since 16 August 2004); Vice President Rafael ALBURQUERQUE
de Castro (since 16 August 2004)
Cabinet: Cabinet nominated by the president
Elections: president and vice president elected
on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms (eligible
for a second consecutive term); election last held 16 May 2008
(next to be held in May 2012)
Election results: Leonel FERNANDEZ
reelected president;
Percent of vote - Leonel FERNANDEZ 53.6%, Miguel
VARGAS 41%, Amable ARISTY less than 5%
Legislative branch: Bicameral National Congress
or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate or Senado (32 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and
the House of Representatives or Camara de Diputados (178 seats;
members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
Elections: Senate - last held 16 May 2006 (next
to be held in May 2010); House of Representatives - last held
16 May 2006 (next to be held in May 2010)
Election results: Senate -
percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - PLD 22, PRD 6,
PRSC 4;
House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats
by party - PLD 96, PRD 60, PRSC 22
Judicial branch: Supreme Court or Corte Suprema (judges are
appointed by the National Judicial Council comprised of the president, the
leaders of both chambers of congress, the president of the Supreme Court, and
an additional non-governing party congressional representative)
Political parties and leaders: Dominican Liberation
Party or PLD [Leonel FERNANDEZ Reyna]; Dominican Revolutionary
Party or PRD [Ramon ALBURQUERQUE]; National Progressive Front [Vincent
CASTILLO, Pelegrin CASTILLO]; Social Christian Reformist Party
or PRSC [Enrique ANTUN]
Political pressure groups and leaders: Citizen
Participation Group (Participacion Ciudadania); Collective of Popular
Organizations or COP; Foundation for Institution-Building and Justice
(FINJUS)
International organization participation: ACP,
Caricom (observer), FAO, G-77, IA, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO,
ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO (suspended), ILO,
IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO (correspondent), ITSO,
ITU, ITUC, LAES, LAIA (observer), MIGA, NAM, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW
(signatory), PCA, RG, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, Union Latina,
UNOCI, UNWTO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in the US: Chief
of mission: Ambassador Flavio Dario ESPINAL Jacobo
chancery: 1715 22nd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 332-6280
FAX: [1] (202) 265-8057
Consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Boston,
Chicago, Mayaguez (Puerto Rico), Miami, New Orleans, New York,
San Francisco, San Juan (Puerto Rico)
Diplomatic representation from the US: Chief
of mission: Ambassador P. Robert FANNIN
Embassy: Corner of Calle Cesar Nicolas
Penson and Calle Leopoldo Navarro, Santo Domingo
Mailing address: Unit 5500, APO AA 34041-5500
Telephone: [1] (809) 221-2171
FAX: [1] (809) 686-7437
Flag description: a centered white cross that
extends to the edges divides the flag into four rectangles - the
top ones are blue (hoist side) and red, and the bottom ones are
red (hoist side) and blue; a small coat of arms featuring a shield
supported by an olive branch (left) and a palm branch (right) is
at the center of the cross; above the shield a blue ribbon displays
the motto, DIOS, PATRIA, LIBERTAD (God, Fatherland, Liberty), and
below the shield, REPUBLICA DOMINICANA appears on a red ribbon
http://www.1uptravel.com/flags/largeflags/dominican-republic.html
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