The Dominican Republic

1. La RepublicaDominicaa The Dominican Republic

2. Statistics and Facts Statistics, essential facts, and a basic overview of the Dominican Republic today.

3. Geography • The Dominican Republic is located on the eastern half of the island of La Hispaniola in the Caribbean.

4. Government • A representative democracy with independent, legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The state has 32 Senate members and 178 House of Representatives members. They hold elections every four years for president and vice president. The government first gained independence in 1844.

5. Population 9,956, 648 (July 2011) • 85th highest population in the world • 0-14 years old -29.5 % • 15-64 years old -64% • 65+ years old -6.5% • Median age-26.1 Years • Male median age-26 • Female median age-26.3 • Language: Spanish • Ethnic Groups: Mixed 73%, White 16%, Black 11%

6. Economy • Unemployment: 13.3% • Gini index: 49.9 (24th in the world) • Percentage of ownership: Lowest 10% own 1.5%, highest 10% own 38.7% • GDP growth rate: 7.8% yearly

7. Industry • Cacao • Coffee • Sugar • Tobacco

8. History The History of the Dominican Republic

9. Independence (1800’s) • The Dominican Republic was liberated from the Republic of Haiti by Juan Pablo Duarte in 1844. The republic of Haiti had occupied the territory since 1822 after the Haitians had gained their independence from France

10. United States Occupation of 1916 (1900’s) • The U.S.A. occupied the Dominican Republic and established a temporary military government in 1916. The occupation was due to economic stress and the imminent threat of European invasion, and ongoing internal governmental struggles. The occupation ended with the Dominican Republic’s first democratic election in 1924.

11. 1963 Coup (1900’s) • Democratically elected president Juan Bosch was overthrown in a military coup in 1963. Fighting ensued between the pro and anti Bosch movements and the United States eventually intervened and established order.

12. 2000’s • The Dominican Republic currently has a very successful president who is helping the nation recover economically and is in his third term. He has good relations with the U.S.A.Hisname is Leonel Hernandez.

13. Rafael Trujillo’s Reign • The dictator Rafael Trujillo came to power in 1930. Trujillo promoted economic growth but severely repressed human rights and freedom of speech and committed many atrocities. Trujillo was assassinated in 1961. His rule was one of the bloodiest ever in the Americas. He was responsible for over 50,000 deaths.

14. Today The Dominican Republic today; current events, culture, and foreign relations

15. Current events and issues • 1) The Dominican Republic is becoming more of a hub for drug trafficking. It serves as a transfer station between Columbia and the United States and Europe. Drug trafficking is promoting violence and corruption in the Dominican Republic, and it is on the rise.

16. Current events continued… • Hurricane Irene swept through the Dominican Republic displacing about 28,000 people and wreaking havoc throughout the country.

17. Current events continued • Floods of refugees from the Dominican Republic’s poorer neighbor Haiti surged into the Dominican Republic illegally as a result of the earthquake of January 12 2010.

18. Dominican Carnival • Like many other countries, the Dominican Republic celebrates Carnival in February. Their celebration, called The Dominican Carnival, is a unique and cultural celebration involving elaborate costumes based on local myths and tradition, like the devil mask pictured below.

19. Diplomatic Relations with the United States • Good trade relations • Good diplomatic relations currently • We have intervened multiple times in the past in the Dominican Republic • Supportive of their economy

20. Bibliography

21. https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/dr.htmlhttps://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/dr.html http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/35639.htm http://www.nytimes.com/2011/08/31/world/americas/31haitians.html?_r=1&ref=dominicanrepublic http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5g2X9kW5kM4cMCPF3utsV43qdQLXw?docId=c98a5a03bebb4652be03c3a4044ecc6a http://latino.foxnews.com/latino/news/2011/08/25/irene-displaces-more-than-30000-in-dominican-republic/ http://dominicanrepublic.com//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=196&Itemid=29 Pictures http://www.hispaniola.com/dominican_republic/info/photos/peso_10_l.jpg http://www.optimallyorganic.com/raw%20cacao%20beans.jpg http://www.genescoffeebeans.com/uploads/coffee_beans.jpg http://www.precisionnutrition.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/sugar-cane.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ocupacion-1916.jpg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Flag_of_the_Dominican_Republic.svg http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Rafael_Trujillo.gif http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/26/Coat_of_arms_of_the_Dominican_Republic.svg/250px-Coat_of_arms_of_the_Dominican_Republic.svg.png http://www.csmonitor.com/var/ezflow_site/storage/images/media/images/0823-hurricane-irene/10634036-1-eng-US/0823-hurricane-irene_full_600.jpg http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Guardian/Pix/contributor/2010/1/14/1263488479383/Haiti-quake-aid-boy-recei-001.jpg http://dominicanvillarental.com/images/Carnival-Mask2.jpg http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/images/u/us.gif http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Dominican_Republic_(orthographic_projection).svg