VZCZCXYZ0002
PP RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDG #3439/01 3091314
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 051314Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY SANTO DOMINGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 6594
RUEHC/DEPT OF LABOR WASHDC PRIORITY
INFO RUEHZA/WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE PRIORITY

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 003439 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ECON ELAB EPET ENRG PGOV DR
SUBJECT: TRANSPORTATION UNION ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR 
COUNTRY-WIDE STRIKE 
 
¶1.  (U) SUMMARY:  The National Center for Unified Transit 
Workers (CNTU) has announced plans for marches and strikes on 
November 4 and 7 (during and after a three-day weekend) and 
an extended strike on November 16-17.  CNTU leader Ramon 
Perez Figuereo predicts more than 30,000 of his union's 
members will participate.  At issue are economic grievances, 
especially the announcement that from February, 2007 the 
transport sector will no longer have access to bottled 
propane gas at the same subsidized rate as households.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
¶2.  (U) The National Center for Unified Transit Workers 
(CNTU) is vigorously promoting marches and strikes ostensibly 
to protest economic hardships, spurred on additionally by the 
announcement this week by Technical Secretary of the 
Presidency Temistocles Montas that as part of the letter of 
agreement with the International Monetary Fund, from February 
2007 the authorities will limit the ccess of the transport 
sector to subsidized propane gas. 
 
¶3.  (U) The CNTU is the second-largest transportation 
workers' union in the Dominican Republic, with a stated 
membership of around 45,000.  CNTU leader Ramon Perez 
Figuereo told poloff on November 3 that the CNTU regularly 
coordinates with other unions and organizations, including 
CONATRA, the country's largest transportation union. 
 
¶4.  (U) In an October 4 national assembly, the CNTU voted to 
organize marches on Sunday, November 5 and Tuesday, November 
7, flanking a national holiday on Monday.  The organizers 
plan a series of strikes beginning on November 16.  As 
currently conceived, the events will protest: 1) the packet 
of "negative measures imposed by the International Monetary 
Fund"; 2) the country's electricity crisis and the frequent 
blackouts it produces; 3) the elimination of the government 
subsidies for liquefied natural gas, which they say will 
force a hike in transportation fares; 4) tax increases to be 
implemented before the end of the year; and a variety of 
other government actions seen as hurting the interests of the 
poor. 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Perez Figuereo predicts that more than 30,000 of 
his organization's members will participate.  Strikes are 
scheduled to last at least two days, he said, but they could 
last longer.  He predicted that strikers would block the 
country's major streets and thoroughfares, effectively 
paralyzing traffic and bringing the country to a standstill. 
Poloff asked whether the CNTU had received a permit for the 
activities; Perez Figuereo responded that they had notified 
the government of their plans, which was all he believed they 
needed to do. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Figuereo said that CONATRA, the country's largest 
transportation workers' union, was "100 percent" behind his 
organization and would be participating in the strike 
alongside mre than 60 other unions and organizations. 
FALPO a leftist organization popular in poor Santiagoneighborhoods, was one of 
the partner organization he named. 
 FALPO is infamous in its Santiago proests for blocking 
streets and sparking violent cnfrontations with police (most 
recently in Marchof this year).  FALPO provocations have led 
to ftalities in the past. 
 
¶7. (U)  Next Tuesday's prtest, staged to draw attention to 
the November 16strikes, will involve an undetermined number 
of ndividuals.  Figuereo predicted hundreds would attnd. 
They will march and ride horses from Villa Mlla in northern 
Santo Domingo to the presidential palace.  Embassy sources 
suggest that marchers will include members of opposition 
political parties the PRD and PRSC, as well as neighborhood 
or leftist organizations such as FALPO. 
 
¶8. (SBU) The PRD has not yet publicly supported the November 
16 strikes, but they at least support the strikers' 
objectives and met with organizers as recently as this 
morning.  The PRSC publicly supports the strikers and may 
have given them financial assistance. 
 
¶9. (SBU) Figuereo offered that President Fernandez could 
still avoid the strikes by initiating a dialogue with a group 
of five senior organizers led by Figuereo himself.  He 
suggested that this could be a healthy culmination to the 
Sunday march. 
 
¶10. (U) Figuereo stressed that the strikes are not/not 
directed at the U.S. Government but are instead a purely 
domestic issue.  Even so, he could not rule out the 
possibility that some of the groups participating would 
protest issues like free trade and DR-CAFTA. 
 
¶11.  (SBU) The Embassy Emergency Action Committee met on 
 
November 3 to assess information and take appropriate 
measures. 
HERTELL