VZCZCXYZ0017
RR RUEHWEB

DE RUEHDG #0288/01 0532304
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 222302Z FEB 10
FM AMEMBASSY SANTO DOMINGO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0831
INFO WHA CENTRAL AMERICAN COLLECTIVE
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHINGTON DC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 0036
RUEHBH/AMEMBASSY NASSAU
RUEHC/USAID WASHDC 0025
RUEHKG/AMEMBASSY KINGSTON
RUEHPU/AMEMBASSY PORT AU PRINCE
RUEHSP/AMEMBASSY PORT OF SPAIN
RUEHWN/AMEMBASSY BRIDGETOWN
RUMIESS/SOUTHCOM IESS MIAMI FL

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 000288 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PREL ENRG HA DR
SUBJECT: DR: DAS Reynoso Discusses Haiti with Foreign Minister, 
Other 
Officials 
 
SUMMARY 
 
 
 
¶1.  (SBU)  WHA DAS Julissa Reynoso, during her 5-9 February 2010 
visit, travelled to the Jimani border crossing and met with a wide 
range of leading Dominican Government (GoDR) officials, business 
leaders and intellectuals where the principal topic was what role 
the Dominican Republic should play in Haiti relief and 
reconstruction, although there were also discussions of the 
upcoming congressional/municipal elections and civil registry 
issues.  Septels address her meeting with President Leonel 
Fernandez and her conversations with judicial officials and civil 
society representatives on transparency and the rule of law.  END 
SUMMARY. 
 
 
 
VISIT TO THE JIMANI BORDER CROSSING 
 
 
 
¶2.  (SBU)  On 6 February, DAS Reynoso and Charge Lambert travelled 
to Jimani, the Dominican border town that has become a logistical 
hub for supplies and people moving into Haiti from the Dominican 
Republic.  Upon arrival, the DAS spoke briefly with Vice President 
Rafael Alburquerque and Planning Minister Temistocles Montas, both 
of whom were also assessing the situation in the border region. 
She then met with Defense Minister Pedro Rafael Pena Antonio and 
Brigadier General Francisco Jose Gil Ramirez of the Specialized 
Frontier Corps (CESFRONT), the GoDR's border security force.  Pena 
Antonio gave a presentation about "Mano Amiga" ("Friendly Hand"), 
the military's assistance operation in support of Haiti relief 
efforts, and pointed out the deteriorating condition of the road 
from Jimani to Port-au-Prince, suggesting that an alternative route 
may need to be found unless repairs can be made quickly.  DAS 
Reynoso said coordinating humanitarian efforts and managing the 
transition from relief to recovery to development were two key 
concerns, underscoring her desire for "sustainable" solutions to 
the crisis. 
 
 
 
¶3.  (SBU)  DAS Reynoso also met with representatives of 
international organizations working in Jimani to seek their views 
on the situation and ask how the U.S. could most effectively 
support the UN effort in the move from fulfilling immediate needs 
to reconstruction to development.  International Organization for 
Migration (IOM) Country Representative Cy Winter said logistical 
problems were the key hurdle agencies faced as they tried to move 
supplies and people through an undersized humanitarian corridor. 
Representatives from several organizations, including the 
Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO) and the United Nations 
Children's Fund (UNICEF), underscored the lack of information 
available about the situation in the mountainous and remote areas 
of the DR-Haiti frontier; one UNICEF representative cited high 
malnutrition rates of up to 20 percent in Haitian patients 
appearing in Dominican hospitals.  The United Nations High 
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) representative said his 
organization's  main focus was protection of displaced persons. 
DAS Reynoso also met with representatives from the Health and 
Social Security Ministry (SESPAS), as well as from the 
International Medical Alliance, a Knoxville-based charity, who took 
her on a tour of the Buen Samaritano health clinic facility. 
 
 
 
FOREIGN MINISTER CARLOS MORALES TRONCOSO 
 
 
 
¶4.  (SBU)  DAS Reynoso emphasized the USG's long-term commitment to 
Haiti relief and reconstruction in her 8 February meeting with 
Foreign Minister Morales.  She praised the performance of the GoDR, 
Dominican business sector and the Dominican people in providing a 
helping hand to their neighbors, stressing that these efforts have 
been noted and appreciated in Washington.  DAS Reynoso outlined the 
schedule of meetings to coordinate international support for Haiti 
and highlighted the USG's desire to work closely with the Dominican 
Government on Haiti-related issues. 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU)  Morales replied that the GoDR has worked closely with 
the Embassy and the U.S. military on Haiti relief and 
reconstruction efforts and will continue to do so both here and 
through its Embassy in Washington.  He noted, with regard to the 
donor's meeting planned for New York in late March or April, that 
the GoDR has decided to postpone its planned Haiti assistance 
summit from 14 April to early June, when it would follow the 6-8 
June OAS General Assembly in Lima, Peru.  He opined that this 
postponement was beneficial for domestic political reasons, as it 
would avoid any conflict with congressional/municipal elections 
scheduled for 16 May. 
 
 
 
¶6.  (SBU)  The Foreign Minister recalled that, during Secretary 
Hillary Clinton's visit to the DR last year, the two had discussed 
promoting the "twin-plant" concept, creating chains of production 
in the DR and Haiti, and suggested that plans for Haiti's 
development should incorporate this idea.  Morales cautioned that 
this concept should be referred to as creating "synergies" rather 
than "integration," as the latter term is politically explosive in 
the DR.  He stated that two priorities for Haiti's sustainable 
development are control of water resources and reforestation.  He 
agreed that sharing best practices with Haiti on the DR's program 
promoting the use of propane stoves for cooking would be helpful. 
 
 
 
CENTRAL ELECTORAL BOARD 
 
 
 
¶7.  (SBU)  On 8 February, DAS Reynoso met with Julio Cesar Castanos 
Guzman, President of the Central Electoral Board (JCE), and six 
other board members.  She described her portfolio in the State 
Department, especially her responsibility for social integration 
policy in the hemisphere.  Castanos Guzman described the JCE's role 
as that of an impartial mechanism to improve public access to 
government services.  Specifically, Castanos Guzman spoke of 
improving access to cedulas and identity documents, a key problem, 
especially for poor people, in the Dominican Republic.  Asked by 
DAS Reynoso about the situation of the children of undocumented 
Haitian migrants, JCE members said they were well aware of the 
problems and reiterated the right of children to have an identity 
as enshrined in domestic and international law.  They added that 
they were using community groups, mobile units, and religious 
organizations to reach disenfranchised communities to improve 
access to identity documents and school enrollment, though 
approximately 400,000 people in the country still lack 
documentation.  After some discussion of the controversial 
"Foreigners' Book", which is used to document the births to the 
children of those not recognized by the Government as being 
Dominicans,  JCE member Leyda Margarita Pina Medrano highlighted 
the challenge that providing social services to Haitian immigrants 
and their offspring presents to the resource-strapped Dominican 
Republic. 
 
 
 
OPPOSITION LEADER MIGUEL VARGAS MALDONADO 
 
 
 
¶8.  (SBU)  DAS Reynoso, in her 8 February meeting with Miguel 
Vargas Maldonado, President of the opposition Dominican 
Revolutionary Party (PRD), praised Dominican support to the Haiti 
relief effort, underscoring that the response of the Dominican 
people to help their neighbors in need has not been a partisan 
action.  The discussion then turned to the 16 May 
congressional/municipal elections, with Vargas complaining that the 
ruling Dominican Liberation Party (PLD) was stalling on passage of 
a Political Party Law out of concern that enactment of this law 
would constrain its use of State resources during the campaign.  He 
also hinted that many active politicians, especially those 
belonging to other parties, have "unclear sources of income," and 
should be investigated for connections to narcotrafficking.  Vargas 
also decried profligate spending by the PLD.  When DAS Reynoso 
asked about Vargas' presidential ambitions in 2012, the PRD leader 
said he planned to focus his campaign on institution-building, 
restoring civil discourse, and improving the quality of life for 
Dominicans. 
 
 
 
STATE ELECTRICTY COMPANY HEAD CELSO MARRANZINI 
 
¶9.  (SBU)  Celso Marranzini, the Vice President (but effective 
chief) of the Dominican Corporation of State-Owned Electricity 
Companies (CDEEE), in an 8 February meeting with DAS Reynoso, 
provided his insights on the status of the Haitian electricity 
sector.  Through the HEART consortium, CDEEE has several teams 
working with Electricite de Haiti (EDH) to assess the damage to the 
grid (Reftel).  He explained that a short-term solution would be to 
connect the Dominican grid to the Haitian grid, likely through 
Jimani, since this would not only help increase the amount of 
electricity available in Haiti but also do so at a fraction of the 
cost currently paid by EDH.  However, he observed that the Haitian 
grid was not itself integrated, but instead comprised of isolated 
islands of power.  As such, any medium- to long-term solution would 
need to involve improving the interconnectedness of the Haitian 
grid.  DAS Reynoso said that energy was one of the USG's four high 
priority areas for Haiti reconstruction and emphasized the USG's 
desire to work with the Dominican Republic to achieve synergies in 
this sector. 
 
DINNER WITH PROMINENT DOMINICANS 
 
¶10.  (SBU)  DAS Reynoso's 8 February dinner with a dozen 
influential Dominicans from the business, academic , journalistic 
and cultural sectors provided the opportunity to explain the USG's 
policy toward Haiti and the region, as well as the state of 
bilateral relations, to leading opinion makers.  While agreeing on 
the need to provide immediate assistance to Haitian relief efforts, 
those present expressed considerable skepticism regarding the 
capabilities of the Haitian political class to deal with the crisis 
and of the international community's approach to long-term 
reconstruction.  One leading academic seemed to sum up the guests' 
thoughts when he said, "Haiti does not need a Marshall Plan, it 
needs a Macarthur [one]."  "It is not going to get one," DAS 
Reynoso replied. 
 
BREAKFAST WITH THE AMCHAM BOARD 
 
¶11.  (SBU)  AMCHAM Vice President Bill Malamud, during a 9 February 
breakfast with DAS Reynoso, highlighted four factors he considered 
vital to convincing the private sector to open or expand operations 
in Haiti.  First, the Government of Haiti (GoH) would need to 
guarantee security, in terms of protection of employees and respect 
for contracts.  Second, the private sector would need improved 
market access, possibly through expanded trade preferences.  Other 
board members observed that the GoH was usually reluctant to lower 
duties, as customs receipts were one of its few reliable sources of 
income, and suggested the USG could help by expanding HOPE II 
provisions beyond the apparel sector.  Third, the private sector 
needed governments to provide fiscal incentives, possibly through 
tax credits.  In this regard, AMCHAM suggested the U.S. could 
create a program similar to the Section 936 arrangement, which 
provides credits to companies operating in Puerto Rico, and which 
supports the integration of Puerto Rico and the Caribbean by 
providing funds to Puerto Rican development banks to spend  in 
Caribbean Basin Initiative countries.  Finally, AMCHAM stressed 
that logistical challenges would have to be met.  In addition to 
these factors, the board members suggested that programs be 
developed to bring Haitians to the DR for vocational training and 
to convert the Dominican Republic's bilateral debt with the U.S. 
into a fund to promote private investment in Haiti. 
 
¶12. (U) DAS Reynoso has not cleared on this cable. 
 
 
 
¶13. (U) Minimize considered. 
Lambert