Country Information on Dominican Republic 

Terrain

About 80% of the Dominican Republic is covered by mountain ranges stretching from the north-west to the south-east. The Pico Duarte (3,174 m) is the highest mountain in the country and the Antilles as a whole. The Cibao Valley runs between the Central and the Northern Ranges, and is a fertile and well-irrigated region. The coastal plain in the south-east is also known for its fertile soils.

Climate

It has a tropical climate with little seasonal temperature variation between the rainy and dry seasons. It is hot and humid throughout the year, with daytime temperatures of 25 to 30°C on the coast.

The country's temperature varies according to altitude rather than seasons; thus it is cooler in the Central Range than on the coast, and it can be chilly in the hills at night. The periods of May to June and October to November see the most rainfall. The island is often hit by hurricanes from June to October, which can also cause floods.

Fauna/Flora

The vegetation in the Dominican Republic, like that of the other Antilles islands, is extremely varied. Both water-storing plants and shrubs are found here as well as evergreen mountain forest and foggy woodland. Original tree species include mahogany, rosewood, and cypress.

Animal wildlife includes reptiles and numerous species of bird. Ongoing deforestation has led to enormous problems, such as floods after heavy rainfall. Deforestation affects above all the primeval forests and causes soil erosion and the silting-up of the coral reef that surrounds the island.

History/Politics

In 1492 Christopher Columbus discovered an island inhabited by indigenous people, which was called Hispaniola. This was to be the beginning of European colonization in the Americas. Other colonial powers tried to challenge Spain's control of Hispaniola, given the island's huge sugar cane production and key position for controlling trade flows between Europe, Mexico and Peru. On signing the 1697 Treaty of Ryswick, Spain had to hand over the western half of the island (Haiti) to France, and the Peace of Basel in 1795 saw the east come under French rule.

Haitian Freedom fighter Toussaint Louverture gained control of the island in 1801 and declared independence. Spain managed to regain control of the Dominican part in 1809, and it was to remain under Spanish rule until 1821, when independence was declared following popular revolt. In 1822, Haitian forces occupied the whole island, which placed the Dominicans under their power until the 1843 revolution. During the 1860s, the United States of America started to influence the Antilles, forcing the establishment of an economic and political treaty in 1907.

Citing the treaty, the United States invaded the Dominican Republic in 1916, installing a protectorate that was to last until 1924. After gaining independence, dictator Rafael Leonidas Trujillo y Molina seized power in 1930. He and his family ruled over the Dominican Republic until his assassination in 1961. A large part of the national economy became the dictator's personal corporation. From today's perspective, the Trujillo regime was a phase of authoritarian and forced modernization. The strongly centralist policy was at odds with the federalist tendencies of the provinces and was sometimes pushed through with violence. The country's first democratic elections took place after a popular uprising in 1963 and were won by writer Juan Bosch from the Dominican Revolutionary Party (PRD). He was overthrown seven months later by a military junta.

As a result of this forcible seizure of power, the army split into two factions, which fought each other violently. In 1965, the USA ended this civil war through a massive military intervention. When Jimmy Carter took office as US President of in 1977, the USA changed its policy towards the Dominican Republic. The US put the government of President Balaguer under pressure to respect human rights and to guarantee political pluralism.

In the presidential and parliamentary elections of 1978, the PRD and thus the presidential candidate Silvestre Antonio Fernández Guzmán, won a clear victory. The 1986 elections brought back Balaguer as president, who pursued a populist policy. In 1990 and in 1994 he was able to remain in office by a narrow margin. After the presidential elections of 1996 he was succeeded by the candidate of the Dominican Liberation Party, Leonel Fernández. In August 2000, Hipólito Mejía from the Dominican Revolutionary Party succeeded Fernandez. Leonel Fernández won the elections in 2004 and he took on the presidency in August of the same year.

Economy

The cultivation of sugar cane, mining, and to a growing extent, large-scale tourism are the basis of the Dominican economy. Nevertheless, the economy still concentrates on the export of agricultural goods. Eighty-three percent of Dominican farms have an area of cultivable land below 6.3 hectares, which is just about sufficient for subsistence cultivation in most cases. In the low-lying areas, large-scale land-holding prevails.

Mineral deposits are only mined on a small scale. Bauxite and nickel gained greater importance in the early seventies, and deposits of precious metals such as gold, silver, and platinum, as well as the deposits of iron ore and salt, are limited. The industrial sector processes mainly domestic raw materials. Fifteen percent of the country's workforce works in the agricultural sector, 23% in industry, and 62% in the services sector. In 2003, inflation reached 42.5% and the unemployment rate was 15.5%.

Culture

The culture of the Dominican Republic is a fusion of African, Spanish and indigenous influences. Many words and eating habits are taken from indigenous cultures; Africans brought voodoo practices, which still survive on the island, and Spain gave the country its language.

The African influence is most obvious in Dominican folk music, like the national dance, the merengue, the origins of which are not known but which blends Spanish and Afro-Caribbean rhythms. Some old colonial buildings still stand in the Dominican Republic, the most beautiful are in Santo Domingo. Art, music and literature all developed under Spanish influence, but are strongly influenced by African culture.

The country's major cultural institutions, such as the National Art Gallery, are located in Santo Domingo. It is also claimed that Christopher Columbus' remains are buried in Santo Domingo Cathedral.