Santo Domingo. - The maintenance of a stable economy, president Leonel Fernandez bolstered leadership as an international mediator reached through his trips abroad, the constitutional reform, the pact signed with the two opposition parties and the implementation of the social dialogues are the Government’s most notable accomplishments in 2009, but major scandals in his administration also led to tarnishing his image.

The authorities say that in spite of the international economic crisis which hammered even the developed nations the country’s economy grew 3.5 and shows the Administration’s capacity.

In 2009 Fernandez also played an active international role by taking his country’s position to the different nations in relating to the crises of Honduras and demanded that rich nations do more to solve Haiti’s. In several occasions his Venezuela, Colombia and Ecuador pars have asked him to help seek solutions to conflicts, as well as to the coup in Honduras.

Fernandez, through his more than 10 trips abroad in 2009, took to the intentional arena positions such as the creation of funds to face the problems derived from the world economic crisis and proposed Haiti’s membership in the Latin American Community.

He was the world’s most outspoken leader against the coup which deposed Manuel Zelaya in Honduras, to the point of asking that that nation be suspended from the United States-Central America-Dominican Republic Free Trade Agreement.

Scandals

The recently ended year was also rife with government scandals, including the one which led to the firing of Tourism minister Félix Jiménez, replaced by Francisco Javier Garcia.

The Dominican Tourism Press Association (ADOMPRETUR) said Jimenez “has been critical of the press because since last year it has denounced his conflicts of interest in managing areas of government in a questionable manner.”

Another scandal arose from the Government’s approval to build a cement plant near the Los Haitises National Park, which was discarded from the ensuing uproar.