Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies

Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies
Dominican Constabulary Guard, assumed police duties. The
National Police was created in 1936. Since then, police activities
in the nation have been completely centralized, and no
independent provincial or municipal forces have existed.
In 1998 the National Police numbered some 15,000. The
force's current strength reflects an enlargement by 50 percent
in less than a decade. A further 2,000 personnel from the military
were reportedly transferred to the police in September
1997 to help deal with civil disturbances. The director general
of the National Police is a police major general, who is directly
subordinate to the secretary of state for interior and police (see
fig. 10). The police maintain a close relationship with the
armed forces, and, until the 1980s, the chief of the National
Police was often a senior officer from one of the armed services.
The director general is assisted by a deputy director general
and directly supervises two sections: Internal Affairs and
Planning, and Special Operations. Three other sections,
Administration and Support, Police Operations, and Territorial
Zones, are headed by the deputy director general.
The deputy director general of police has overall responsibility
for territorial police operations. He supervises five regional
directors, usually police brigadier generals, who are responsible
for five zones: the Northeastern Zone (headquartered at
San Francisco de Macons), the Northern Zone (Santiago), the
Southern Zone (Barahona), the Central Zone (San Cristobal),
and the Eastern Zone (San Pedro de Macons). The police
zones each cover several provinces; forces within the zones are
broken down into provincial sections, companies, detachments,
and local police posts.
An assistant director general under the director heads the
Special Operations Section, which is responsible for the administration
of the secret service, generally headed by a police brigadier
general. The secret service performs undercover
surveillance of domestic political groups and foreigners suspected
of espionage or of inciting political or economic disorder.
In October 1997, Special Operations took more than 500
persons into custody because it was believed they might incite
violence during the planned general strike. The secret service
coordinates its efforts with the DNI, which reports to the president.
Created in 1962, the DNI is authorized to "investigate any
act committed by persons, groups, or associations that conflict
with the constitution, laws, or state institutions, or that attempt
to establish any totalitarian form of government." The DNI is
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