Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies

Dominican Republic and Haiti: Country Studies
police referred two cases of extrajudicial killings to civilian
criminal courts.
The constitution stipulates an independent judiciary, but in
the past interference from other entities, including the executive
branch, has undermined judicial independence. The Senate
previously appointed all justices by majority vote for fouryear
terms, except members of the Supreme Court. This procedure
subjected judges to undue political influence and often
resulted in a wholesale turnover of judicial personnel when
control of the Senate changed hands. The result was a highly
politicized process, sometimes bringing incompetent jurists to
the bench who could not be supervised effectively by the executive
authorities.
Under a constitutional reform enacted in 1994, the judiciary
was granted a fixed percentage of the national budget, thus
weakening legislative control. A Council of the Magistrature
was created to appoint justices of the Supreme Court (see The
Judiciary, ch. 4).
The constitution requires all judges to have law degrees, and
judges at each level of the judiciary are required to have practiced
law for a specified number of years. Supreme Court justices,
for instance, must have a minimum of twelve years of
experience, and judges of the courts of first instance must have
two years of experience. Justices of the peace are also required
to have a law degree; exceptions are permitted, however, in
rural areas where it might be impossible to appoint a trained
lawyer.
Respect for Human Rights
The government observes the protections guaranteed to citizens
under the constitution. It grants individuals and groups of
all political points of view the freedom to speak, respects the
constitutional right of peaceful assembly and association, normally
grants permits for public marches and meetings, and
imposes no restrictions on domestic or international travel.
The government also adheres to the constitutional protections
against invasion of the home, and conducts wire tapping and
other forms of surveillance under provisions provided by law.
Dominican internal security forces are generally responsive
to the authority of the civilian executive branch, but frequent
instances of human rights abuse have occurred. Misuse of the
police for political motives is relatively rare, however. There are
no political prisoners, and deliberate political murders have
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