Is there a GREEN Party in the DR?

[Tordok]

.....and I don't mean a fiesta on the golf course.

The large parties, PRD/PLD/PRSC, are saturated with corrupt cliques and don't seem to have any coherent plans for dealing with the nation's problems. It would seem that the few politicians within their ranks that are honest and have the will to do things right, are quickly isolated from the leadership and only the "team-players" are allowed to surface to positions of power in the party or in government.

I don't recall a Green party being there in my youth, thus I'm wondering if there is now a progressive, still unpolluted -pun intended- political organization akin to other Green Party movements around the world.

I'd suspect that even if not viable to obtain, say the Presidency, perhaps such a eco-centric movement could elect a candidate to the legislature or perhaps to local goverments.

Would it be any better to put these issues on the table from within the politcal party system, instead of as outside NGOs and other advocacy groups?

Thanks for any responses,

- Tordok

[Tordok]

OK, I quickly did a Google search and found that there is indeed a Partido Verde in the DR , so please let me rephrase the question:

How visible and/or viable are the Greens in the DR, based on your experience?
Why are they not more visible?

thanks again,

- Tordok

[deelt]

Hi T,

Good questions. I think the reason why the green party is not visible is because these poor honest people are frankly outnumbered. At first I thought that the green party is not visible because Dominicans are realist. That is, people realize that to vote green takes away from the two main contenders in any particular race. This is the issue we face in the states. While I think this is somewhat true I don't think it bares the onus of why the party lacks recognition and air time space.

At the root of it all three things: 1) A moneyed champion: Has the green party been able to recruit a charismatic champion that can foot the bill and push their agenda; 2) An Agenda: that's honest, real and works; 3) Supportive Legislation that allows them to be included in all decisions made (since I am not a DR lawyer not really sure what is required in terms of paperwork and recognition--aka this could be a doozie since no other party will support a contender...unless there is something in it for them). At the end of the day, no one willingly relinquishes power. Despite this truism, Green party member would need to be able to recruit folks over to their party and away from the major players. [Aside, if you think you are going to fill a vaccum and recruit non voters or apathetic votes then good luck. Voter turn out in DR has been consistently high since the last 30 to 40 years. I'll be hard press to find enough non voters or swing voters in DR to flip an election.] For that to be successful you need a tried and true plan....with benefits.

Unfortunately, Dominicans tend to reject/easily disregard the unknown. Political party alliances in DR are ideological institutions manipulated for personal gain. The switching of parties (with minor exceptions) has been an issue of strategy not as a result of one's fundamental change in ideology.

Randomly yours,
Deelt

[Keith R]

Partido Verde Dominicano
Av. España No. 3
Ens. Isabelita
Santo Domingo Oriental
República Dominicana

Tel: 809-766-1631; 809-766-9315
E-mail: pvd@verizon.net.do

So far, the PVD has not really registered on the political radar screen in the DR. Not unusual -- green parties have popped up throughout Latin America, but most have not yet much of a political impact. For example, the PV in Brazil has made some headway at the local level, but have had difficulty at state and national levels, in part because they have had trouble distinguishing themselves from the Workers Party's (PT) environmentist wing.

The PV in Mexico, however, does seem to be making headway. When they allied with PAN in the last election and helped get Fox elected President, everyone in Mexico City said they would be ignored thereafter and not have much impact. That proved very wrong. Most major environmental legislation passed over the last four years, at state and national level, was proposed and pushed through by the "minority" PV, they control the environment committees in most of the legislatures, and they are fielding some strong candidates for the next election and being courted by other parties... How they'd do it? I'm not an expert in Mexican politics, but viewing things from afar it appears because they (a) seriously courted young professionals wanting to "make a difference" and upset at the 3 traditional parties (PRI, PAN, PRI); (b) kept their agenda & strategy focused; (c) worked hard in the legislatures to actually see their bills through (too many legislators -- everywhere -- submit tons of bills, but then do little to get them passed); (d) had a strong media strategy from the get-go.

Can it happen in the DR? I dunno. Like Tordok, I did not even know they existed, so I have no sense of their seriousness or potential.

Regards,
Keith

[Tordok]

Deelt,
I'm not surprised that you would have a well informed opinion on this kind of topic. Your points make sense to me, since my crude understanding of how official party recognition and opportunities for relevant participation in the electoral system are rather arcane and -like in the US - tend to be skewed to the well-establsihed large parties that obviously keep on helping themselves.
thanks.

Keith,
It is encouraging to see that Greens have made some inroads in places like Mexico. Not necessarily predictive of similar success in the DR, but enough evidence that they can become a player of some relevance in the region lacking fresher political dynamics. Thanks for adding your perspective/experience to this topic.

- Tordok

[ricktoronto]

They were going to run a Presidential candidate in the last election but broke out into arguments over killing the trees to make the election posters.