Photos: Dominicans in New York Join #MarchaVerde Against Corruption
Photo: Andrés RodriguezOn Sunday July 16th, thousands of Dominicans living in the New York Tri State area took to the streets of Washington Heights to march against corruption in the Dominican Republic as part of a movement called “Marcha Verde”. The march happened at the same time as one in Santo Domingo which is said to have been attended by over 500 thousand civilians.
According to official documents, Odebrecht paid approximately US$788 million dollars in bribes, of which US$92 million went to Dominican officials between 2001 and 2014. As a result of those deals, the company made a profit of about US$163 million dollars. According to official investigation reports, some of these projects were overvalued. Recently 14 officials were arrested with ties to this case.
Many of the protesters held banners decrying a lack of educational resources, the alarming number of cases of femicide, poverty and other issues that plague the country, as well as those specific to the diaspora like the increasing expense of obtaining a passport. Even though there are disagreements on some of the peripheral issues, the unifying cause is an end to corruption and the arrest of those involved in deals with the Brazilian company.
A manifest released by the Marcha Verde Facebook page demands the incarceration of corrupt government officials, reparation of the funds that were stolen, and the immediate cancellation of all contracts with Odebrecht.
Below are some photos taken by Andrés Rodriguez of the march:
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