Dominican Republic

The Dominican Republic 🇩🇴 is a Caribbean country which practices Christianity. Censorship was pervasive during Rafael Trujillo's regime.

The country enjoys a relatively high ranking in press freedom compared to other countries in the Americas.

General censorship

The constitution provides for freedom of speech and press, and the government generally respects these rights in practice. An independent press, an effective judiciary, and a functioning democratic political system ensure freedom of speech and press. The independent media are active and express a wide variety of views without restriction. Individuals and groups are generally able to criticize the government publicly and privately without reprisal, although there have been incidents in which authorities intimidated journalists or other news professionals. Local journalists engage in self-censorship, particularly when coverage could adversely affect the economic or political interests of media owners. The government denies using unauthorized wiretapping or other surreptitious methods to interfere with the private lives of individuals and families, however, human rights groups and opposition politicians allege that such interference does occur.

Under far-right dictator Rafael Leónidas Trujillo, opposition parties were banned. There was a secret force where the press was censored and dissenters were threatened with assault or intimidation. Trujillo was assassinated in 1961. In 1962, after the first free elections since the death of Trujillo, the newly-elected president Juan Bosch greatly eased the state's censorship policies with a more liberal government and permitting more freedom of expression.

Internet censorship

There are no government restrictions on access to the Internet or credible reports that the government monitors e-mail or Internet chat rooms without judicial oversight.

External links

• Human rights in the Dominican Republic at Wikipedia

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