By Brittney Hodnik
Impunity Watch Reporter, North America

SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic – Amnesty International reports that the police in the Dominican Republic account for an astonishing 10% of all killings in the country.  Crime rates have soared in the past few years, which many attribute to organized crime; following in Mexico’s footsteps.  There have been reports of unlawful killings, abuses while in police custody, and even reports of enforced disappearance.

Statistics from the Office of the Prosecutor General show that between January and July of 2011, the police killed 154 people, according to Amnesty International.  This number is up from 125 people during the same period last year.  This means that the police committed 10% of all homicides in the Dominican Republic.

The police contend that these killings were always during “exchanges of gunfire” with criminal suspects, according to Amnesty International, but the report finds that many of these situations involved deliberate shots to kill.

Colonel Maximo Aybar is the National Police spokesperson in the Dominican Republic.  He reinforces that the police are indeed committed to protecting the public.  Aybar told CNN, “We are more than aware that we are here to defend members of society, not to assault them. . . . In those cases where excesses may have been committed, investigations have occurred and measures have been taken . . . .”

The police further point out that they too have been the victims of these violent exchanges.  CNN reports that 97 officers have been killed this year, and 176 have been injured.  The police are using gunfire as a deterrent to prevent young people from engaging in this type of organized crime that is running rampant throughout the country.

Beyond the killings on the street, Amnesty International reports that while in police custody, suspects have been threatened with death, denied food and water, beaten, had plastic bags put over their heads, or were hung on nails by their handcuffs.  Further, at least two people last seen in police custody have gone missing, and many fear the worst.  The Washington Post reports that these instances are investigated, but not very thoroughly.

The police may be using the killings to deter young locals from engaging in future violence.  Javier Zuniga, head of Amnesty International’s delegation to the Dominican Republic said, “We believe their conduct is actually exacerbating the violence and creating a climate in which human rights are completely ignored,” reported BBC News.

Hopefully, the police force will not become a totally corrupt agency, fighting against the people.  Although the Dominican government recognizes the fact that there are high levels of corruption already, it actively seeks to dismiss those involved.

For more information, please visit:

Amnesty International — Dominican Republic Urged to Tackle Alarming Levels of Police Abuse — 25 Oct. 2011

BBC News — Amnesty Accuses Dominican Republic Police — 25 Oct. 2011

CNN — Amnesty: Killings by Dominican Police ‘Alarming’ — 25 Oct. 2011

The Washington Post — Amnesty International Accuses Dominican Republic Police  of Killings, Torture — 25 Oct. 2011