US embassy cable - 05SANTODOMINGO5038

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 SANTO DOMINGO 005038 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR WHA, WHA/CAR, INR/IAA; NSC FOR LATIN AMERICA 
ADVISOR; USSOUTHCOM ALSO FOR POLAD; FBI FOR DIRECTOR AND 
TIM MURPHY; DEPT OF JUSTICE FOR OIA 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/15/2015 
TAGS: DR, PREL, SNAR, KJUS, KPAO, PINR, CU, VE, HA, CH, CO 
SUBJECT: FBI DIRECTOR MUELLER MEETS WITH PRESIDENT 
FERNANDEZ ON LAW ENFORCEMENT ISSUES 
 
 
Classified By: Ambassador Hans Hertell for reason 1.4 (b) and (d). 
 
 1. (C) Summary.  President Fernandez told FBI Director 
Robert Mueller III during his October 24 visit to Santo 
Domingo that Venezuelan drug trade via the Dominican Republic 
to the United States was a "crime against humanity."  The 
Ambassador,s suggestion that a high-level Dominican 
government team go to Caracas would be feasible, said 
Fernandez, if the delegation could carry declassified U.S. 
Government information to support the view that illegal drugs 
were being shipped from Venezuela to the Dominican Republic. 
Fernandez advocated a long-term commitment by the 
international community for peacekeeping and nation-building 
in Haiti.  On Cuba, Fernandez said he expected Castro,s 
influence to be felt for many years after his demise, similar 
to Trujillo,s lingering effects in the political culture of 
the Dominican Republic nearly 45 years after the Dominican 
dictator,s death.  For the Dominican Republic, Fernandez and 
his top advisors asked the FBI and other U.S. agencies to 
consider establishing streamlined bilateral 
information-sharing mechanisms, especially on Dominicans 
convicted of serious crimes in the United States who were 
later deported.  They also sought a system in which Dominican 
convicts could finish out their sentences in the Dominican 
Republic.  Fernandez urged the United States to restore 
traditional levels of public affairs activities and cultural 
exchanges, including scholarships.  He invited President Bush 
to visit.  End summary. 
 
2. (SBU) President Fernandez hosted FBI Director Robert 
Mueller III for a luncheon conversation with Dominican law 
enforcement authorities October 24, during the first stop on 
the Director,s five-nation tour of Latin America.  The 
principals met briefly before lunch and had an exchange with 
the press.  Accompanying Fernandez were Chief of Staff Danilo 
Medina, presidential legal adviser Cesar Pina Toribio, 
Interior and Police Secretary Franklin Almeyda, intelligence 
director Major General Luis Damian Castro Cruz, Attorney 
General Francisco Domnguez Brito, and presidential drug 
advisor Vinicio "Vincho" Castillo (who is also the lawyer for 
the Baninter bank fraud defendants).  Accompanying the FBI 
director were Ambassador Hertell, FBI special assistant Tim 
Murphy, Legatt Andy Diaz, an EcoPol notetaker and an FBI 
interpreter 
 
Cuba, Venezuela, Haiti, China, and U.S. assistance 
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3. (C) Cuba.  Fernandez mentioned that in the Dominican 
Republic the influence of Trujillo, assassinated in 1961, 
remained pervasive.  Castro had been in power almost 50% 
longer than Trujillo.  Fernandez said that Castroism had 
deeper roots than Trujillo,s personality cult because of the 
greater ideological content and the more extensive 
transformation of the Cuban state.  He anticipated that the 
specter of Castro would remain in the mind and society of 
Cuba for many years - - at least as long as his 45 years in 
power.  Legal Adviser Pina Toribio pointed to the example of 
the continuing influence in Argentina of Juan Peron.  The 
Director, citing developments in China, noted the influence 
of information flows via the internet in pressing 
dictatorships for political change.  Fernandez replied that 
the "digital divide" reduces the impact of the internet in 
countries like the Dominican Republic, where only 5% of the 
population uses the internet despite policies promoting 
computer literacy.  But he agreed that eventually China would 
have to liberalize, 
 
4. (C) Venezuela.  Director Mueller raised U.S. Government 
concerns regarding illegal narcotics flows from Venezuela 
into the Dominican Republic.  Fernandez offered his good 
offices to address the problem of interdicting drug flights 
from Venezuela.  On this topic, the Venezuelan authorities 
might trust Fernandez more than they would trust U.S. 
authorities.  Fernandez replied that if the U.S. Government 
could provide contacts, the Dominicans would like to send a 
high-level delegation to Venezuela to discuss this problem, 
which affects both the Dominican Republic and the United 
States.  He would like to be able to share declassified U.S. 
Government information supporting the contention that drugs 
are being flown into the country from Venezuela.  He would 
ask the Venezuelan government to put a stop to it.  Fernandez 
said the illegal drug flow was a "crime against humanity" 
that transcended politics.  He believed the precedent of 
U.S.-Cuban cooperation in fighting illegal drugs, despite the 
political differences between the countries, might make 
President Chavez more receptive. 
 
5. (C) Democracy promotion in Cuba and Venezuela.  The 
Director suggested that the Dominican Republic could serve as 
a beacon to Cuba and Venezuela on the conduct of a 
representative democracy, on judicial independence, and on 
transformation of the criminal justice system.  Fernandez 
replied that he was always willing to collaborate to promote 
constructive dialogue between the United States and 
Venezuela, but that this would require real engagement from 
both sides. 
 
6. (C) Haiti.  Fernandez commented that elections are 
important for Haiti, but are only a first step toward 
resolving the country,s problems.  Haiti is a failed state. 
The international community must remain involved.  Haiti is a 
national security problem for both the United States and the 
Dominican Republic; with its corrupt police and lack of an 
army, Haiti has become a space from which various interests 
can cause problems for both countries.  Director Mueller 
noted the presence of MINUSTAH, and Fernandez replied that 
MINUSTAH should stay - both to keep the peace and to promote 
nation-building.  Mueller commented that the United States 
had domestic political limitations on support for additional 
nation-building overseas, and suggested that a multilateral 
approach would be more effective.  He acknowledged U.S. 
skepticism about the effectiveness of multilateral 
institutions in intelligence-sharing. 
 
7. (C) Deported Haitian criminals.  Counter-narcotics advisor 
Vincho Castillo asserted that Haitians convicted in the 
United States and deported subsequently to Haiti were 
strengthening criminal networks and endangering democracy and 
security in both countries on Hispaniola.  Attorney General 
Domnguez Brito agreed.  He described Haiti as a bridge 
country serving as a point of transit for drugs and other 
types of trafficking.  Dominguez Brito commented that 
deportations of Haitian convicts potentially posed threats to 
Haiti,s democracy and to the security of the Dominican 
Republic. 
 
8. (C) Development assistance and U.S. cultural programs. 
Fernandez agreed that multilateral efforts were better than 
unilateral ones and expressed hope that developed countries 
could meet a proposed goal of donating 0.7% of GDP in foreign 
assistance.   He hoped the U.S. Government could do more 
public diplomacy and cultural activities, and, especially, 
could offer more scholarships.  "If Cuba can take 10,000 
students, why can,t the United States double that number?" 
Fernandez mentioned that his request for forest fire 
assistance earlier this year had been rebuffed by most 
countries, but that Venezuela had responded.  Fernandez 
acknowledged that his refusal to issue a declaration of 
emergency -- so as not to hurt tourism -- had been a factor. 
The Ambassador cited two hurricane emergencies in the region 
-- in Guatemala and previously in Honduras -- for which the 
United States had provided prompt and generous aid. 
Fernandez also urged the United States to restore previous 
levels of public affairs programs in education and culture, 
such as scholarships on a large scale, donations of books and 
films, speaker engagements at universities, and operation of 
cultural centers.  He commented that such activities could 
help meet new, post-Cold War challenges to U.S. influence 
 
Dominican deportees and law enforcement cooperation 
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9. (C) Deported Dominican criminals.  Presidential anti-drugs 
advisor Vincho Castillo said that some years ago, during the 
Reno-McCaffrey period in Washington, the Dominicans had 
proposed to the U.S. Government a reciprocal prison 
assistance treaty under which the United States would set up 
a high security prison here run according to U.S. practices 
and standards, so that convicted Dominicans could serve out 
their sentences in the Dominican Republic.  He asserted that 
many Dominicans convicted in the United States are deported 
back to the Dominican Republic after serving only one-third 
of their sentences.  He said they bring back wealth, 
resources and a life style that help improve the techniques 
of the drug traffickers here.  The returning convicts might 
get involved in politics and become candidates, including for 
Congress, raising the possibility of convicted drug 
traffickers making Dominican laws, a catastrophic situation. 
Castillo asked whether the FBI could help set up a program of 
police vigilance to help the Dominicans prevent such 
individuals from entering politics. The request was for 
logistical support to provide information. 
 
10. (C) Response on deportees.  Director Mueller replied that 
to his knowledge there were no rules that facilitated early 
release of persons convicted of serious crimes.  He noted the 
existence of prisoner transfer treaties with some countries. 
(Note:  The Embassy had delivered much earlier Department 
guidance encouraging the country to accede to either of two 
multilateral prison transfer treaties.  End note.)  The 
Director said it might be possible to explore setting up an 
exchange of information on Dominicans convicted of serious 
crimes in the United States, so that they could be 
identified, monitored, and, if local law permitted, prevented 
from holding public office.  The FBI database includes 
convictions in federal, state, and local jurisdictions, and 
there may be a way to cull the cases of Dominicans.  The 
Legal Attache explained that a mechanism currently in place 
provided the Dominican police and immigration authorities 
with the names and criminal conviction records of the 
deportees for entry into local databases; the information was 
provided by the Department of Homeland Security (Immigration 
and Customs Enforcement - ICE). 
 
11. (C) Identification.  Attorney General Dominguez Brito 
said it was important to foster a streamlined mechanism to 
provide fingerprints and other means of identifying 
criminals.  He noted that the Dominican Government was 
working with the Legal Attache on a specific case in this 
regard.  A more rapid and efficient mechanism to exchange 
this kind of information would help both sides.  He commented 
that a high percentage of Dominican deportees eventually 
returned to the United States, where they could become a 
concern to law enforcement authorities. 
 
12. (C) Information sharing.  Anti-narcotics advisor Castillo 
complained about a Dominican drug trafficker who had worked 
with the Cali cartel, was convicted in the United States, and 
 after serving his time in a U.S. prison was deported to the 
Dominican Republic and started rebuilding his network with 
Cali.  The Dominican Government had been unaware of his 
release and were surprised to see him in the country.  The 
Director described his deep interest in improving the FBI,s 
capability to gather intelligence on terrorism, narcotics 
trafficking, and violent crime.  He offered to explore the 
possibility of sharing more information with the Dominican 
government. 
 
13. (C) Interagency counter-narcotics cooperation.  Fernandez 
commented that the Dominican authorities were trying to 
improve cooperation on drug issues between the anti-narcotics 
agency DNCD, the National Police, and the Directorate of 
Intelligence.  The FBI Director empathized with the problem. 
 
14. (C) Public defenders.  The Director said that it was 
important to build a network of public defenders, and he 
encouraged the Dominican Attorney General to continue his 
work on this.  In the United States, contrary to some 
criticisms, public defenders often performed very well 
because of their intense exposure to the courts. 
 
Invitation to President Bush 
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15. (C) Suggestion of a Visit by President Bush.  Fernandez 
asked for a visit by President Bush, for its symbolic 
importance in recognizing the Dominican Republic's progress 
as a model for other countries.  Director Mueller said he 
would take that invitation back to Washington.  Fernandez 
commented that U.S. presidents regularly visit big countries, 
but tend to visit small ones only in times of crisis.  He 
noted that former President Bush and many Bush family members 
had visited the country, but that the current President has 
not done so. 
 
16. (U) Embassy Santo Domingo Legal Attache has cleared this 
cable. 
 
17. (U) FBI did not have an opportunity to clear this cable. 
HERTELL