Dominican Republic and Haiti, Country Studies

624 Pages·2001·46.191 MB·English

by  Federal Research Division

area handbook series
Dominican Republic
and
Haiti
country studies

Dominican Republic
and
Haiti
country studies
Federal Research Division
Library of Congress
Edited by
Helen Chapin Metz
Research Completed
December 1999
'NorthAtlantic Ocean
CaribbeanSea
On the cover: Hispaniola (La Isla Espariola)
Third Edition, First Printing, 2001.
Libraryof Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Dominican Republic and Haiti country studies / Federal Research
:
Division, Libr—aryofCongress ; edited byHelen Chapin Metz.
p. cm. (Area handbook series, ISSN 1057-5294) (DApam
;
550-36)
"Research completed December 1999."
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8444-1044-6 (alk. paper)
1. Dominican Republic. 2. Haiti. I. Metz, Helen Chapin, 1928- .
II. Library ofCongress. Federal Research Division. III. Series. IV.
Series: DApam 550-36
;
F1934.D64 2001
972.93—dc21
2001023524
Headquarters, Department ofthe Army
DAPam 550-36
ForsalebytheSuperintendentofDocuments,U.S.GovernmentPrintingOffice
Washington,D.C. 20402
Foreword
This volume is one in a continuing series ofbooks prepared
by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress
under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program spon-
sored by the DepartmentoftheArmy. The last two pages ofthis
book list the other published studies.
Most books in the series deal with a particular foreign coun-
try, describing and analyzing its political, economic, social, and
national security systems and institutions, and examining the
interrelationships of those systems and the ways they are
shaped by historical and cultural factors. Each study is written
by a multidisciplinary team of social scientists. The authors
seek to provide a basic understanding ofthe observed society,
striving for a dynamic rather than a static portrayal. Particular
attention is devoted to the people who make up the society,
their origins, dominant beliefs and values, their common inter-
ests and the issues on which they are divided, the nature and
extent oftheir involvementwith national institutions, and their
attitudes toward each other and toward their social system and
political order.
The books represent the analysis ofthe authors and should
not be construed as an expression ofan official United States
government position, policy, or decision. The authors have
sought to adhere to accepted standards ofscholarly objectivity.
Corrections, additions, and suggestions for changes from read-
erswill be welcomed for use in future editions.
Robert L. Worden
Chief
Federal Research Division
Library ofCongress
Washington, DC 20540-4840
E-mail: [email protected]
iii

Acknowledgments
The authors wish to acknowledge the work ofFrederick
J.
Conway, Melinda Wheeler Cooke, Georges A. Fauriol, Richard
A. Haggerty, Patricia Kluck, Daniel Seyler, Glenn R. Smucker,
J.
and Howard Wiarda, who contributed to the 1991 edition of
J.
DominicanRepublic andHaiti: Country Studies. Theirwork served
as aframework forvarious chapters ofthe presentvolume. The
authors also are grateful to individuals in various agencies of
the United States government and international and private
institutionswho gave their time, research materials, and special
knowledge to provide information and perspective.
The authors also wish to thank those who contributed
directly to the preparation of the manuscript. These include
SandraW. Meditz, who reviewed all drafts and served as liaison
with the sponsoring agency and printer; Marilyn Majeska, who
edited all chapters and managed production of the manu-
script; andJanie L. Gilchrist, who did the word processing and
prepared the camera-ready copy.
Maryland Mapping and Graphics provided invaluable graph-
ics support, including the preparation ofmaps, charts, photo-
graphs, and cover and chapter illustrations. KimberlyA. Lord
prepared the illustrations for the title pages ofthe chapters on
Haiti. Various individuals, libraries, and public agencies, espe-
cially the Inter-American Development Bank, provided photo-
graphs.
Finally, the authors would like to thank Tim Merrill, who
checked the rendering offoreign names and terms.
v