The Italian Legacy in the Dominican Republic

THE ITALIAN LEGACY IN THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

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promoted through the Ministry of Higher Education, Science

and Technology (MESCYT), as part of the 14th International

Congress of Scientific Research, in which Italy was the country

of honor. The participating Italian scientists, who were invit-

ed by the Embassy,presented their lectures before an audience

comprising scientists, scholars, and government authorities.

The event was presided over by Minister Alejandrina Germán.

As a way of fostering awareness of the historical bonds be-

tween Italy and the Dominican Republic, I promoted a range of

conferences and public diplomacy

events, which allowed me

to present a new image of Italy. Highlights included the scientif-

ic and historical symposium titled

1492, Montecristi Primada del

Nuevo Mundo

, held in Montecristi. This event featured lectures

by historians Carmen Prestinary and Euclides Gutiérrez Félix,

both of whom focused on the strong historical ties between Ita-

ly and Italians and the northern part of the Dominican Republic.

The event featured opening remarks by Marcos Jorge, governor

of Montecristi, and was moderated by Miguel Bejarán, director

of the DGDF (General Directorate of Border Development).

Another noteworthy conference, held on October 25, 2018,

focused on Italy’s contributions to constitutional law in general,

and specifically to Dominican constitutional law, with remarks

by the honorable Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court, Dr.

Milton Ray Guevara, who is also the subject of the essay titled “Chief Justice Milton Ray Guevara on Italy’s

Contributions to Dominican Constitutional Law” (Summary of remarks by the Chief Justice of the Constitu-

tional Court of the Dominican Republic at a conference held on October 25, 2018) (Chapter 42 of this book).

During the month of October 2018, various initiatives dedicated to Italian culture were held at the Ibe-

ro-American University (UNIBE), the Technological Institute of Santo Domingo (INTEC), the Technological

University of Santiago (UTESA), the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo, the Pontificia Universidad

Madre e Maestra (PUCMM), the Catholic University of Santo Domingo (UCSD), the Pedro Enrique Ureña

University (UNPHU), and the Central University of the East (UCE) in San Pedro de Macoris.

2019

•

On January 31, the Italian embassy and the Think Tanks and Civil Societies Program at the Univer-

sity of Pennsylvania, directed by James McGann and the Global

Foundation for Democracy and Development (Funglode), or-

ganized a conference titled

The Importance of Think Tanks

, with

the participation of the main executives of the most prominent

think tanks in the Dominican Republic, representatives of the

universities, as well as diplomats. The purpose of this meeting

was to highlight the critical work carried out by think tanks and

similar organizations. The initiative was part of more than 100

events that were held at 300 institutions in more than 80 coun-

tries around the world, thus helping to bring a dialogue on a

central instrument for Dominican democracy to an internation-

al platform.

The initiative also served to highlight the importance of

these centers to inform decision makers and public opinion

Visit of President Danilo

Medina to President

Sergio Mattarella at the

Quirinal Palace. Rome,

February 13, 2019.

of the Presidency

of the Italian Republic