Human Rights Commission ready to confront illegal occupation of land

Santo Domingo.– The National Human Rights Commission (CNDH), through its president, Manuel María Mercedes, declared this Tuesday its firm willingness to confront any attempt of illegal occupation of land in the country, regardless of the economic power or influence of those behind these actions. Mercedes issued the warning during a visit to plot 21-C-2 of the Orchid Project, located in Santo Domingo Este, owned by citizen Juan Rivera Cordero, who has been in a legal battle since 2017 against the company Docar and its main executive, Jangle Vásquez Rodríguez, whom he accuses of carrying out irregular actions with the aim of dispossessing him of his land. The human rights leader denounced that, without legal authorization or titles to support it, the company began construction of a work on the property, openly defying municipal provisions.

“Despite the Santo Domingo Este City Council imposing a formal impediment to halt construction, those responsible even removed the official prohibition sign placed by the council, in a clear act of disrespect for authority,” stated Mercedes.

Mercedes reported that the CNDH requested the urgent intervention of the State Sugar Council (CEA), an institution that certified the ownership of the land in the name of Rivera Cordero. The request was submitted last Friday to the executive director of the CEA, Rafael Burgos Gómez, to act swiftly in the face of what it described as an attempted fraud.

“We call on the CEA to intervene before this case leads to a major conflict. Rivera Cordero has been a legitimate owner for more than thirty years, with legal documents and certifications to support him. We cannot allow force to be imposed over the law,” he indicated.

Mercedes also pointed out that the only “support” of the occupants has been a network of corruption that has begun to be dismantled by the current management of the CEA.

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The president of the commission reaffirmed that the organization will use all legal and constitutional means to protect the rights of Rivera Cordero. “We will defend ourselves on the ground they have chosen, because law and justice cannot be subordinated to particular interests. Private property is a fundamental right that must be respected,” he emphasized. He highlighted that the President of the Republic himself, Luis Abinader, issued Special Power 36-25 in March of this year, ordering the director of the CEA to formalize the transfer to Rivera. Finally, Mercedes urged judicial and administrative authorities to act firmly to ensure that this conflict is resolved in accordance with the law, and warned that the organization she presides over will remain under permanent surveillance until an irrevocably judged decision exists.