Puerto Plata.-The social and environmental movement “Unidos Somos Más” (United We Are More) has called for this Thursday, February 12, 2026, starting at 8:00 in the morning, a peaceful vehicular march-caravan that will have as its main stage the province of Puerto Plata, in categorical rejection of mining exploitation and in defense of the Cordillera Septentrional, considered one of the main water reserves in the north of the country.
The announcement was reiterated by priest Nino Ramos, spokesperson for the movement, who warned that allowing mining projects in the mountain range would mean endangering access to water for hundreds of communities and compromising the food and environmental security of the entire region. “The Constitution is clear. Article 15 establishes that the human use of water is prioritized over any other. Accepting a historically irresponsible mining would be to take away the water from communities that produce the food that reaches our tables,” he affirmed.
Ramos also recalled that Article 67 of the Magna Carta obliges the Dominican State to protect the environment for present and future generations, which is why he called unacceptable any initiative that, under the argument of development, threatens the Cordillera Septentrional. “Our struggle is constitutional, legitimate and permanent,” he stressed.
The priest was emphatic in warning that Puerto Plata will not retreat from the streets. “We are not afraid of either police or military. We are going to the streets to defend the Constitution and the water. This mobilization will not be isolated: we will be in the streets every month, here in Puerto Plata, in Santiago and in all the affected towns, until the Government backs down on these plans,” he declared.
The mobilization is supported by residents of the municipal districts of Río Grande, Yásica Arriba, Pedro García and San Francisco de Jacagua, along with priests, neighborhood councils, environmental organizations, cooperatives, educational institutions, professionals, transportation organizations, as well as ecotourism, cultural tourism and rural tourism managers, sectors that warn that mining would put at risk the productive and tourist vocation of Puerto Plata.
As part of the day, the organizers called for national and international solidarity, urging the population to turn on the hazard lights of their vehicles between 8:00 and 11:00 in the morning, as a sign of support for the defense of the so-called “green gold”: water, forests, and biodiversity.
The caravan will depart from the entrance of Guzmancito, on the Puerto Plata–Navarrete highway, will tour the main streets of the city, will turn at the roundabout of the Jumbo supermarket and will head towards the street in front of the Palace of Justice of Puerto Plata, where the priests will issue a message to the press. The tour will conclude along the malecón, returning to the starting point.
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The movement indicated that the protest is also an act of solidarity with communities in the South, especially San Juan de la Maguana, and with Restauración, which are facing similar situations. “Our fight is not political. It is for the Homeland, for the Constitution and for life. We will not allow the Cordillera Septentrional to be negotiated or surrendered. Puerto Plata is not for sale and the water is not to be touched,” they indicated
