GOVERNMENT
Form of government.--Constitutions.--Presidents.--Election.--Powers.
--Executive secretaries.--Land and sea forces.--Congress.--Local
subdivisions.--Provincial governors.--Communal governments.
From the date of the declaration of independence, February 27, 1844,
down to the present time, with the exception only of a portion of the
period of Spanish occupation of 1861 to 1865, Santo Domingo has
remained in form at least, a republic. Herein it contrasts with its
neighbor Haiti, which has experienced several monarchies. Thus
Dessalines proclaimed himself emperor in 1804, Christophe assumed the
title of king in 1810 and Soulouque had himself declared emperor in
1849; and the latter two instituted pompous black nobilities. And
though the Cibao of Santo Domingo and the region south of the Central
Cordillera have ever been rivals and often in arms against each other
under competing generals, there has never been any tendency to
separate and form two states--as occurred in Haiti in 1806 when the
northern portion fell under the sway of Christophe for a period of
fourteen years, first as a nominal republic and later as a kingdom,
while the southern portion became a republic under Petion and finally
under Boyer.
But although the country has in form remained a republic and the title
of the chief of state has never been more pretentious than president
or protector, in fact there have been few years when the government
was not autocratic and the president an absolute monarch whose powers
were limited only by his own generous impulses or the fear of
alienating his more influential supporters. Dominican writers have
even referred to the constitution as a conventional lie.
The various Dominican presidents, as soon as securely in power, have
generally been careful to follow constitutional forms, in an effort to
deceive their followers and themselves into the belief that they were
acting in regular course as servants of the people. The successful
revolutionist was almost, always in haste to "legalize" his position
by an election. Most of the presidents, among them Heureaux, have been
great sticklers for form. Instead of moulding their wishes to conform
to the constitution, however, they would mould the constitution to
conform to their wishes, and repeatedly the first act of the
successful revolutionist has been to promulgate a new constitution in
accordance with his ideas. It has thus come to pass that the
constitution, far from being revered as the immutable foundation of
government, has rather been regarded as the convenient means for the
president in office to exercise power. From 1844 to the present time
nineteen constitutions have been promulgated in Santo Domingo, one in
the year 1844, one each in 1858, 1859 and 1865, two in 1866 and one
each in 1868, 1874, 1875, 1877, 1878, 1879, 1880, 1887, 1896, 1907
and 1908.
This extraordinary number is due in part to the practice of not
enacting amendments to an existing constitution, but of promulgating
the amended instrument as a new constitution. On three of the
occasions here indicated a constitution was abrogated in order to
revive a prior one. No account is taken in the above computation of
the instances where a successful revolutionist in order to announce
his adherence to the then existing constitution promulgated the same
anew. Thus the constitution of 1896 was reestablished in 1903.
The Dominican constitutions have all been modeled on the general lines
of that of the United States, and have differed from each other only
in detail. The term of office of the president has varied from one to
six years and the powers conferred upon him have been more or less
ample. The constitution of 1854, revived in 1859, 1866 and 1868,
practically invested him with dictatorial powers, and the only
legislative assembly it provided for was an "Advisory Senate" of
nine members.
The present constitution was drafted by a constitutional assembly
which sat in Santiago de los Caballeros in the early part of 1908. It
is disappointing both as a literary and political document. The style
bears witness to the haste with which the instrument was compiled.
Provisions quite unsuitable to Dominican conditions are included, such
as that granting the right to vote to all male citizens over eighteen
years of age. Such an extension of the suffrage would be looked upon
askance even in countries where education is general, and in Santo
Domingo would constitute a serious danger if really put into effect.
While the presidential succession is left to be regulated by a law of
Congress, the constitution goes into minute details regarding
citizenship, naturalization and several other matters. Repeated
attempts have been made to secure a new constitution and in 1914
partial elections were held for a constitutional convention, but for
one reason or another the plan has not matured. A new constitution
will probably be provided in connection with the cessation of American
occupation.
According to the present constitution the president must be a native
born Dominican, at least thirty-five years of age and with a
residence of at least twenty years in the Republic. His term of office
is fixed at six years, to be counted from the day of inauguration. The
fact that no specific date is mentioned has repeatedly proved a matter
of convenience to successful revolutionists. The designation of a
presidential term of office in the various constitutions has thus far
been something of an irony, for of the 43 executives who have come to
the fore in the 70 years of national life, but three presidents have
completed terms of office for which they were elected: Baez one term,
Merino one and Heureaux four, nor was the distinction of these three
due to ought but their success in suppressing revolutionary movements.
Five vice-presidents completed presidential terms. Two presidents were
killed and twenty deposed. The other chief magistrates resigned more
or less voluntarily.
Of the 43 presidents 15 were chosen by popular election according to
constitutional forms, 5 were vice-presidents who succeeded to the
presidency, 4 were provisional presidents elected by Congress, 10
began as military presidents and then had themselves elected under
constitutional forms, and 9 were purely and simply military
provisional presidents.
A comparison of the list of presidents with the roster of executives
of Haiti reveals a disproportion, for though the black Republic has
been in existence since 1804, it has had but twenty-nine chiefs of
state, the average duration of whose rule was therefore much longer
than has been the case in Santo Domingo. It is to be observed,
however, that of the Haitian executives only one completed his term of
office and voluntarily retired; of the others, four remained in power
until their death from natural causes, eighteen were deposed by
revolutions, one of them, committing suicide, another being executed
on the steps of his burning palace, and still another being cut to
pieces by the mob; five were assassinated; and one is chief magistrate
at the present time.
The president and members of the Senate and House of Deputies are
elected by indirect vote. Electors whose number and apportionment
among the several provinces and their subdivisions are prescribed by
law, are chosen by general suffrage in what are called primary
assemblies in the several municipalities and constitute electoral
colleges which meet at the chief town of the respective province. The
electors having cast their votes for president the minutes of the
session are sent to the capital. The votes are counted in joint
session of Congress and the successful candidate is proclaimed by
that body.
Though the election procedure designated in the constitution was
gravely followed, yet not once in the history of the country has the
result of an election been in doubt, nor is there an instance when the
candidate of the government was not elected, excepting only the
election of October, 1914, when the American government brought
watchers from Porto Rico to avoid gross frauds and coercion. Usually
everything was prepared beforehand and the primaries and the meetings
of the electoral colleges were little more than ratification meetings.
The votes of the electoral colleges were generally unanimous in favor
of the government's candidate, yet the odd spectacle has repeatedly
presented itself, of a unanimously elected president being driven out
of the country within a few months by a general revolution.
The constitution authorizes the president to conclude treaties with
the consent of Congress, to appoint certain government officials, to
receive foreign diplomatic representatives, and to grant pardons in
certain cases, and makes him commander-in-chief of the army and navy.
Most of the chief magistrates have not felt themselves hampered,
however, whether in peace or war, by any enumeration of powers in the
constitution, for their ascendancy has generally been such that their
wishes would be complied with and their illegal acts ratified or
ignored by a subservient Congress. President Heureaux so controlled
Congress, the courts, and all public functionaries, that the
government was practically identical with his personality.
The constitution provides that in case of the death, resignation or
disability of the president the Congress shall by law designate the
person who is to act as president until the disability ceases or a new
president is elected, and that if Congress is not sitting the Cabinet
officers are immediately to call a session. This is an innovation, as
from 1853 to 1907 the Dominican constitutions provided for a
vice-president. The vice-president was generally a decorative feature.
He was required to possess the same qualifications as the president
and was chosen with the same formalities, but no duties were assigned
to him, not even that of presiding in Congress, so that his only
attribute was the glory of being a president in escrow. The newly
elected vice-president therefore often quietly retired to his farm,
emerging occasionally to act in the president's stead when the latter
left the capital on a trip through the country. Frequently the
vice-president was made delegate of the government in some part of the
country and at times he was invested with a portfolio as one of the
cabinet secretaries. During the administration of a strong president,
as in the time of Heureaux, the vice-president was generally one of
his satellites, whereas, when the president's power was not so firmly
established, as in the administrations of Jimenez and Morales, one of
his rivals would be mollified by the vice-presidency. In such cases
friction frequently developed, and in the two cases specified the
vice-presidents and presidential rivals, Vasquez and Caceres,
overthrew the president and established themselves in power. Evidently
in order to avoid such disturbances and temptations the constitution
of 1908 abolished the office of vice-president. The lack of a definite
successor to the president, however, enabled Victoria to seize the
presidency after the death of Caceres in 1911 and has given rise to
uncertainty and trouble in the cases of presidential succession since
that time.
It has been a custom, sometimes expressly authorized by the
constitution, for the president to delegate executive powers and
prerogatives to persons selected by him in various parts of the
country, especially where revolutionary uprisings threatened. There
has usually been such a delegate of the government in the Cibao and
often one in Azua. They are powerful officials, inasmuch as they are
regarded as the direct representatives of the president and his
administration, command the local military forces, and constitute the
fountain-head of all local executive appointments. Nominations as
delegates of the government have been preferably conferred upon
provincial governors or upon the vice-president. The president is
naturally anxious to repose such powers in one of his confidants, but
political exigencies have sometimes obliged him to soothe one of his
rivals with the distinction and remain on the qui vive thereafter.
More than one governmental delegate has overthrown the president and
established himself in power.
Provisional presidents have been numerous in Dominican history. After
a successful revolution the victorious general usually proclaimed
himself president of a provisional government and until the
constitution was again declared in force he and his ministers united
executive and legislative power. How far the acts of such de facto
governments were legally binding upon the Republic has been questioned
in cases where obligations were imposed upon the country, but foreign
governments in asserting their rights have paid little attention to
such quibbles.
The constitution provides that there shall be such executive
secretaries as may be determined by law. They are currently referred
to as ministers and their number has been fixed at seven, namely, (1)
secretary of the interior and police (interior y policia); (2)
secretary of foreign relations (relaciones exteriores); (3) secretary
of finance and commerce (hacienda y comercio); (4) secretary of war
and the navy (guerra y marina); (5) secretary of justice and public
instruction (justicia e instrucción pública); (6) secretary of
agriculture and immigration (agricultura e inmigración); (7) secretary
of public development and communications (fomento y comunicaciones).
Communication between Congress and the executive departments is
rendered easier than in the United States by the constitutional
provision that the secretaries of state are obliged to attend the
Congressional sessions when called by Congress. This right of
interpellation has frequently been exercised.
The secretary of the interior and police is at the head of an
important department. He is the administrative superior of the
provincial governors and the communal and cantonal chiefs. His
position renders him the sentinel of the government for the detection
of revolutionary movements.
The foreign office of the Republic is directed by the secretary of
foreign affairs. The diplomatic service of Santo Domingo is limited
to the modest needs of the country, the more important posts being
those of minister plenipotentiary in the United States, Haiti and
France and chargé d'affaires in Cuba and Venezuela. The majority of
consuls depend altogether upon consular fees for their remuneration,
only a few of the more important being provided for in the budget. The
consulates of most consequence have been considered to be those in the
surrounding West India Islands and in New York City, for apart from
their commercial relations with the Republic these places have been
the favorite haunts of conspiring political exiles. Almost all the
European countries are represented in the Dominican Republic either by
ministers, chargés d'affaires or consuls. Of the diplomatic
representatives residing in Santo Domingo City the highest in rank is
the American minister. Before 1904 the American minister to Haiti was
accredited to the Dominican Republic as chargé d'affaires. The United
States has consular representatives at all the principal ports, there
being an American consul at Puerto Plata and consular agents
elsewhere. In the past, great respect has been shown to consulates
even to the extent of allowing them privileges of extra-territoriality,
and frequently political refugees have sought asylum under the flag of
a mere consular agent.
The secretary of finance and commerce has charge of the sources of
national income, and the customs and internal revenue services, and
under his authority the disbursements of the Republic are audited. The
office for the compilation of statistics, organized a few years ago,
is also in this department.
The army, rural police, navy and the captaincies of the port are under
the supervision of the secretary of war and the navy. This official is
always a military man and generally takes the field in person in
cases of revolutionary uprisings. During the insurrection of Jimenez
against Morales in 1903-4, two of Morales' ministers of war were
killed in battle.
Upon the American occupation in 1916 the military force of the
Republic was disbanded. There were at that time twelve military posts,
one in the capital of each province. The commanders and their aides
and the chiefs of forts and their assistants were treated as distinct
from the regular army. The army's strength and organization have
varied greatly; at the time of its dissolution the authorized strength
was one infantry regiment of about 470 officers and men, and a band of
33 men. Only a few months before, the preceding budget had authorized
an infantry force of about 800 officers and men and a battery of
mountain artillery of 100 officers and men, in addition to the
all-important band. In reality, however, only the membership of the
band was certain; in time of war the rest of the military
establishment was much larger, and in time of peace it comprised
numerous phantom soldiers, whose salaries were nevertheless regularly
collected from the national treasury. Service was supposed to be
voluntary, but the "volunteers" were generally picked out by communal
chiefs and brought in under guard, sometimes tied with ropes to keep
them from deserting.
There was also an inefficient and overbearing rural police called the
"Guardia Republicana," supposed to consist of seven companies of about
800 officers and men, but here too things were not what they seemed.
The higher officers of the Republican Guard were a brigadier-general,
a colonel, a lieutenant-colonel and 2 majors; those of the army only a
colonel, 2 lieutenant-colonels and 2 majors, which was very modest for
a country teeming with generals and where the budget of 1909 even
appropriated $20,000 for a "corps of generals at the orders of the
president."
The American garrison in the Republic, comprising about 1000 men, took
over the military posts in the Republic and lent strength to the
Guardia Republicana. By an order of the military governor, of April 7,
1917, the sum of $500,000 was set aside for the organization of a
constabulary force to be called the "Guardia Nacional Dominicana," to
take the place of the Dominican army, navy and police. This Dominican
National Guard is to be commanded by a citizen of the United States
and such other officers as the American government may consider
necessary. Its organization is far advanced and it has already
absorbed the Guardia Republicana. In it will be merged the frontier
guard of about 70 men depending on the general receiver's office, and
probably also the small municipal police squads that compel the
observance of municipal ordinances.
The Dominican navy is now composed of a single gunboat, the
"Independencia." At the end of Heureaux's rule the country boasted
three. The best of these was the "Restauración," which went on the
rocks at the entrance to Macoris harbor in one of the first conflicts
between the Jimenistas and Horacistas. The story goes that the steamer
was about to attack Macoris, that the pilot, in sympathy with the
opposition, grounded her with a view to having her captured, but that
a sudden storm drove her to complete destruction. Another gunboat was
the "Presidente," which had figured in history, for it was nothing
less than the yacht "Deerhound," on which the Confederate Admiral
Semmes took refuge after the sinking of the "Alabama" by the
"Kearsarge." In 1906 it was sent to Newport News for overhauling as
old age had made it unseaworthy, but since the repairs would have cost
more than the vessel was worth, it was sold for old iron. The
survivor, the "Independencia" is a trim vessel with a crew of fifty
officers and men. Attached to the general receiver's office are
several gasoline revenue cutters, recently provided.
The secretary of justice and public instruction has administrative
supervision over the courts, jails and schools of the Republic, and
the government subventions to primary and private schools are
disbursed under his direction.
The secretary of agriculture and immigration is the cabinet officer of
most recent creation. Prior to the 1908 constitution agriculture had
been in charge of the department of public development and there had
been no special provision for immigration. The importance of these
subjects for the Republic was felt to be such as to merit the
establishment of a special department. In practice the department has
done nothing, its efforts being hampered by revolutions and
circumscribed by the limited sums at its disposal. Its activities have
been confined to a general supervision of agriculture, the preparatory
work of the establishment of an agricultural experiment station and
the operation of a small meteorological service.
The department of public development and communications has charge of
the postal service of the Republic, of the national telegraph and
telephone, of the lighthouses, and of the public works carried on by
the government.
The size of the national legislature of Santo Domingo has fluctuated
considerably. Under the 1896 constitution the Congress consisted of a
single house of twenty-four members, two from each of the then
existing six provinces and six districts. The increase of the
national income permitting greater expenditures, the constitution of
1908 provided for two houses, one called the Senate, the other the
Chamber of Deputies. The Senate is composed of twelve members, one
from each province, elected by the same electoral colleges that elect
the president and holding office for six years. One-third of the
Senate is renewed every two years. The number of members of the
Chamber of Deputies is supposed to be in proportion to the number of
inhabitants of the various provinces, but as there has been no census
the number is provisionally fixed at twenty-four, two from each
province. The members of the Chamber of Deputies are elected for a
term of four years, also by the electoral colleges, which at the same
time designate alternates for the several members.
Congress meets each year in regular session on the anniversary of
Dominican independence, February 27, and its session is limited to
ninety days, which may, however, be extended sixty days more. Since
there are no provincial legislatures the powers of the Congress, set
forth in the Constitution, are sweeping. They include the right to
legislate in general for every part of the Republic, to approve or
reject treaties and to try the president, cabinet members and supreme
court judges on impeachment charges.
In practice the elections for deputies have been as perfunctory as
those for president, though there were occasional contests. The
character and attitude of Congress has varied with the character and
condition of the presidents. During the incumbency of strong leaders,
such as Santana, Baez and Heureaux, the Congress was little more than
the tool of the executive, but when the personality of the president
was not so overwhelming or when many of the deputies were followers of
a rival chieftain, as in the administrations of Jimenez and Morales,
an independent and sometimes a nagging spirit has been manifested.
Under the American occupation the Congress was by decree of January 2,
1917, declared in abeyance and all executive and legislative powers
are temporarily exercised by the commander of the American forces. The
heads of executive departments are officers of the American navy or
marine corps. Otherwise the general structure of the government
remains as before. The theory that Santo Domingo is an independent,
sovereign country is carefully followed, though at times it leads to
anomalous situations, as when the American military governor issues
exequaturs to American consuls in Santo Domingo "by virtue of the
powers vested in me by the Constitution of the Dominican Republic," or
when the American minister, Hon. W. W. Russell, representing the
United States and receiving his instructions from the United States
State Department, calls on Admiral H. S. Knapp, chief executive of
Santo Domingo, who takes his orders from the United States Navy
Department.
For administrative purposes the Republic is divided into twelve
provinces; Azua, Barahona, Espaillat, La Vega, Macoris, Monte Cristi,
Pacificador, Puerto Plata, Samana, Santiago, Santo Domingo and Seibo.
Formerly six were known as provinces and six as maritime districts,
though there was in practice no distinction between them. The
provinces are subdivided into communes and cantons--a canton being a
commune in embryo--and these in turn are subdivided into sections.
Congress is empowered to create new provinces, communes and cantons.
In the twelve provinces there are now sixty-five communes, several
comprising cantons. The provinces bear the names of their capital
towns, except Espaillat and Pacificador, the former of which is
called after Ulises F. Espaillat who took a prominent part in the War
of Restoration and was president in 1876, and the latter in honor of
President Heureaux, on whom a fawning Congress conferred the title of
Pacificador de la Patria, but these also are sometimes known by the
names of their capitals, Moca and San Francisco de Macoris. The
communes bear the names of their urban centers. Towns with long names
are usually referred to by part of the name only, thus Santa Cruz del
Seibo is known simply as El Seibo, Santa Barbara de Samaná either as
Santa Barbara or as Samana, etc.
At the head of each province is an official who bears the title of
governor. He acts as the direct agent of the president and is chief of
the government police and commander of the military forces of the
district. In civil matter he is dependent upon the department of the
interior and police, in military affairs he is under the department of
war and the navy. The governors are appointed by the president of the
Republic and their salaries are paid from the national treasury. Under
the present American occupation the various provinces still have their
governors, but the real governors are the American officers locally in
command of the occupation forces.
In each commune and canton there is a communal or cantonal chief who
represents the governor of the province. He is paid by the national
government and is charged with the preservation of the peace in his
jurisdiction. Again in each section there is a sectional chief, a
local police officer who depends on the communal chief.
The system of local chieftains of gradually diminishing category has
brought Santo Domingo to resemble in some administrations a feudal
monarchy rather than a constitutional republic. As governor the
president usually chose prominent men of the locality, either friends
whom he wished to reward or opponents or rivals whom he was obliged to
placate. The communal chiefs were also appointed by the president,
though the governor's wishes were respected to a large extent, and
here too men of influence were selected, such influence usually being
reckoned by the possession of a devoted following. The section chiefs
were chosen under similar considerations.
Though the law prescribes the duties of the governors, their local
prestige, their authority as commanders of the military, and their
activities in revolutionary times, have so exalted their position as
to convert them into something like satraps and make them powerful
supporters or dangerous rivals of the president. Many insurrections
have been inaugurated by disaffected governors. At times provinces
have remained practically independent for many months, ruled merely by
the governor and a coterie of his friends, while the president, in the
impossibility of imposing his authority, was obliged to acquiesce. A
conspicuous example of such a peculiar state of affairs was furnished
by the district of Monte Cristi, during the presidency of Morales. In
December, 1903, the formidable insurrection of Jimenez against
Provisional President Morales originated in Monte Cristi and though
the government gradually regained the remainder of the country it was
unable to subjugate this district, where the entire population was
Jimenista and the character of the country rendered campaigning very
difficult. Finally in the spring of 1904 a formal treaty was signed by
which the insurgents agreed to lay down their arms upon the
government's promise not to interfere in their district, where all
executive appointments were thereafter to be made as recommended by
the local authorities. Though constitutional forms were still
observed a few military chiefs thus assumed the direction of affairs.
Whenever any executive appointment was to be made, the name of the
nominee was certified to the capital to be ratified as a matter of
course; when orders came from Santo Domingo City, whether in civil or
military affairs, they were obeyed or ignored as convenience dictated;
the entire amount of the revenues collected in the Monte Cristi
custom-house was retained in the district. In order to stimulate
imports and increase the customs collections the local authorities
even conceded a secret discount from the general tariff. With the
enforcement of the San Domingo Improvement Company's arbitral award
and the inauguration of the receivership for Santo Domingo the control
of the custom-house passed out of the hands of the local chieftains,
who sullenly protested as against an invasion of their treaty rights.
In other matters the autonomy of the district remained unimpaired
until the beginning of 1906 when upon the fall of Morales the
government troops, in suppressing the revolution in the north, overran
Monte Cristi province and restored its dependency upon the central
government.
The healthiest and most important political subdivisions in Santo
Domingo are the communal governments, and whatever progress has been
made in the Republic has been due largely to their initiative. They
correspond to the Spanish "municipios" and the French "communes." In
Santo Domingo the French name was introduced during Haitian
occupation. The various towns constitute the centers of government,
their jurisdiction extends over the surrounding rural districts, and
the affairs of the whole are administered by a municipal council. The
powers of such councils are manifold and far-reaching and their
importance has been accentuated by the chronic impotency of the
central government to foster public improvements. The councils
exercise all the faculties commonly pertaining to city councils
elsewhere and have control of education, sanitation, streets and roads
in their respective districts. They also act as election boards.
When an outlying hamlet of the rural belt has grown to sufficient size
it is erected into a municipal district or canton and accorded a
justice of the peace and a cantonal chief and governing board. It
remains subject, however, to the municipal council of the commune of
which it formed a part until further development warrants its
segregation as an independent commune with its own council. The
cantons, as well as some of the sections, are also provided with a
cemetery and a small church or chapel.
From among their number the municipal councilmen select a president
who is regarded as mayor of the commune, though many of the duties
elsewhere pertaining to mayors are discharged by an official called
the syndic. The councilmen are supposed to be elected for a term of
two years, but the oft repeated revolutions have interfered as
seriously with their terms of office as with everything else. The
average Dominican seems to manifest little interest in his municipal
elections; my question as to when the last local election was held
would generally be answered with uncertainty: "Last January, no, last
April, no, I believe it was in November." After all, the elections
have usually been mere ratifications of slates prepared beforehand. In
the time of Heureaux the lists of new councilmen were often arranged
in the capital and a few days before election remitted to the various
towns, even with a designation of the person whom the council was
later to choose as its president.
The results of such a method of selection of councilmen has not been
as unfavorable as might be expected. The position of councilman pays
no salary and is not of sufficient importance to appeal to the
politician, so that under the present system the principal merchants
and other prominent men are frequently designated. The law does not
prohibit foreigners from forming part of the municipal councils and
they have frequently been chosen, especially in Puerto Plata.