Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Political Status of Puerto Rico: Aspects, Issues, Scenarios - Last Update on 7.23.13

Political Status of Puerto Rico: Aspects, Issues, Scenarios

Mike Nova:

It seems to me that the following subjects or issues deserve some attention in discussions of Puerto Rico political status and perspective statehood:


  • Cultural and Transcultural Aspects
  • Political Status of Puerto Rico and its nationalist movements and parties 
  • Political Status of Puerto Rico and its significance and impact on The Caribbean and Latin America
  • Political Status of Puerto Rico: psychological and social aspects
  • Political Status of Puerto Rico and the issues of integration with the mainland and globalisation: e.g. integrations, alignments and realignments of political parties and movements, governmental structures and their respective roles, specialisations and the issue of duplication of services, especially in law enforcement and investigative agencies; the role, place and perspectives of Puerto Rico economy in national and global economies, etc. A perspective statehood will involve a transition period (according to Mr. Pierluisi and "Puerto Rico Report" recent article: "the bill provides for the President to submit legislation to admit Puerto Rico as a State after a transition period"... "The bill would also commit the Congress to pass statehood transition legislation...") during which these and other issues will have to be addressed. 
  • Political Status of Puerto Rico and its significance and impact on criminogenic situation

And, of course, any other important and relevant themes and subjects.

I think that the series of review articles (and maybe, and hopefully PBS series) covering (objectively and as much in depth as possible) various aspects of Puerto Rico's perspective statehood and integration with the mainland will be helpful in educating the public and politicians about the true and positive implications of statehood, especially when erroneous and misleading statements are produced by one of the political sides.
I think that these review articles should be written by the recognised and respected experts in the field (of which I am not the one at all, needless to say) and they should be written well: in simple, popular, clear and convincing language and style.

Open, in-depth, bilingual and bicultural (which would correspond with the situation on the island) discussion of these and other relevant issues will be in the best interests of the people of Puerto Rico and their island democracy, which, I think it truly is.

Links and References

Implications of Puerto Rico's current political status - From Wikipedia 

Puerto Rico’s Political Status and the 2012 Plebiscite: Background and Key Questions - by R. Sam Garrett - Congressional Research Service - June 25, 2013

PR Police Reform: PRPD needs spirit and workforce transplantation - by Mike Nova | PR Political Status Issues

PRPD needs spirit and workforce transplantation. 

I would like to share some thoughts on Puerto Rico Police Reform.

Any reform, any social policy, any social intervention depends first of all on the people who perform them, on their spirit, mentality, inner strength, intelligence, commitment and dedication. Without it, I am afraid, these reform efforts might turn out to be ineffective or stillborn, abortative; incomplete, more on the paper than in life. I have no reasons to question these qualities in persons who are and will be at the helm of this reform, and I am sure they possess them sufficiently. But spirit lives not only in the heads, but also in the bodies, and maybe more importantly so. And this is not to say that the majority of PR police officers are "bad" or unfit; not at all. Most of them, I think are good and earnest. The problem, again, might be in a historically formed institutional culture. To interpret President Clinton's thoughts about "clean energy" somewhat symbolically, we might say that the island would benefit from clean spiritual energy and from cleansing this energy from various untoward factors.

I have no knowledge, experience or expertise in police work or police reforms and my thoughts are based just on some more or less random, occasional observations.

I think that PRPD reform efforts would benefit from gradual but constant influx of young, talented, dedicated, professional, "upward mobile", some of the best police officers of Puerto Rican descent from the mainland. They will bring the spirit of America, their biculturality, bilinguality, skills, professionalism, experience and dedication and in the end this might make the whole difference and lead to truly successful reform. Major American cities with significant Puerto Rican populations and their police departments should enter into informal partnerships with PRPD and help it manage and accomplish the reform. Police officers - Boricuas (if you do or do not identify yourselves as such, it is always both American and Boricua),  and, of course not only you, but any good police officers of any descent, who want to move and to work in Puerto Rico: the Island needs your help, your brothers need your help! The economic incentives should be created for this group of police officers, with the special fund of public and private money to facilitate these moves, the pay should be comparable or the same, the opportunities for on-work education and professional growth for young (or any age) police officers, both the islanders and newcomers, should be thought out, developed and presented, the promotions should be based strictly on merit and good service, without nepotism, cronyism and without any interference of political factors. They will intermingle and enrich each other culturally and professionally and will create a new professional culture of practically the new institution.

I think that another important factor to consider is the present structure, role and function of PRPD, and also its history, which undoubtedly shaped the department.

Puerto Rico Police was established originally as a "quasi-military force" and remained so (in spirit and letter) until 1980 -1990s. It has several investigative departments, some of which we know, and others (including their functions and actions) we do not know or do not know that well. Overall, it appears to be quite "opaque", at least to the public. Its functions range from criminal investigations to Drugs division (which interestingly enough includes the so called "Vice Unit" - who could think that such a "unit" still exists anywhere on the territory of the US!), SWAT teams, "security and protection office" and many others. These various investigative departments and various functions (again known and unknown to us) make PRPD too and unduly powerful, and therefore prone to arrogance and self-perception of omnipotence and impunity. PRPD has and uses very elaborate system of informers and knows practically everything about everyone. They parallel and duplicate the roles and functions of the local equivalent of the FBI (Puerto Rico Special Investigations Bureau of the Puerto Rico Department of Justice) and the local Puerto Rico branch of the federal FBI, if I understand and form my impressions correctly. I wonder if this is one of the main differences between PRPD and police departments in major American cities. And if I do not understand this aspect correctly, please inform us and give us the correct, informative, true and comprehensive picture.

I think (and, again, I am not a specialist in these matters at all), this is a very important point which might have deep implications on PRPD present status and its potential for abuse and also, and very importantly, on the course of its reform.

It would be only logical to assume that PRPD should deal primarily and first of all with community policing and criminal investigations, its other functions and roles should be delegated and assumed by the PR branch of federal FBI (its parallels and duplication of services with the local DOJ SIB - Special Investigations Bureau is also troubling and opens a bunch of questions). Duplication and unavoidable competition in services can be counterproductive and I think should be avoided and gradually eliminated.

One of the most troubling aspects, it seems to me, is PRPD vulnerability in counterintelligence matters, due to PRPD enormous reach and power and its undeniably lax attitudes and proneness to corruption, which opens the back door to all sort of undesirable attempts and influences, especially given Puerto Rico's unique place and role in the Caribbean and its attraction to the major intelligence services as the major intelligence hub.

I do not think that there is anything wrong in open and public discussions of these very important issues. Again, if any of my impressions (as a lay person in these matters) raise objections or produce agreements or disagreements, do not hesitate to share them in your comments in any form.

Michael Novakhov

Links and References

» Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto Rico - New York Times
18/07/13 00:26 from alejandro garcia padilla - Google News
Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto RicoNew York TimesIts implementation was delayed to give the new governor, Alejandro García Padilla, time to review it and it is subject to approval by Judge Gustavo Gelpi of Federal District...

Puerto Rico police reform - GS 


Puerto Rico reaches pact with Justice Dept. to reform police

GlobalPost-Jul 17, 2013Share
In addition, the agreement guarantees the establishment of internal controls ... The U.S. government, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and the PRPD will ... The agreement comes after the Civil RightsDivision of the Justice ... In addition, it points to a high level of corruption in the island's security forces... 

prpd doj agreement - GS

AGREEMENT FOR THE SUSTAINABLE REFORM OF THE PUERTO RICO POLICE DEPARTMENT

Investigation of the Puerto Rico Police Department - United States Department of Justice Civil Rights Division - September 5, 2011 

Puerto Rico Police - From Wikipedia 

Puerto Rico Police Reform - News Review 

Law, Order and Crimes in Puerto Rico - News and Blogs Review 

Puerto Rico police department hit with new civil rights lawsuit - Reuters | Gobierno federal demanda a la Policía por discrimen racial

puerto rico bureau of special investigations - GS

Political Persecution in Puerto Rico: Uncovering Secret Files - Materials for the topic of Puerto Rico Police Reform

The FBI Files on Puerto RicansResearch Foundation of the City University of New York (CUNY) and The Center for Puerto Rican Studies (Centro)

puerto rico special investigations bureau - GS

negociado de investigaciones especiales (nie) - GS

investigation of the puerto rico police department - GS

Intelligence Division of the Puerto Rico Police - GS

Division of Internal Security of the Puerto Rico Police - GS


puerto rico police department website - GS

Policia de P.R.

www.policia.gobierno.pr/‎ 


» Washington and P.R. to sign pact Wednesday
18/07/13 17:26 from Caribbean Business - More Local News
Washington and P.R. to sign pact WednesdayIssued: July 15, 2013 U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and representatives from Puerto Rico are slated to sign an agreement in San Juan Wednesday which will put teeth into...

» Esencial la participación ciudadana en la Reforma de la Policía
18/07/13 16:47 from Primera Hora : Noticias
West se reunió hoy con los directores de las 13 áreas de la Policía Estatal junto al superintendente, Héctor M. Pesquera. 


» Justice Department, Puerto Rico Sign Agreement to Reform Police
18/07/13 13:38 from Puerto Rico Newswire
... victim of excessive force, illegal raids and seizures and systematic discrimination on the part of the police," Puerto Rico Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla said during the ceremony. The conditions of the agreement, the governor said, are...


» Puerto Rico’s Police Force Considers Reforms - Puerto Rico Report - Posted on January 4, 2013
18/07/13 13:13 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
Puerto Rico’s Police Force Considers ReformsThursday July 18th, 2013 at 12:11 PMPuerto Rico Report1 SharePuerto Rico’s police force is the second largest in U.S. states and territories, second in size only to that of New York City...


» DHS to expand ‘Operation Caribbean Resilience’ in Puerto Rico - Fri, 2013-07-12 05:39 PM
18/07/13 13:07 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
DHS to expand ‘Operation Caribbean Resilience’ in Puerto RicoFri, 2013-07-12 05:39 PMAs part of its continued commitment to public safety in Puerto Rico, DHS will expand Operation Caribbean Resilience. The operation, which focuses...


» A Department of Justice Report on the Puerto Rico Police Department Reveals an 'Agency in Profound Disrepair' - Published Oct. 29, 2012.
18/07/13 12:51 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
A Department of Justice Report on the Puerto Rico Police Department Reveals an 'Agency in Profound Disrepair'Joel Féliz de Jesus shows the scars on his abdomen following emergency surgery from blunt trauma to his internal organs allegedly i...


» Holder announces plan to curb abuse in Puerto Rico's police force - Reuters
18/07/13 12:26 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
Holder announces plan to curb abuse in Puerto Rico's police forceU.S. Attorney General Eric Holder speaks at the NAACP convention in Orlando (David Manning Reuters, / July 16, 2013)Reuters 6:31 p.m. EDT, July 1...



» Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto Rico - NYT | Agreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police force - CNN
18/07/13 09:05 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
July 17, 2013Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto RicoBy LIZETTE ALVAREZThe government of Puerto Rico and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights division on Wednesday formalized a sweeping agreement meant to overcome a histo...

» US, Puerto Rico Sign Deal to Reform Police Agency By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS | Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto Rico - NYT | Agreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police force - CNN | ACLU: “Esperamos que los puertorriqueños no tengan 
18/07/13 09:05 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
July 17, 2013Agreement Is Reached on Police Reforms in Puerto RicoBy LIZETTE ALVAREZThe government of Puerto Rico and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights division on Wednesday formalized a sweeping agreement meant to overcome a histo...


» Agreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police force
18/07/13 09:05 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
Agreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police forceBy Carol Cratty, CNNJuly 18, 2013 -- Updated 0010 GMT (0810 HKT)A statue of Juan Ponce de Leon sits in front of the second oldest church in the world in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico....

» Agreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police force - CNN International
18/07/13 04:31 from puerto rico - Google News
Edmonton JournalAgreement announced to reform Puerto Rico's police forceCNN International(CNN) -- The Justice Department and Puerto Rico signed a major civil rights agreement Wednesday to reform the commonwealth's very troubled poli...


DOJ reaches agreement with Puerto Rico police

Speaking in San Juan, Attorney General Eric Holder announced the details [press conference] of the agreement, which include creating a new task force, supported by 26 local task force officers, to enhance gun and drug interdiction efforts on the island.

» PR Police Reform: PRPD needs spirit and workforce transplantation - by Mike Nova | PR Political Status Issues
18/07/13 18:23 from PUERTO RICO NEWS
PRPD needs spirit and workforce transplantation. I would like to share some thoughts on Puerto Rico Police Reform.Any reform, any social policy, any social intervention depends first of all on people who perform them, on their spirit, ...



First Published on 7.18.13   Last Update on 7.24.13 

Political Status of Puerto Rico: Economic Aspects: analysis, scenarios, models: Will Puerto Rico be better off or worse off economically if it becomes a state? - Links Review - Last Update on 7.23.13

Political Status of Puerto Rico: Economic Aspects: analysis, scenarios, models

Will Puerto Rico be better off or worse off economically when and if it becomes a state?

-

Links Review

 Economy of Puerto Rico - Wikipedia

Puerto Rico Economy News Review



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» Report: PR lost 42,100 salaried #jobs http://ow.ly/neTZf #caribbeanbusiness
23/07/13 13:01 from CARIBBEAN BUSINESSs Facebook Wall
Report: PR lost 42,100 salaried #jobs http://ow.ly/neTZf #caribbeanbusiness


» Puerto Rico continues to post deep job losses as the island economy remains on a...
23/07/13 08:44 from Caribnewss Facebook Wall
Puerto Rico continues to post deep job losses as the island economy remains on an eight-month skid http://bit.ly/18AhREQReport: PR lost 42,100 salaried jobs - Caribbean Businesswww.caribbeanbusinesspr.compuerto rico continues to post deep j...


» IN DEPTH: How the economic crisis has reshaped Puerto Rico’s job scene http://b...
18/07/13 11:25 from Caribnewss Facebook Wall
IN DEPTH: How the economic crisis has reshaped Puerto Rico’s job scene http://bit.ly/15Kki1rHow the economic crisis has reshaped Puerto Ricos job scene - Caribbean Businesswww.caribbeanbusinesspr.comThe long-term recession, brain drain of ...

Saturday, June 29, 2013


» Improvisación
26/06/13 21:32 from CNE - Centro Para Una Nueva Economía - Center for a New Economy
Por Miguel Soto-Class El mes de junio trae siempre la misma fuente de ansiedad. Y no me refiero a qué hacer con las nenas durante las vacaciones de verano. A lo que me refiero es a la tragicomedia anual de cómo allegar recursos a las defal..


» CNE: Puerto Rico 'failing to face new reality' : CNE Centro Para ...
07/06/13 13:34 from puerto rico economy - Google Blog Search
Yet, policymakers in Puerto Rico remain either oblivious to, or willfully ignorant of, this new reality, said Sergio Marxuach, director for policy development at the Center for a New Economy , a local think-tank that on Wednesday  ... 

Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Analysis: Puerto Rico - a vacation oasis overrun with high debt: Thomson Reuters Business News - MSN Money


"We are a ghetto under the ELA" - Jaime Benson editorial Posted in the Puerto Rico Forum | Somos un gueto ahora bajo el ELA 26 de junio de 2013 - Columnas, Opinión - Jaime Benson, Catedrático de Economía UPR


» Puerto Rico remains the worst-performing state or territory in the muni market t...
27/06/13 20:03 from Caribnewss Facebook Wall
Puerto Rico remains the worst-performing state or territory in the muni market this month Puerto Rico, High Yield Among Worst June Muni Bond Performers - Income Investing - Barrons.com feedly.com S&P Dow Jones Indices is out with a note on ..


» #NYFedchief: PR #economy ‘still not showing any signs of bottoming out’. Read: h...
27/06/13 19:01 from CARIBBEAN BUSINESSs Facebook Wall
#NYFedchief: PR #economy ‘still not showing any signs of bottoming out’. Read: http://ow.ly/mrS9t #caribbeanbusiness 


Who Will Remake Puerto Rico for the 21st-Century Social Economy? - Forbes - 5.27.13



@giorodriguez Computer hardware startups -- again -- are poised for major investment.  Why Puerto Rican companies might have an edge 
"The Third Plaza": How Puerto Rico Will Create a New Place for Itself in the Global Creative Economy
Thursday, June 13th, 2013 2:34pm
· Giovanni Rodriguez, Contributor

@giorodriguez : The Puerto Rican Senate has filed a bill to support the “creative industries.” What can this mean for the future of the island?
How Puerto Rico Will Hack its Way to the Global Future
Sunday, June 9th, 2013 12:53pm
· Giovanni Rodriguez, Contributor
@giorodriguez: Yes, hacking is about technology. But it's more about attitude



puerto rico economy - Google Blog Search


  1. blogs.reuters.com/muniland/.../will-puerto-rico-ever-see-economic-growt...

    by Cate Long
    May 17, 2013 – Puerto Rico now faces a $495 million revenue shortfall for the year.
  1. A report on the creative industries in Puerto Rico

    inversioncultural.com/?p=1142

    by admin
    5 days ago – The creative economy is an issue of great interest in Puerto Rico. At a time when we discuss ... As part of that effort, will present the first report on “The profile of the creative economy in Puerto Rico”. This will be done by a talk ...


    1. PRCEI.org » Puerto Rico: Fertile Ground for a Creative Economy

      prcei.org/2013/03/.../puerto-rico-fertile-ground-for-a-creative-economy/

      by Dyanis De Jesus
      Mar 12, 2013 – Over the last decade, the interrelated nature of creativity and the creative process has come to be valued globally as a viable means of economic development.Economies based on creativity have grown faster than national ...


      1. Macroeconomic Forecast Puerto Rico - Latin America Monitor

        www.latinamericamonitor.com/.../macroeconomic-forecast-puerto-rico.h...

        Jun 3, 2013 – Puerto rico Economy... We expect demand-side inflationary pressures to increase modestly through 2013, as the Puerto Rican economy continues to recover from a five-year recession that ended in 2012. As such, we forecast inflation to ...





        1. Hearing Notes How Companies Used Territory to Avoid Billions in ...

          www.puertoricoreport.org/hearing-notes-how-companies-used-territory-t...

          by Contributing Editor
          Jun 12, 2013 – The current use of Puerto Rico to avoid billions of dollars in Federal taxes by big businesses based in the States was raised in a recent U.S. Senate hearing on technology giant Apple counting sales and profits generated in the ... As it passed into law that year, the credit equal to all tax due on earnings attributed to Puerto Ricowas reduced from 100% to 40% and a Federally-preferred alternative credit for realeconomic activity and benefits in Puerto Rico was created.


          1. NewsDaily: Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic sign economic deal

            www.newsdaily.com/.../puerto-rico-dominican-republic-sign-economic-...

            May 9, 2013 – Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic sign deal to boost economy SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic have signed aneconomic agreement to help boost sectors including agriculture, ...

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            Published on 6.30.13     Last Update: 7.23.13

Puerto Rico: Dengue Levels Continue Above Epidemic Level

» Puerto Rico: Dengue Levels Continue Above Epidemic Level
23/07/13 09:27 from puerto rico - Google Blog Search
It's been a few months since we last looked at Dengue fever activity in Puerto Rico - and while nowhere near the intensity of the 2010 epidemic (see red line in chart below) - the summer of 2013 is running well above the ...