SANTO DOMINGO – A formidable environmental alliance has issued a stern rejection of legislative proposals to construct a massive penitentiary facility within the ecologically sensitive Beata Island, declaring such development would constitute both legal violations and severe ecological harm.
The Coalition for the Defense of Protected Areas emphasized that the island forms an integral component of Jaragua National Park, among the nation’s most significant conservation zones. This designation renders any construction activity fundamentally incompatible with existing environmental statutes and constitutional provisions safeguarding natural heritage. Coalition representatives characterized the initiative as fundamentally contradictory to national conservation strategies, potentially meeting the legal threshold for environmental criminal offenses.
Currently under consideration in the Dominican Republic’s Chamber of Deputies, the controversial legislation proposes establishing a ‘model correctional facility’ designed to accommodate approximately 10,000 inmates. Environmental experts highlight that protected territories receive explicit constitutional protection as inalienable and inviolable lands, creating insurmountable legal barriers to such development projects.
In their decisive response, the coalition has urgently appealed to governmental authorities, legislative bodies, and civil society to collectively oppose the initiative. They caution that advancing this project would establish dangerous precedents while directly threatening the country’s fragile ecosystems and the foundational legal architecture supporting environmental preservation efforts. The group demands immediate withdrawal of the proposal to prevent irreversible damage to one of the Caribbean’s most biodiverse regions.