In the Dominican Republic, top law enforcement official Yeni Berenice Reynoso, the nation’s Attorney General, has issued a urgent call for collective action to address the country’s persistent violence and crime crisis, urging the construction of a new social pact rooted in mutual respect, core values, empathetic community connection, and expanded access to opportunity for marginalized and vulnerable groups.
Speaking at a public lecture titled “Anatomy of Violence and Crime in the Dominican Republic: An X-ray for a Necessary Transformation” held in Bayacanes, a community in the La Vega province, Reynoso laid out the underlying drivers of the country’s security challenges, explaining that the vast majority of violent incidents can be traced back to long-unresolved social frictions rather than organized criminal activity alone.
She shared new official data to contextualize the scope of the problem: currently, the Dominican Republic registers a national homicide rate of 7.2 deaths for every 100,000 residents. Disturbingly, Reynoso noted, roughly 60% of all homicides are nearly impossible to prevent with traditional law enforcement tactics, because they grow out of personal conflicts that escalate into lethal violence. Many of these deadly confrontations, she lamented, are sparked by seemingly minor, trivial disagreements that could be resolved through non-violent means in a more cohesive society.
One of the most alarming trends highlighted by the Attorney General is the sharply rising participation of young people in illegal activity. According to data from the Public Prosecutor’s Office, out of the 236,783 criminal cases processed by the agency in 2025, over 80 percent involved suspects under the age of 35. This overrepresentation of young people in the criminal justice system, Reynoso argued, demands immediate, targeted intervention to reverse the trend. She called for sweeping systemic reforms centered on expanding values-focused education and inclusive social development programs that give young people viable alternatives to crime.
Reynoso also drew attention to the ongoing public health and safety crisis of gender-based violence, one of the most pressing social issues facing the nation. In 2025 alone, Dominican authorities received more than 73,000 reports of offenses including domestic violence, gender-based abuse, and sexual assault, a figure she called a wake-up call for policymakers and communities alike.
Beyond crimes involving young adults, she also raised flags about the growing number of offenses committed by minors, echoing her earlier call for a fundamental shift in the country’s approach to education. Rather than focusing solely on academic achievement, she argued, schools must prioritize building core civic values, empathy for others, and a sense of collective social responsibility from an early age – foundational changes that she says are required to curb violence and create a more peaceful, equitable nation for all.