Puerto Rico News Digest For July 5, 2016

GOVT MAKES PARTIAL INTEREST PAYMENT

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"The government of Puerto Rico said it would pay at least part of the interest
on bonds that came due at midnight on Friday, but in any case foresaw the grea-
test default on the debt to date. The different bonds that came due July 1 totaled
nearly $2 billion, of which some $700 million were general obligation (GO) bo-
nds, according to a CyberNews report. This type of bond is guaranteed by the
Puerto Rico Constitution, which assures that their payment has priority over any
other public expenditure that the commonwealth administration has incurred..."

PR UNVEILS FIRST LGBT MONUMENT

From The Advocate:

"Puerto Rico has unveiled its first LGBT monument, which also serves as a me-
morial to the 49 victims of the June 12 massacre at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub.
Most of the people killed were LGBT and Latino, and a majority of the victims
were of Puerto Rican descent. The monument, located in San Juan’s Third Mill-
ennium Park, is comprised of seven rectangular columns in rainbow colors, and
sits at the entrance to the Escobar the Sixth Stadium...At the base of the monum-
ent is a plaque highlighting the names of the 23 Puerto Rican victims killed in the
massacre, with the additional 26 victims listed below..."

BANKRUPTCIES REMAIN FLAT IN JUNE

From News Is My Business:

"Puerto Rico’s bankruptcy levels remained flat last month, when the total number
of companies and individuals who turned to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for help
was up by two cases when compared to the same month in 2015. So far this year,
there are 5,291 bankruptcy cases on file, representing a 5.06 percent increase from
the same six-month period last year..."

NPP HOISTS 51-STAR US FLAG

From Caribbean Business:

"The secretary-general of the New Progressive Party (NPP), William Villafañe,
on Monday, July 4, removed the U.S. flag from on its pole at party headquarters
and hoisted a new flag, with 51 stars. The event comes about as part of an initia-
tive calling for the U.S. government to “respect the will of the people and give
way to a decolonization process in which statehood is attained,” Villafañe said
...Villafañe added that during the NPP’s monthly directors’ meeting, to be held
Tuesday, a resolution will be presented so all of the party’s municipal committe-
es hoist the 51-star flag “to deliver the message of equality and statehood,” he
said...'

Puerto Rico News Digest For June 27, 2016

LEW URGES SENATE TO CONSIDER PROMESA

From Caribbean Business:

"U.S. Secretary Jacob Lew has sent a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch 

Mc Connell regarding the debt crisis in Puerto Rico. Lew says that if H.R. 5278, 

the Puerto Rico Oversight, Management, and Economic Stability Act (Promesa) 

is not considered, the island’s looming July 1 default could trigger lawsuits that, 

if  “successful, a judge could immediately order Puerto Rico to pay creditors 

over essential services such as health, education, and public safety...”

SJ PRIDE MARCH REMEMBERS ORLANDO VICTIMS

From Fox News Latino:

"Thousands of people turned out on Sunday for the annual Gay Pride March
in San Juan, where special remembrance was paid to the victims of the Orlan-
do nightclub massacre, almost half of whom were of Puerto Rican heritage. "I
lost two friends, two brothers, Martin (Benitez Torees) and Jimmy de Jesus (Ve-
lazquez)," Boriquen Memorial funeral home spokesperson Serbella Tejeda said
after the establishment had offered its services gratis to the families of the 23
Puerto Ricans who died in the shooting at the Pulse nightclub..."

ISLAND GOP BACKS STATUS VOTE

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"The Puerto Rico Republican Party approved a resolution supporting the hol-
ding of a referendum on the island’s status issue in which voters will choose
among two decolonization options: statehood or independence, and that it be
held together with the Nov. 8 general elections, local party president Jenniffer
González announced Thursday..."

AGP SUSPENDS INFRASTRUCTURE PAYMENTS

From Reuters:

"Puerto Rican Governor Alejandro Garcia Padilla late on Friday declared a sus-
pension of any payments on some debt issued by the U.S. territory's infrastruc-
ture financing authority, citing the authority granted under a local emergency de-
bt moratorium law. Garcia Padilla signed an executive order that applies to "cer-
tain Puerto Rico Financing Authority (PRIFA) notes," a statement from the gov-
ernment said..."

Puerto Rico News Digest For June 15, 2016

PUERTO RICO MOURNS ORLANDO VICTIMS

From US News/AP:

"Puerto Ricans held somber vigils and prepared to bury many of their own
after authorities said nearly half of those killed at a gay night club in Florida
had ties to the U.S. territory. Officials said that while it's still unclear how ma-
ny of the 23 Puerto Ricans killed were born on the U.S. mainland or had mo-
ved there from the island, they expect many of them to be laid to rest in Puer-
to Rico in the coming days...The shooting early Sunday at the Pulse nightclub
in Orlando that killed 49 people has shaken Puerto Rico's gay community and
shocked the U.S. territory as a whole..."

US SENATE TO CONSIDER PROMESA IN JUNE

From Caribbean Business:

"Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday the Senate will consider a
rescue package to ease Puerto Rico’s financial crisis before the U.S. territory’s
$2 billion payment to creditors is due July 1. The House overwhelmingly pa-
ssed legislation to create a new control board and restructure some of Puerto
Rico’s $70 billion debt last week. The Senate is expected to take up the same
bill “sometime before the end of the month,” McConnell, R-Ky., told reporters
Tuesday..."

FBI INVESTIGATES BANKER'S DEATH IN PR

From The New York Times:

"The Federal Bureau of Investigation has identified possible suspects in its long-
running investigation into the murder of a banker in Puerto Rico,  but it is now
asking the public for help in solving the 2011 killing. Five years ago this week,
Maurice Spagnoletti, a top executive at Doral Financial, the holding company
that owned a Puerto Rico bank, was gunned down on his way home from work
in San Juan...The F.B.I. announced on Tuesday a $20,000 reward for information
that leads to an arrest..."

LIBERTY LAUNCHES HBO NOW IN PUERTO RICO

From News Is My Business:

"Starting [yesterday], Liberty Puerto Rico’s customers will begin to enjoy HBO
NOW, a new service from HBO for internet customers who want to watch the
network’s programming but are not subscribed to a video service. Liberty Puer-
to Rico is the only telecom provider to offer this service on the island, the com-
pany said. HBO NOW is an independent streaming service from HBO Networks
that provides unlimited access to all of HBO’s programming, including series, mo-
vies, documentaries and specials..."

The Lesson We Refuse To Learn: The Case of Orlando, Florida 2016

Commentary

Tiberiu Dianu

So, it happened again. On June 12, 2016, another Muslim militant, this time 

Omar Mateen, an American citizen of an Afghan origin, a self-declared ISIS-

inspired fighter, and a registered Democrat (a detail the press does not want 

to emphasize), opened fire in a gay club in the city of Orlando, Florida, kill-

ing 50 people and injuring other 53 (to date) in what is now being called “the 

deadliest mass shooting in the United States and the nation’s worst terror 

attack since 9/11,” according to authorities. 

In the period 2008-2016, overlapping comfortably the Obama’s two presi-

dential mandates, several mass shootings took place in the United States, 

with casualties ranging from 12 to 50 dead and 1 to 58 wounded. Let us re-

cap the most notable ones:  Binghamton, New York and Fort Hood, Texas 

(both in 2009), Aurora, Colorado and Newton, Connecticut (both in 2012), 

Washington, DC (2013), Fairfax, Virginia (2014), Charleston, South Caro-

lina and San Bernardino, California (2015), and finally, Orlando, Florida 

(2016).

Some of them were committed by people unsatisfied with their own life, 

but others were cold-blooded executions in the name of Jihad.

And again, the same sickening mass-media’s post-fact scenario repeats 

itself. The (fill in the blank with ABC, NBC, MSNBC, CNN or FOX) network 

anchor asks the field reporter: “So, tell me about the reactions of the people 

over there” and the reporter goes: “Well, everybody is in a state of shock!” 

After which the network anchor concludes: “Our prayers go to the victims of

...(fill in the blank with the name of the city where the massacre took place).”

I am beginning, for one, to become sick and tired of this crêpe (pardon my
French!). The same thing has been happening over and over again during the
last eight years, with us being “in the state of shock” and sending “prayers to
the victims.” Until when, if I may ask? I am not shocked any more, I am extre-
mely angry. And, no, in my outgrowing cynicism, I do not want to send prayers
to the victims anymore, but instead I want their terrorist attackers to be punished 

according to the military law. And more importantly, I want to see the leaders 

of this country admitting for once the cause of these mass killings, with no po-

liticking spins.

We are living in a perpetual state of denial, where the president of the Republic 

(the lame-duck Barack Obama) keeps on preaching us about “workplace viol-

ence” or “acts of hate,” but refuses to call the shootings for what they are, that 

is “Islamic terrorist acts” when the case applies.

When I was little, my grandmother told me a story about a donkey (not the De-

mocrat one, although it was possible) who, once lost in a dark forest, saw at a 

certain distance behind him what appeared to be the eyes of a wolf, but he refu-

sed to think it might actually be one. When the creature got closer, the donkey

saw his open jaws and rabid fangs but he reassured himself: “No, it’s not the wo-

lf, it cannot be the wolf!” And then, when the wolf planted his teeth into the poor 

donkey’s leg, the donkey yelled: “No, I don’t think it’s the wolf, it cannot be!”

But, finally, when the wolf stuck his fangs into the donkey’s neck, the donkey 

began to roar: “It’s the wooolf! Help! It’s the wooolf!” Sadly for the donkey,

there was no one around to help him anymore.

This coming November we will have to make up our minds and decide if we 

want to play donkeys or not, and who the wolf is.

Tiberiu Dianu is a legal scholar, book author, graduate of the American University Washington 

College of Law in Washington, DC, the University of Manchester Faculty of Law in Manchester, 

UK, and an exchange scholar of the Oxford University in Oxford, UK. He currently lives in Wa-

shington, DC and works for various government and private agencies. The opinions expressed

in the preceding article are those of those of the author alone and do not necessarilly represent

 the views of The Puerto Rico Monitor, its editors or advertisers.

Puerto Rico News Digest For October 14, 2015

SPECIAL INVESTIGATIONS MAKES SEVERAL ARRESTS

From Caribbean Business:

"Since dawn Wednesday, Special Investigations Bureau (NIE by its
Spanish acronym) agents have been processing the arrests of 38 peo-
ple employed  at the Transportation and Public Works Department
and other agencies for fraud in the issuance of driver's licenses and
other administrative violations..."

CRIM & GDB CLOSE TO SETTLING DISPUTE

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"The Municipal Revenue Collections Center (CRIM by its Spanish
acronym) and the Government Development Bank (GDB) are about
to reach an agreement to alleviate the controversy surrounding the
municipal funds deposited in the government bank, Cayey Mayor
Rolando Ortiz said..."

PUERTO RICO SUMMIT TO BE HELD IN ORLANDO

From Reuters:

"Puerto Rican and U.S. leaders will meet in Florida on Wednesday
to discuss ways to promote Puerto Rico's interests in Washington as
the island weathers a major debt crisis. Civic leaders in the U.S. with
ties to Puerto Rico..."

CONTROL BOARD BILL TO BE FILED THIS WEEK

From Reuters:

"Legislation to create a financial control board for heavily indebted
Puerto Rico will be filed on Thursday or Friday, the U.S. territory's
government affairs secretary Jesus Manuel Ortiz said on Tuesday. The
financial control board..."

WATER RESERVOIR LEVELS FOR TODAY

Carraizo and La Plata, both of which serve the San Juan metro area,
are to the left. Information is from 5:00 AM today. Click image to
enlarge.

Puerto Rico News Digest For October 2, 2015

CARRAIZO LEVEL CONTINUES TO DROP

The Carraízo water reservoir's level dropped dramatically overnight once
again, leaving it less than a meter away from the reestablishment of water
rationing for households served by the lake. Carraízo dropped 11 centime-
ters, to settle at 37.93 meters at 5:00 AM today, according to AAA, Puerto
Rico's water utility. Once it reaches 37 meters, a 24-hour water rationing
program would have to be started again for Carolina and Trujillo Alto, as
well as parts of San Juan, Canóvanas and Gurabo. Copious rains a few
weeks ago had raised the water level enough that rationing could be called
off, but the last couple of weeks have seen little rain over the area, taking
the situation back to square one.

REPORT HIGHLIGHTS PERVASIVE CORRUPTION 

From The San Juan Daily Star:

"Corruption has become so widespread and commonplace that there are
thousands of people in Puerto Rico engaged in corrupt acts, according
to a Civil Rights Commission report. Corruption is closely related to
civil rights because it is anchored to a number of activities that affect
government coffers and services to the people, according to the report
titled “Human Rights and Corruption” that was entrusted to attorney
Víctor Rivera Hernández, former representative Víctor García San Ino-
cencio and the late former Police Superintendent Pedro Toledo, who died
several years ago. Since the study began in 2009, Puerto Rico has been
shaken by acts of corruption including the case of former Sen. Jorge de
Castro Font and revelations about schemes involving the private sector,
federal arrests of offi cials who use the U.S. mail to facilitate the entry
of weapons and drugs, the arrests of some 100 police offi cers for protec-
ting drug traffickers, the arrests of more than 500 residents in Lares for
committing insurance fraud, as well as allegations of corruption against
mayors, public officials and government contractors..."

SUMMIT IN ORLANDO TO ADDRESS PR CRISIS

From Caribbean Business:

"The Summit on Puerto Rican Affairs will hold its annual meeting in Or-
lando this year. The summit, which is slated for Oct. 14, is expected to
host guests from Florida, Puerto Rico, Washington D.C., Georgia, Cali-
fornia and Illinois at its workshops, as it has in past years. Bond Buyer re-
ported Thursday that retired Detroit bankruptcy Judge Steven Rhodes and
three U.S. House members will participate in the two-day meeting in Flo-
rida “to come up with some solutions to address Puerto Rico’s fiscal and
health care crises...”

ENERGY COMMISSION REJECTS RATE HIKE

From News Is My Business:

"The Puerto Rico Energy Commission issued a resolution Thursday deny-
ing a petition by the National Public Finance Guarantee Corp., which in-
sures $1.4 billion in Puerto Rico Electric Authority bonds, for a rate review
and establishment of a temporary rate increase of at least 4.2¢ per kilowatt
-hour. National, the successor in interest to MBIA Insurance Corporation,
filed the request on Sept. 17, asking for the PREC to also order PREPA to
respond to the petition within 14 days of service, and to complete the con-
solidated rate review proceeding within four months of the filing of Natio-
nal’s petition..."

GDB GOES TO COURT OVER LOCAL TAXES

From The New York Times:

"A new front opened in Puerto Rico’s debt battle as the island’s powerful
Government Development Bank went to court, seeking $400 million in
local property tax revenue it said was being illegally held by a local collec-
tion agency. The development bank said the money was crucial to its abi-
lity to make coming payments to bondholders. The agency that collects pro-
perty taxes on the island, the Municipal Revenue Collections Center, or
CRIM, appears to have the $400 million in hand. But its board decided late
in June not to release the money to the bank. The development bank, which
handles Puerto Rico’s borrowing and cash flows, said the move was illegal
and asked the Superior Court in San Juan to require the agency to turn over
the money. The legal documents were filed Wednesday night..."

Puerto Rico News Digest For August 26, 2015

ERIKA TO AFFECT PR TOMORROW

The effects of Tropical Storm Erika are expected to be felt starting to-
morrow at around noon, and the system should be passing about 10 mi-
les north of Fajardo tomorrow evening. The National Weather Service
has issued a Tropical Storm Warning for Puerto Rico, Vieques, Cule-
bra and the US Virgin Islands. As of 8:00 AM, the storm was located
at 16.2N 56.8W, about 335 miles east of Antigua, and had maximum
sustained winds of 45 mph. Erika is moving west at about 17 mph, and
registered a barometric pressure of 1005 mb. Some strengthening is still
expected to happen over the next several hours. The tropical storm is ex-
pected to produce 2-4 inches of rain over Puerto Rico.

2 PM UPDATE: Erika now not expected to strengthen significantly
over next couple of days. Winds not a concern for land, but rather po-
tential flooding. Per the latest advisory, winds are still 45 mph with
higher gusts, and the storm is still moving west at 17 mph. Latest
coordinates are 16.3N 58.2W. Hurricane Hunter aircraft is on its way
to investigate further.

Keep checking The Puerto Rico Monitor for updates on Erika.

CARRAIZO LEVEL UP, LA PLATA DOWN

The rains produced by the remnants of Tropical Storm Danny helped ra-
ise the level of  the Carraízo water reservoir by 30 centimeters this mor-
ning, with its level currently at  34.04 meters. According to Alberto Lá-
zaro, President of AAA, the island's water utility, Carraízo's level would
have to increase by 2 to 2 1/2 meters in order for the water rationing plan
to be reduced to two days without running water from the current three
day plan. Despite Carraízo's gains, the La Plata reservoir's level has dro-
pped to 34.67 meters, 3.67 meters away from being out of service.

GOV'T CONSIDERS PRIVATE ELECTRICITY

From The San Juan Daily Star:

The government plans to open up power generation to the private sector,
virtually ending the monopoly of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authori-
ty under the five-year fiscal adjustment plan. An outline of the plan, obtai-
ned by the STAR, states that the government will complete PREPA’s res-
tructuring of its $9 billion debt. The outline also says that PREPA will
“open up power generation to private competition to reduce electricity ra-
tes over time.” The private advisers to the change will be Alix Partners,
Millstein and Co., and Cleary and Gottlieb.

PREPA DROPS PETROBRAS AS FUEL SUPPLIER

From Caribbean Business:

The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (Prepa) announced Tuesday it
has entered into new supply contracts for fuel oil and natural gas used in
its powerplants, tapping Freeport Commodities and Natural Gas Aprovisi-
onamientos, which are scheduled to begin deliveries Oct. 1.The power uti-
lity will buy fuel oil No. 6 from Freeport Commodities, while natural gas
used at its Costa Sur powerplant will be supplied by Natural Gas Aprovi-
sionamientos, saving Prepa about $55 million from its previous contracts,
and replacing Petrobas, its previous provider.

ORLANDO NO. 1 SPOT FOR PUERTO RICANS

From The Orlando Sentinel:

Central Florida was the top destination of Puerto Ricans moving to the
mainland two years ago, according to new U.S. Census Bureau figures
released Tuesday. More than 7,500 Puerto Ricans moved to the Orlando
area in 2013, and most of them -- about 6,200 -- came from San Juan, the
island's capital, according to the Census Bureau. The New York metro area
was the next most popular destination, and it was the more popular choice
for residents of  Puerto Rico's smaller cities.