San Francisco de Macoris.- A 48-hour strike began Tuesday in Duarte and Hermanas Mirabal provinces, with popular organizations demanding improvements to drinking water, roads, sanitation, community infrastructure and the high cost of living.

In San Francisco de Macorís, protesters are calling for road repairs and paving, the construction of sidewalks and curbs, and the completion of the Mamá Tingó community center, whose construction has been stalled for two years. They are also demanding the resumption of several unfinished road projects.

José Mercado, a representative of the local popular groups, said schools did not hold classes on the first day of the strike and that many businesses closed, while public transportation was largely paralyzed. Protest leaders also criticized high electricity bills amid frequent outages and blamed rising fuel prices for worsening transportation costs.

Another major demand is the reconstruction of the municipal market, which protesters say remains surrounded by rubble and garbage a year after a fire damaged the facility.

In Hermanas Mirabal, the Salcedo Coalition of Popular Movements also maintained its 48-hour strike, demanding concrete responses from authorities. The protest was accompanied by a heavy police and military presence, blocked streets, gunfire and tear gas.

Coalition spokesperson Héctor Bloise estimated that about 90% of businesses in Salcedo joined the strike and accused security forces of firing tear gas in residential areas. He reiterated that the protest was intended to be peaceful and urged both authorities and protesters to exercise restraint.

Among the demands in Salcedo are the construction of the La Caoba bridge, improvements to garbage collection and repairs to the deteriorated sewage system. Protesters are also calling for work to resume on the Palmarito road, which has been stalled for more than four months.

The groups said they expect authorities to make concrete commitments to address the communities’ demands.