The fragile ecosystem, often known as the lungs of the Caribbean, has been targeted by the Grupo Estrella as the location for a cement factory, and which many are concerned about the damage to the natural spaces, as well as flora and fauna that are in danger of extinction. With other possible locations for the factory without the rich biodiversity, Luijo of Ahí e Que Prende [es] asks, “why the insistence of having it in Los Haitises? Why in that place exactly?”

However, this large company with its headquarters in Santiago, has a strong economic and commercial impact with its important shares in one of the most prestigious Dominican universities, and as the owner a national newspaper, among its other businesses.

In addition, there is official support, and the Environmental Secretary Jaime David Fernández has avoided the subject and many consider that his reputation has been damaged. José Méndez of Monaco [es] calls on the government official to make a statement about his role in the matter:

Jaime David, pedimos que denuncie si está recibiendo presión para ejecutar lo que estoy seguro en su interior usted no aprueba en lo mínimo, aunque trate de explicarlo

Photo of protests by José Peguero and used with permission. http://josepeguero.net

As a result, protests have taken place in the community of Gonzalo, which is located in Monteplata next to Los Haitises. It was also the scene of violent confrontations and large protests by residents that do not want the cement factory.

Online there have also been campaigns to collect signatures for petitions, Facebook groups, and bloggers and twitterers have also come out against this proposal. A Twitter account called Haitises Park has provided updates on the campaign saying “We Don't Want Cement in out National Park.” Some of the protests were organized on blogs, such as the blog by José Árias [es].

Officials from the Department of Environment has tried to insist that the cement factory will be placed in a flat area and will not affect the national park. It has emphasized that there have been wrong ideas that the cement factory will be in the middle of Los Haitises.

Nevertheless, it appears that these public campaigns have paid off, as a judicial decision has ordered the suspension of activities [es] because of potential environmental damage. Joan Guerrero of Duarte 101 [es] has reactions from twitterers upon hearing the news.

It was a victory for some, like Joely Rodriguez @JolyRodriguez celebrates [es]:

Dios mio no puedo creerlo! No es mentira… Cuando un pueblo se une, algo pasa -No a la Cementera- >>Los trabajos suspendidos inmediatamente

The previous video shows the opinions of the people who were part of the workshop in Ecuador, and how it will change the way they work. They point out that Mi* provides an excellent platform for them to post relevant content that gets swept to the sidelines on more popular social networking sites.

You can sign up for the virtual or in person workshops on the sidebar of their site.  According to Jacinto Lajas on the blog Citizen Journalism [es]:

Para ello organizan Talleres de Periodismo Ciudadano, ya celebrados en diferentes países, abiertos a todo público y destinados a generar espacios de participación directa de la ciudadanía en los medios de comunicación. Se trata de dotar a los jóvenes de las herramientas disponibles en la comunidad de Mi Asterisco para que puedan dar a conocer sus ideas, plantear problemas y compartir contenidos.

In the following video, participants in the Ecuador workshop are asked what they think the future of newspapers is: they mentioned that going online was a definite step, that online content has made local newspapers reach international audiences and thus has a wider client base. Also that newspapers should try to compete by being more transparent about their biases and making sure information is accurately displayed.

On the Mi* site you can create a profile, upload images, videos, write posts, post events, join groups, open discussions. Some of the most popular groups are the one of “Future Journalists“, “History of the Coup d'etat“, “Colombia, Beloved Homeland” and “No to Police Force's Abuses“.

One of the videos posted on the site by a participant is this one added by Andrea Hernández on an ongoing series on the economy of people who sell stuff informally on the street. On this documentary video, created by cdimarcoa, we see the daily routine of people who make a living selling packaged food and cell phone minutes in the city of Bogotá: