The Rise and Fall of Marcha Verde in the Dominican Republic

• Published date: 01 September 2020
• Date: 01 September 2020
• DOI: 10.1177/0094582X20939100
• Author: Emelio Betances
• Subject Matter: Articles

https://doi.org/10.1177/0094582X20939100

LATIN AMERICAN PERSPECTIVES, Issue 234, Vol. 47 No. 5, September 2020, 20–34

DOI: 10.1177/0094582X20939100

© 2020 Latin American Perspectives

20

The Rise and Fall of Marcha Verde

in the Dominican Republic

by

Emelio Betances

Translated by

Mariana Ortega-Breña

The Marcha Verde movement emerged in 2017 to protest bribery on the part of the

Brazilian transnational Odebrecht. It conducted 25 protests in the provinces and large

marches in July 2017 and August 2018 but ultimately failed to force the government to

try those responsible. As a movement for the democratization of democracy through the

construction of citizens’ rights, it was a watershed moment in Dominican political his-

tory. However, it did not have time to build the social base that would have allowed it to

challenge the authorities. The political parties that supported it were only interested in

weakening the official party, and the electoral race intervened as the way to channel the

movements’ demands, leaving the radicals alone in calling for a transformation of the

political sphere.

El movimiento Marcha Verde surgió en 2017 en protesta contra los sobornos efectuados

por la transnacional brasileña Odebrecht. Aunque organizó 25 protestas en las provincias

y grandes marchas en julio de 2017 y agosto de 2018, no logró forzar al gobierno a enjui-

ciar a los responsables. En tanto se trata de un movimiento para la democratización de la

democracia a través de la construcción de los derechos ciudadanos, este fue un momento

decisivo en la historia política dominicana. Sin embargo, no tuvo tiempo de construir la

base social que le hubiera permitido desafiar a las autoridades. Los partidos políticos que

lo apoyaron sólo estaban interesados en debilitar al partido oficial, y las elecciones que

intervinieron en el proceso se convirtieron en la vía de canalización para las demandas del

movimiento, dejando a los elementos radicales solos en su exigencia por una genuina

transformación de la esfera política.

Keywords: Social movements, Democratization de la democracia, Corruption, Neo-

liberalism

This article takes a look at the Marcha Verde (Green March) movement that

emerged in 2017 in the Dominican Republic and helped raise public awareness

regarding impunity and corruption. Some argue that it originated in the earlier

struggles of the 4 Percent for Education Movement, but its trigger was the

announcement by a New York court that the Brazilian company Odebrecht had

Emelio Betances teaches at Gettysburg College. His publications include State and Society in the

Dominican Republic (1995), The Catholic Church and Power Politics in Latin America: The Dominican

Case in Comparative Perspective (2007), and En busca de la ciudadanía: los movimientos sociales y la

democratización en la República Dominicana (2016). Mariana Ortega-Breña is a freelance translator

based in Mexico City.

939100LAPXXX10.1177/0094582X20939100Latin American PerspectivesBetances / The Rise and Fall of Marcha Verde

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