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| Our
government Program is a |
Puertorican
Restoration Project
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Dear
Puerto Rican friend:
We want to invite you to join
our government program, a very
ambitious series of proposals
directed toward achieving –through
the union of all Puerto Ricans,
equal opportunities for everyone,
and an economy focused on restoration–
better social, economical and
environmental conditions for all
in Puerto Rico.
Puertorriqueños por Puerto
Rico is a political party that
represents equal opportunities for all people who love Puerto Rico, regardless of their race, origin, socioeconomic level, sexual orientation, and political status preference, and their right to work together to improve our country.
Our proposals are meant to deal
with the root
causes of problems in Puerto Rico,
through a new style of politics
that fosters and facilitates citizen
participation. We believe that
the citizens themselves –
the
teachers, nurses, homemakers,
entrepreneurs, farmers and all
of our ample diversity of people – are the real experts on
Puerto Rico’s problems and
opportunities. The role of government
should be to facilitate services
and resources to implement the
proposals that come from these
citizen and professional groups,
following a restoration plan for
Puerto Rico and in compliance
with the law.
We can rescue Puerto Rico’s
enchantment; have a strong economy
in the era of globalization and
the Internet; live in clean, well-forested
pedestrian cities; depend on functional
mass transportation systems; own
prosperous businesses; enjoy productive
agricultural fields; and every
day feel more satisfied about
living in this land. We can also
overcome and solve the status
issue and put an end governmental
corruption, if we only accept
our differences and become active
in working together for Puerto
Rico.
You can participate in this historical
project as a citizen, by promoting
the goals and mechanisms presented
in this government program, as
well as through political activation,
by sharing with others the party’s
ideas and principles and by voting
for our candidates.
A better quality of life, a prosperous
economy and a restored environment
in Puerto Rico ARE POSSIBLE.
Join us and be a part of making
them happen!
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End
to urban sprawl at its current
level, and reassignment of public
funds devoted to the construction
of new infrastructure toward our
people’s social, cultural
and knowledge development, while
channeling private investment
toward the reconstruction of our
communities – Reassignment
of the resources that would have
been used for the construction
of new roads, electricity and
sewers, toward the improvement
of school conditions, cultural
spaces, access to information
and new opportunities that will
move people away from dependency,
drug trafficking and violence.
Simultaneously, we will develop
attractive incentives for entrepreneurial
activities that contribute to
urban restoration and costly deterrents
for all construction outside the
urban print.
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Reconstruction
and restoration of urban areas
in our 78 municipalities according
to each one’s cultural character,
in order to create pedestrian,
well-forested cities which are
accessible to disabled and elderly
people, and served and interconnected
by mass transport –
Urban reconstruction program to
stop urban sprawl while redesigning
and rebuilding cities for improved
coexistence between citizens,
and more use and enjoyment by
pedestrians and elderly and disabled
people. This urban restoration
project defends and protects the
architectural identity of each
town by celebrating their urban
cultural heritage and stopping
the loss of identity. Inclusion
and participation of existing
communities in all restoration
processes will be ensured. The
Mass Transportation Authority
will serve all of these areas
internally and interconnect them.
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Opening
coastal fronts to eliminate
visual obstructions to the sea
and create a continuous maritime
front all around the island
– These open
sea-fronts will rescue the views
that have been obstructed by
rows of buildings and bad planning.
They will be accessible to pedestrians,
disabled and elderly people,
and cyclists. Each one will
constitute a great attraction
for residents, visitors and
commerce in general. Uniting
them together in a continuous
sea-front promises to be a landmark
project because of its positive
impact on tourism, the environment
and quality of life in Puerto
Rico, as well as because of
the substantial investment of
capital and workers required.
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Mass
Transport Authority, an efficient
system of mass transit for the
whole archipelago of Puerto Rico
that integrates the Urban Train,
buses, “carros públicos”,
ferries and other modes of transport,
using the road infrastructure
that is already available
– The MTA will provide integrated,
fast, reliable and safe service,
in which the different modes of
transportation will feed from
each other. Cost-efficient development
of future phases of the Urban
Train will be undertaken. Bus
services will be expanded, as
well as new interurban routes
to connect our pedestrian cities.
The MTA will establish exclusive
lanes for mass transport on Puerto
Rico’s main roads and highways.
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On-line
system for government transactions
with Internet access available to
all, that allows citizens to carry
out most of their government transactions
on-line – It consists
of a safe, uniform and standardized
system of data bases created according
to users’ and clients’
needs. It will be a distributed
system and will cover the whole
government apparatus, based on safe,
reliable and redundant computer
and data-storage centers. There
will be government and public-interest
representatives to audit processes,
ensure the privacy of confidential
and private transactions, and avoid
inappropriate electronic surveillance.
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Massive
cleaning of all of Puerto Rico –
Comprehensive trash pick-up and
conditioning of green and urban
areas throughout the island. The
greatest amount possible of trash
and junk will be recycled, and all
areas will be prepared for subsequent
regular maintenance.
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PUERTO
RICAN CONVERGENCE
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The
convergence of all Puerto Ricans consists
of having Puerto Ricans move from a culture
of separation and intolerance based on political-party
notions, status preference and other differences
to a new culture of tolerance and collaboration
that allows us to reach our common goals
as humans and as Puerto Ricans.
We
see ourselves as a richly diverse society
that works together to achieve quality of
life, justice and progress for all, as it
overcomes differences created historically
by traditional politics, thus creating the
conditions of convergence needed to seriously
treat the definition of our political status.
We
recognize also that citizens are a fundamental
part of government and that it is necessary
to eliminate barriers that impede citizen
communication with and supervision of government
agencies and officials. We want to create
a government where citizens, everyday, are
part of the government decision-making processes,
and oversee performance directly.
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Education
about Puerto Rican identity and diversity:
history, present realities and future
direction of Puerto Rican society
– Educational process that integrates
the diversity that characterizes people
in Puerto Rico in terms of sex, gender,
race, origin, socioeconomic levels and
status preference, among others. Its
objective is to get us to know each
other and to take advantage of the richness
of our diversity, rather than prejudging,
discriminating or marginalizing others
that are “different”.
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Education
about the causes, consequences and solutions
to the lack of union among Puerto Ricans
– Educational process about the
origins, costs and solutions to the
problem of Puerto Rican disunion. It
promotes citizen action toward overcoming
separation and individualism, and starting
to see collaboration, solidarity, empathy
and team work as vehicles to achieve
progress and quality of life.
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Status
definition through a process of reconciliation,
based on objective education, equality
of conditions for all options and a
previous commitment to accept and implement
the chosen alternative –
Educational process about status definition,
including alternatives in methodology,
and status options. In this process,
we also include the conditions that
will give us to a favorable position
to negotiate with the United States
with a strong standing. The election
process cannot be divisive or based
on irrational passions and fears, but
rather a conscious exercise based on
citizen participation and the certainty
of understanding of the alternatives.
We will ensure equality of conditions
for all alternatives presented and we
will guarantee the culmination of the
process in the necessary spheres, regardless
of what the final selection is.
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Citizen
Participation
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Fostering
an appropriate environment for
the creation of new local parties
that respond to communities, in
order to have political alternatives
that end with the three traditional-party
monopoly and widen the voting
options – Reduce
the number of endorsements required
for the inscription of grass-roots
parties, from 5% to 3% of the
votes cast for governor in the
previous election.
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Reforming
the State Elections Commission to
adjust it to the new framework of
political parties and voting situation
– The SEC will be restructured
to tend to the many new grass-roots
political parties that answer to
municipal units, senatorial districts
and voter precincts without being
necessarily tied to an organization
or central party.
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Promotion
of citizen democracy, by allowing
tax payers to assign part of their
contributions to bona fide base groups
– This will provide the necessary
funds to strengthen participation
of public interest groups in issues
as, for example, some types of advertisement
and TV programming that are considered
degrading to women or destructive
to the individual. The idea is to
let taxpayers support groups that
are interested in communicating educational
messages to counteract the influence
of publicity or programming, without
going in censorship or limitations
to free speech. This applies to any
recognized non-for-profit group that
carries out educational, social or
environmental work.
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Recall
mechanism for all elective positions,
including governor, mayors and legislators
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New
structures that facilitate citizen
legislation - Creation of
a consulting mechanism by which groups
of citizens can present law projects,
which will later be evaluated by all
voters through a special voting event
to that end or in the general elections.
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Local
and state referendums to decide public-interest
non-electoral issues, that can be
carried out through the Internet and
phone
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Open
and public bidding processes, that
can be carried out through the Internet
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Public
information system about activities
and expenses of public officials,
based on time sheets –
This will allow citizens to oversee
and evaluate our representatives,
executives and justice administrators.
This on-line system has the purpose
of reestablishing the order of power
back to the people as chief and supervisor
or elected officials. This system
contains our politicians’ time
sheets showing work information, including
expenses and projects. It will be
accessible via the Internet to all
citizens at all times. The information
will be taken from official information
management systems. The system will
also provide information about projected
plans to be carried out with public
funds from their earliest stages.
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New
administrative processes at government
agencies, which give the power of
allocation to community representatives
in projects that will impact them
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RESTORATION ECONOMY
This is a new economic model that merges economic goals with social and environmental goals to create economic progress at the same time our natural resources are protected and our quality of life is restored. The Restoration Economy model is based on incentivizing activities that rebuild, restore and rehabilitate our Island, as well as activities that make us more competitive in various areas. On the other hand, it utilizes dissuasive measures against activities that have a negative social or environmental impact. The aim is to redirect economic forces towards profitable activities that result in clean, livable cities; functional mass transport systems; powerful renewable-energy sources; productive and modern agricultural centers, etc. We want to develop a strong economy where Puerto Ricans use their resources without destroying them, where Puerto Ricans develop and own prosperous industries, and where Puerto Ricans are satisfied to live and work in this Island.
This new economy requires a government system with an administrative structure that maximizes the use of knowledge and information; that positively exploits the resource of electronic communication through the Internet; and that motivates employees' initiatives and creativity. It needs an agile administration, that operates on an reasonable budget and provides fast high-quality service. The model of government needed to make Restoration Economy work moves away from the obsolete paternalistic model, in order to become a facilitator of services to industries, corporations, co-ops, and employee-owned companies, so that they can thrive and prosper while bettering living conditions in the Island and generating more and better employment for people.
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Restoration
Incentives, to motivate the creation
and the maintenance of businesses that
contribute to environmental, social
and cultural restoration, and promote
unprecedented economical activity –
These incentives have the purpose
of redirecting the economy toward the
restoration of our capital, society
and environment. They are a new framework
of incentives for all businesses dedicated
to education, services for elderly people
or children, recycling, network and
database technologies, agriculture,
preventive health and other activities
classified as restorative of our capital,
environment, society and productivity.
This framework will be extremely attractive
to businesses created by formerly public
employees that move to the private sector.
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Speeding
up of government agencies related to
the creation and development of new
businesses, to accelerate and facilitate
these processes – This
will facilitate the creation of thousands
of small businesses motivated by restoration
incentives. It will include redesigning
administrative processes to make them
agile and effective. The Department
of State will be accelerated in registry
of businesses and intellectual property,
the Treasury Department in giving varied
tax incentives and payment to suppliers,
the Department of Economic Development
and Commerce in promoting and educating
new entrepreneurs, and the Government
Development Bank and the Government
Development Bank in providing financing
and credit guarantees to entrepreneurs.
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Simplifying
administrative processes and providing
grace periods in payments to the government,
in order to let businesses strengthen
during the critical indicial stages
of market building and accumulation
of capital – New business
owners should not have to deal with
the State Insurance Fund, Treasury Department,
etc., or make government payments, during
the first 6 months from their company’s
inception. This has the purpose of allowing
business owners to focus their efforts
on market building and accumulation
of cash during the demanding period
of business formation.
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Tourism
in all of Puerto Rico, through the integration
of communities and local commerce with
existing tourist centers, and the redevelopment
of 78 attractive pedestrian cities which
are accessible by mass transport
– Walls and other solid physical
barriers between communities and tourist
centers will be substituted with fences
that do not block visibility, at the
same time that roads are improved. Communities
will be motivated and given access to
financing, as well as assistance in
architecture and design, so that they
can participate in tourist activities.
This project will start at the communities
and areas close to tourist centers and
will then be extended to the whole of
Puerto Rico, in order to create an island
where all places are a visual or tourist
attraction.
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Reducing
the burning of fossil fuels, through
promoting pedestrian cities served by
public transport, on-line government
transactions and relocating government
offices and college campuses to bring
them closer to clients, employees and
students – Promoting
pedestrian cities served by public transport
and redistributing government agencies
and the college education system will
reduce the dependency on cars. This
will reduce the cost of life by minimizing
the costs in which we incur to sustain
private transportation. Awarding incentives
to delivery and messenger services is
part of this strategy to reduce fuel
consumption, as well as the creation
of a completely new legal framework
that allows for the adequate functioning
of the Virtual Office, which does not
require employees to visit an office.
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Reducing
electricity consumption, through
strategies to diminish the
demand for electricity (reforestation,
more efficient equipments,
redesigning of edifices) and
the promotion of a new industry
of alternative energy sources
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and rural reforestation will
be promoted around dwellings
and businesses, as well as
the rebuilding of structures
so that they do not absorb
so much heat during the day.
The development and use of
incentives to promote industries
having to do with solar-powered
electricity, heaters, air
conditioners, water bombs
and water filters, among other
energetic alternatives, will
form part of the effort to
reduce the use of electricity
generated from fuel burning.
This new framework of energy
use will allow us to focus
on improving the existing
infrastructure instead of
having to invest in new plants
and distribution systems.
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Directing
taxes from the importation of fuel and
cars to programs geared exclusively
to lessen the impacts caused by fuel
burning and the excessive use of cars
– The income generated from taxes
to cars and fuels will be used exclusively
for tending to victims of traffic accidents,
reforestation, urban reconstruction
and other programs to manage the effects
of car use and fuel burning. These monies
will not be used for universities, children’s
programs or the arts anymore, as is
the case today. The funds for artistic,
social, cultural and educational activities
will come from contributions made by
citizens. The reassignment of funds
avoids the counterproductive link and
the dependency on cars and fuel burning
in order to have social and cultural
activities.
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Economic
indexes that integrate environmental
and social factors – In
order to know the real costs and total
effects of our economic decisions, we
must include, among the economic indicators
traditionally gathered by the Planning
Board (such as production, number of
jobs, etc.), those indicators related
to environmental health (such as amount
of pristine land, amount of water that
can be used without depleting or damaging
the sources, asthma cases, etc.) and
to social health (number of crimes,
divorce rate, number of drug addicts,
time lost in traffic jams, etc.) Said
combination of indexes and indicators
will allow us to take better decisions
to guide Puerto Rico toward restoration
and empowerment.
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Restoration
of our urban and suburban areas to transform
them into pedestrian towns and cities
– These restored cities will be
served by mass transport and will be
cooler, aesthetically pleasing, and
have wide sidewalks and many parks and
plazas, as well as local markets. These
conditions foster the environment for
the cultural activities and human interaction
that define quality of life.
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Reorganizing
the Planning Board and the Rules and
Permits Authority – These
two agencies need to be turned into
real custodians of planning and permit
compliance, within a framework of real
balance between environment and economy.
The allocation of projects will include
citizen representation.
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Effective Government Administration
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Depoliticizing
the government, by naming chiefs of
agencies solely from the group of candidates
selected by management executives, client
groups and interest groups
– The governor will not name chiefs
of government agencies arbitrarily,
but will have to choose from the people
recommended by employees, management,
client representatives and interest
groups. The governor establishes the
goals, calendar and budget, giving the
agency liberty of execution. Thus, agencies
are freed from politicized interventions
by the executive power, and allowed
to give continuity to beneficial projects
for citizens.
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Reducing
government size through retirement incentives
for public employees, combined with
incentives for the creation of restoration
businesses
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Simplifying
government processes and making them
more agile, by integrating information
systems, on-line government transactions
and relocating government agencies
to bring them closer to employees
and clients – Reengineering
process for the government apparatus
which, besides the previous strategies,
includes the use of restoration incentives
to motivate thousands of public employees
to leave the government and form their
own businesses or become employees
in the private, cooperative or employee-owned
companies.
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Transition
into an unicameral system in the legislature,
which will be more representative, functional
and economical than the bicameral system,
while taking into account current proposals
for legislative reform from the civil
society – We will encourage
a debate and educational process in
public forums, in order to submit to
the consideration of citizens a constitutional
amendments project to transition from
the current bicameral system to a unicameral
system of fair representation, greater
functionality and lesser costs. Before
installing unicamerality, present recommendations
being made by the civil society will
be considered and implemented.
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A
culture of building and infrastructure
maintenance, to maximize the use of
existing construction and avoid the
practice of abandoning structures followed
by new construction –
It is based on giving better maintenance
to existing public structures, partly
through new businesses that have been
created by restoration incentives. It
will include a long-lasting repair system
for holes in roads, which will result
in roads without swellings or cracks,
and a reorganization of electric wires,
cable TV wires and other utilities to
improve the appearance of urban centers
without the need to bury the wires,
among other maintenance activities.
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Total
Access Internet – Giving
Internet access to all Puerto Ricans
(for example, in kiosks in all government
centers, with assistance) and the knowledge
to carry out most government transactions
online. The public use of Internet will
be supported by uniform interfaces in
all web pages so that, for example,
electronic interaction with ASUME is
not very different from interaction
with CRIM. Databases will be interconnected
and standardized according to the Demographical
Registry and the Department of State.
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Urban
Reconstruction and Pedestrian Cities
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Stop
to the growth of the urban footprint
at current size, through attractive
incentives for urban reconstruction
and strong discouraging measures against
construction in the country
– The expansion of the urban footprint
will stop at the current level, as identified
in Puerto Rico’s Water Plan, thus
avoiding the elimination of more green
areas of agricultural or ecological
value. This process will include attractive
incentives for redevelopment and reconstruction
of urban centers, as well as costly
discouraging measures for construction
outside of these limits. Urban construction
that follows previously established
plans for the area will be exempt of
state and city taxes. Development outside
of the urban print will require intensive
and extensive environmental studies,
the participation of adjacent communities
in the granting of permits, and fees
for impact to the environment and communities.
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Stabilizing
the road network in its present size,
after turning into expressways the
pending segments of roads that go
around the island and concluding Route
10 (with the smallest impact possible
to the environment and communities)
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New
guides for justice and progress for
communities in urban areas, that ensure
their insertion and participation in
the replanning and restoration processes
in urban areas – It will
ensure the inclusion of communities
in the replanning of the urban areas
and the guarantee of permanence and
progress for present residents and commerce.
This project wants to integrate the
needs and hopes of the communities in
the urban restoration and rehabilitation
process, and avoid unfair expropriation.
It includes the exchange of apartments
for land, expropriation that pays projected
value and not current value, temporary
lodging facilities for people during
construction and guarantees that the
new construction will take into account
the existing communities.
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New
construction guides that permit and
encourage the use of alternate materials
to cement (like wood and steel) in
hurricane-resistant construction
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Nueva
industria para transformar chatarra
en vigas y otros artículos de
acero que se puedan utilizar en la construcción
de viviendas y comercios
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Environmental
Restoration
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Discouraging
measures according to impact (high costs,
fees) for activities that provoke environmental
degradation and loss of capital, especially
outside of the established urban footprint
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Use
of police force, after proper training,
to deal with environmental violations
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Use
of secondary and tertiary water-treatment
systems, combined with reducing water
consumption, to reestablish the natural
balance in rivers, lakes and aquifers
in Puerto Rico and rehydrate the soil
– A soil rehydratation project
will be launched, directed to supplying
the water needs of the population, industries
and commerce 7 days a week, 24 hours
a day, 365 days a year, at the same
time that the health of water systems
in Puerto Rico is restored. It includes
the dredging of lakes to reach original
levels before sedimentation, and advanced
secondary or tertiary water -treatment
to generate water for agricultural use,
among others. The dredged lakes will
be utilized to store water, for recreation
and for the production of electric energy.
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Visual
decontamination, by creating and implementing
new regulation that reduces the number
and size of billboards and advertisement
on the roads, improves the appearance
of signs in general, and reduces the
visual impact of antennas –
This will reduce the commercialization
of the environment and improve the attractiveness
of the surroundings.
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New
regulation for the exposure to radiofrequency
waves generated by cellular phones,
based on clinical studies and aesthetic
and landscape’s considerations,
with the purpose of avoiding harm to
people’s health, to the landscape’s
visual value, and to community environment
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Massive
reforestation in all of Puerto Rico,
promoted by restoration incentives,
with the purpose of improving the
environment, reducing runoff intensity
and diminishing heat accumulation
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Leveled
process to implement a recycling system,
starting by the conversion of plastic
into the necessary containers to classify
materials adequately, followed by
promoting recycling industries for
other materials
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ENVIRONMENT OF OPPORTUNITIES
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In order to create an environment
of equal opportunity for everyone in Puerto
Rico, we will redirect the financial and
human resources currently being used for
new physical infrastructure and bureaucratic
activities, toward the rescue of our social,
cultural and knowledge infrastructure. An environment of
equal opportunities will create the hope
and sense of possibility needed to combat
the drug trafficking that stems from lack
of economic alternatives, the dependence
that is born form marginalization, and the
lack of justice that emerges from class
polarization and prejudice. Violence can
be reduced if we provide alternatives to
drug trafficking as an economic means and
our population is educated for non-dependence
and respect for others.
This
new framework of opportunities allows all
Puerto Ricans to access education, employment,
properties and assets, and ensures legal
and economic justice for the homosexual
communities.
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Education
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Reinforcement
of Community Schools and educational
independence, by providing greater fiscal
and operational independence to schools
according to the needs and hopes of
communities, while new educational alternatives
are created through restoration incentives
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Inclusion
in school curricula, from an early age,
of education for peace, for personal
independence and to establish origins
and direction as Puerto Ricans, as well
as education against abuse, discrimination
and drugs
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System
to ensure continued education for adults,
in order to reduce social problems (abuse,
conflict, addiction), encourage them
to take advantage of opportunities (entrepreneurship,
restoration incentives), and provide
ongoing learning (recycling, waste reduction)
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Employment
and education insurance, in order to
transform the current unemployment insurance
into a fund to which the worker can
turn during transition periods between
jobs, or to receive the necessary training
to change employment
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Non-violent
environment
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Systemic
reduction of the drug industry, by controlling
drug entry through systematic inspection
of containers and surveillance to coasts,
combined with medication and cure, drug
testing in businesses, elimination of
corruption and a new environment of
education and opportunity
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Abolition
of dependency to government aids, by
combining attractive employment opportunities
with lower costs of living, in order
to allow people to abandon dependency
and join the work force voluntarily
– Restoration incentives will
provide more and better childcare services,
mass transport, and affordable housing,
which will allow for better quality
of life even with low incomes. These
new set of conditions should encourage
people to join the work force, for they
will see an opportunity for advancement
through employment. Having a job will
not be expensive (individual car, child-care)
or inconvenient (traffic jams, lack
of parking) anymore.
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Detoxification
and rehabilitation program for drug
addicts, developed jointly by municipalities,
civil rights commissions, non-profit
organizations and the police, in order
to get the drug addict population off
of the streets and addiction
– We will develop a protocol to
take addicts out of the streets and
into detox treatments, in order to cure
them and allow them to return to their
families and/or jobs according to their
progress. Addicts and homeless people
are at high-risk conditions to themselves,
their families and the public. It is
in the best public interest to cure
them and give them the opportunity to
return to productive lives.
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Equality
and justice for all
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The
right to be a couple, by modifying the
civil code so that it includes same-sex
or different-sex partners who want to
form civil unions, with the same legal
rights and possibilities for economic
development that are currently enjoyed
exclusively by married couplesThe right
to be a couple, by modifying the civil
code so that it includes same-sex or
different-sex partners who want to form
civil unions, with the same legal rights
and possibilities for economic development
that are currently enjoyed exclusively
by married couples
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Tax deduction for rent, in order
to open new income possibilities to
citizens who rent properties in urban
areas that so allow it, and thus direct
substantial amounts of money to the
local economies. This will
also make renting apartments more attractive
to young or unmarried people, and foster
urban repopulation
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Equality
and economic justice for unmarried people,
by modifying tax rates for single people,
through tax deductions for rent, and
through the right to form civil unions
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Mortgage financing for houses
constructed with materials other than
cement (wood, steel), and for second
and third stories
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Quality of life
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Preventive-health
culture, which combines healthier environmental
conditions (well-forested, clean pedestrian
cities) with healthier consumer patterns
(more natural food restaurants), in
order to create a population less vulnerable
to disease – Restoration
incentives create conditions that improve
the population’s physical and
mental health: natural food restaurants
provide a better nutrition, pedestrian
cities reduce sedentaryism and encourage
exercise, and a clean and less stressful
environment results in less mental problems.
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More
quality time for individuals and families,
through efficient mass transport and
relocating government agencies and educational
centers, to reduce travel time
– The interconnection of pedestrian
cities by mass transport and the relocation
of government offices and colleges will
reduce the time spent to and from work
to a fraction of the present time required.
This time can de devoted to oneself
or the family. The availability of mass
transport will give people more time
for activities like reading, sewing
and other activities that reduce stress
levels, resulting in a better mood upon
arriving at work and home.
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Decrease
water consumption with equipment designed
for conserving water, and a system of
scaled prices for water to discourage
excess use – Dual toilets
in businesses, homes and public places
which consume water according to the
need, and shower heads that save up
to 50% of water, will result in significant
reductions to water consumption. Compared
to constructing more super aqueduct
projects, reducing consumption combined
with storage tanks in homes and institutions
is much more sensible, less costly and
easier to implement. A fee system of
appropriate consumption levels according
to family size or commercial use will
be established, and excess use will
have a significant extra charge.
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Redirecting
funds to boost and subsidize cultural
activities and strengthen social infrastructure,
based on participation of cultural entities
– A depoliticized and more efficient
government will use the budget previously
used for road infrastructure to strengthen
all cultural areas in the country, following
recommendations from cultural institutions
and interested citizens.
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Reforestation
and substitution of inadequate species
in green islets and road margins, in
order to create greener routes that
are more attractive, and lessen noise
and contamination
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Panoramic
lookout points in places of scenic beauty,
by eliminating artificial obstructions
to the view and creating rest and observation
points around the whole island
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Puertorriqueños
por Puerto Rico, www.porpuertorico.com, email: contacto@porpuertorico.com
©
Puertorriqueños por Puerto Rico, Inc. 2003 |
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