Some 125,000 Dominicans’ monthly pension: US$10

Excerpt from www.dominicantoday.com

SANTO DOMINGO.- Dominican Republic yesterday marked Day of the Senior Citizen with as many as 125,000 retired workers getting as little as 10 dollars in monthly pensions.

The National Retirees Federation demands an increase in pensions to equal the minimum wage and said there are at least 700,000 retirees in the country, who are mostly in poverty.

It said economically the situation is more dramatic for the women, because they don’t figure in the social programs and remain working in their home.

The Retirees said though the country has advanced much the Social Security Law must be more strictly enforced as most adults live is misery because the pensions and assistance provided aren’t enough to cover basic needs including food. They asked the organizations who work with the aged to demand their right to life from the government .

"In this International Senior Citizens Day, people and institutions must improve the conditions of these people who after having worked all their lives and supported the development of the mother country deserve an adequate social protection," the Retirees said.