Thousands March Against Corruption in Dominican Republic

Thousands of Dominicans marched Sunday in the capital Santo Domingo to protest corruption and impunity in the Caribbean nation amid the ongoing scandal involving Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht that continues to rock the region.

The "End Impunity" march drew thousands of people from different social groups and different parts of the country, most of them dressed in green.

The protest is part of an campaign coinciding with the investigation opened by Dominican authorities into the alleged bribes Odebrecht paid in the country to gain access to Dominican contracts.

"We're here taking on a civic duty and demanding that the corrupt people pay for their deeds," Alexandra Montero, an attorney who participated in the march, told EFE.

Another participant, Jhonatan Perez, a young university student, told EFE that he decided to march "to demand that the corrupt ones be brought to justice and pay back all they have stolen to a people who are dying of hunger."

According to documents published on Dec. 21 by the U.S. Justice Department, Odebrecht paid approximately US$788 million in bribes in 12 countries, US$92 million of which was handed out in the Dominican Republic to secure contracts over almost two decades.