CARICOM appeals to DR to halt expulsion of Haitians

Dominicans of Haitian descent protest possible deportation to Haiti
Dominicans of Haitian descent protest possible deportation to Haiti

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) has called on the government of the Dominican Republic (DR) to halt the expulsion of Dominicans of Haitian descent.

In 2013, the Constitutional Court of the DR rendered hundreds of thousands of Dominicanos of Haitian descent stateless by ruling that people born in the country would no longer be automatically granted citizenship. The law was enacted to reach as far back as 1929.

Over 200,000 people are at risk of being deported to Haiti, a place where they have never been to or lived in. They are not considered citizens of that country, either.

A deadline was given for all to be regularized. However, only a small number of eligible residents have been able to meet the documentation requirements before it passed.

In a statment CARICOM pointed to human rights concerns and noted that “The very real possibility that they could be expelled to Haiti, a country of which they are not citizens and with which many have neither family nor language links, was an additional cause for concern.”

See full statement below.

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) calls on the Government of the Dominican Republic not to expel tens of thousands of Dominicans of Haitian descent. This follows statements by the Dominican Ministry of Interior and the Police which indicate their intention to expel Dominicans of Haitian descent whose citizenship status has not been regularised.

In reiterating its human rights concerns, the Caribbean Community emphasised that these Dominicans had been made stateless by a ruling of the Dominican Constitutional Court of 2013, which had been made retroactive to 1929, revoking their nationality. The very real possibility that they could be expelled to Haiti, a country of which they are not citizens and with which many have neither family nor language links, was an additional cause for concern.

Extremely concerned by the looming threat of the expulsion of these Dominicans, CARICOM initiated a discussion on this issue during the recent European Union-CARIFORUM High-Level Meeting in Brussels on 11 June 2015. The CARIFORUM side consisted of Heads of State and Government and Ministers of CARICOM Member States and the Dominican Republic with the EU being represented by the President of the EU Council and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

The meeting was informed of the plight of the Dominicans of Haitian descent rendered stateless, both those who were documented and those who were not.
As highlighted in the Joint Communique of the High-Level Meeting, there was commitment to adhere to a number of principles including “protection of the status of
citizenship and the presumption that persons shall not be rendered stateless.” In this regard, it was agreed that “proposals to set up appropriate benchmarks and monitoring mechanisms, to be presented by CARIFORUM, will be considered”. Efforts to this end are currently underway.

The Community calls on the Dominican Republic authorities to adhere to the above principles and confirm the citizenship status of Dominicans of Haitian descent. The Community also calls on the Dominican Republic not to engage in the expulsion of Dominicans of Haitian descent and avoid creating a humanitarian crisis in our Region.

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29 Comments

  1. appalled
    June 25, 2015

    So many people from the Dominican Republic living and working and yes, having children in other countries; including our Commonwealth of Dominica. If you chose to pass this harsh law to protect your country’s resources or whatever, let it take effect from 2013/2014. How can you treat Haitian people this way?! They are not even Haitians, they are yours. What if other countries decide to deport everybody of Dominicano descent, how would you feel about that?

    • appalled
      June 25, 2015

      “The law was enacted to reach as far back as 1929.” That is 86 years. If let’s say the average person has their first child at 25 years, great-grand parents, grand parents, parents and children would have to go. Can you imagine?

  2. Francisco Telemaque
    June 25, 2015

    I know that I am counted as someone controversial, nevertheless, I must say it is evil of the government of the Dominican Republic to expel these people!

    Wherever a person first saw daylight that is the place to which the person belong. Hence every person born in the Dominican Republic are citizens by birth; therefore it appears this law which renders people citizen less, is an illegal act.

    If a pregnant woman is traveling by air, or sea, and gave birth to her child in the air, or on the sea, assuming that ship was coming from Guadeloupe, or Martinique and the baby was born in Dominica’s territorial waters, and the mother is from Timbuktu in Africa, that child have to be registered in Dominica as its place of birth, if the baby was born in the air over any territory, the same applies.

    That I understand is international law. The issue in the Dominican Republic should be taken up in the International Court of law based in the Netherlands. Idi Amin of Uganda did the same to…

    • June 25, 2015

      Mr Telemacque I am pleased with your contribution in regards to the Hatian situation in Dominican Republic, but how your tune has changed. When the The Prime Minister voiced his concern over the same situation your reaction was rather hostile. All I can say is you are suffering the maladi called HATE GREED AND ENVY.

  3. Henry
    June 24, 2015

    CARICOM need to do more for Haiti a full member, they must force the Haitian governement to take their responsibilities. Tha bahamas a CARICOM member right now is struggling with a Haitian illegal immigration and let me tell you they don’t give all the chances that the Dominicans have given to the Haitians, they chase them arrest them and deport them right away and kids included and no talks about it. Haiti needs help but they also needs to understand that they can’t always pass their problems to the others. The Bahamas have declared them “public health threat” to the island I think that’s a bit too much.

    Here’s a link where you can see what I’m talking about, I’m sure you haven’t heard about it, because the media manipulates the information. And the Haitians in the Dominican Republic “sells” more Thant the one in The Bahamas.

    http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/31/world/haitians-are-swept-up-as-bahamas-tightens-immigration-rules.html?_r=0

  4. The Real Facts
    June 24, 2015

    The entire democratic countries of the world should inform the Dominican Republic government, in no uncertain manner, of the atrocity which is being committed against those people. I do not even consider them nor call them Haitians. Shame on that DR government.
    I hope there will be a solution to this dilemma and they will be allowed to stay.
    Some governments are slow to respond which is why those people may feel at a loss and decide to leave, assuming they have no help and no alternative.
    I contacted my MP’s office and spoke to someone about this. Parliament is somewhat recessed for the summer holidays.
    I should have been a Canadian politician, getting a lot of holidays also at Christmas and Easter. :lol:
    Should something serious arise in this country or to the country, they will be recalled.
    The person I spoke to stated he will inform the MP. He was away from office. They utilize some of their time to hold meetings and to speak to constituents.

  5. roselyn
    June 24, 2015

    hi i am i the same situation that write BREV
    f a child’s mother is from the Dominican Republic and the same child’s father is from the Commonwealth of Dominica is the child Dominican or Dominican?

    I AM FROM DOMINICA ST JOSEPH AND MY HUSBAND FROM DOMINICA REPUBLIC

    the children have the 2 nationaly .the problem coming for too munch poeple in that country

    • Titiwi
      June 25, 2015

      Roselyn, if they are “munching” people the definitely have problem, Seriously though, both nationalitiesare referred to as Dominican but we have the first claim to that title since Columbus gave us that name hundreds of years before the Dominican Republic gave themselves that same name. Don’t let that worry you, just love your children and your husband. Let your husband get himself also a Dominican (Caricom) passport as well, just to be on the safe side.

  6. Malgraysa
    June 24, 2015

    Haiti must ask itself questions too. The country became independent in 1803, before the Dominican Republic finally declared its independence in 1844, breaking free from a union with Haiti they had entered after throwing out their own Spanish masters. Haiti must ask itself, why, sharing the same island of Hispanolia the Dominican Republic does noticeably better than they? Haiti, poor as it is has a responsibility for its own people too. They must help themselves and not just expect others to clear up a mess, which too a large part is of their own making. It can not just be that, after more than 200 years of independence they, much more than their immediate neighbours, are still struggling and blame it on anyone else but themselves. To say otherwise would be akin to saying that to have a black skin is a curse and I can never accept that.

    • The Real Facts
      June 24, 2015

      As the saying, “Be sure brain is engaged before putting mouth in gear.” It also means, what is imbedded in the mind to the fingers on the keyboard and prior to utilizing the sent button.
      Surely, you should know what occurred to Haiti under those previous governments as Papa Doc and Baby Doc and their likes. You should know how much they bilked Haitians and rendered them poor.
      Some years ago I read a huge one-page article of The Toronto Star about the history of Haiti, that it was once a rich and thriving country and how it became poor. I no longer have this article which I may have inadvertently thrown out. I will contact The Star to inquire if this article is still in their archives and accessible.
      Considering what those greedy, wicked,dictatorship Haitian governments did to their people, Haiti never recovered.
      This is why Haiti depended on the Dominican Republic and many Haitians moved there. In this case, we must be compassionate.

    • jamesd
      June 24, 2015

      http://www2.webster.edu/~corbetre/haiti/misctopic/leftover/whypoor.htm
      Learn about the plight of our brothers and sisters before you cast judgement on them. This is not exactly a fully substantiated article but it is enough to give you an idea. If you doubt anything in there you can research for yourself.

    • Henry
      June 24, 2015

      Malgraysa you just said what a lots of people think they need to work for their country once and for all to be able to have a better life.
      It’s easy for others to condem the DR for trying to put the “house” in order, is very easy to condemn a nation when you don’t share a border with the poorest country in this hemisphere. The Dominican Republic provided them with free health care 30% of the health budget goes to the Haitians people coming to the Dominicans hospital because their own country can’t provide them with the minimum in the DR they have food health care , free education etc . Is easy to condemn that nation for doing what the USA and the int community have failed to do. After the earthquake they have promised a lot and 5 years later that help hasn’t arrive yet. I think to be fair we need to hear both versions the ,Haitian but also the DR version. 75% of the Haitians in Haiti don’t have Any kind of ID and that to me is the biggest human right violation.

    • Boyie
      June 24, 2015

      Malgraysa- you should have put out your full name. clearly you are confuse!! I will assume the you are a white supremacist. check yourself

      • Boyie
        June 24, 2015

        I will assume that you are a white supremacist!

  7. CLARITY
    June 24, 2015

    It is obvious that we Domincana have no knowledge of our work history ..DOMINCANS sought employment in PANAMA in the turn of the century..then CURACAO /ARUBA as well as CAYENNE followed by the pilgrimage to the UK in the 50,s nd beyond
    IN THE 60,S we sought escape to CANANDA -USA .
    We became largest caribbean”alien’ workers IN THE USVI/BVI /GUADELOUPE AND ANTIGUA
    We are in Trinidad -St lucia and Barbados in numbers
    So our snob approach to HAITIANS are at best unmerited
    HAITI is the black caribbean ppeople to be liberated over 100 years before us as we are all former slaves except the kallinago

  8. well well well
    June 24, 2015

    You know what, CARICOM muct look at the number of Haitians living under Roseau bridge…..it is sad when you are entering the city to see so many Haitians sitting or stand along the side walk as entering into Roseau. And they will tell you they have Dominican passports but since very recently arrived on island they have no jobs and no homes…..how they were able to secure DA passports before even becoming residents of the island is a mystery.

    • The Real Facts
      June 24, 2015

      The government allowed them entry. Therefore the government should ensure that they are taken care of, educate them and assist them in obtaining employment. If they cannot speak English fluently and write it, they should be given the opportunity to do so.
      Dominica cannot afford for them to be unemployed and idle. They are not assisting the economy. Otherwise, they might as well return to their country where they could be gainfully employed. Just as they could grow fruits and vegetables in D/ca, they could do the same there.

    • Boyie
      June 24, 2015

      IDIOT KNOW YOURSELF. common full Uncle Tom

  9. Henry
    June 24, 2015

    The media are spreading rumors with a purpose NO one is deported NO one , in fact the program that de DR government put in place was to help as many people to come and register to legalized their migratory status, those who are going for now voluntarily back to Haiti are allow to go to the Dominican consulates or embassy and apply for a dominican visa to go back I’m sure that information it’s not on the news. What the DR wants is that the people entering its territory with the proper documents like every country does. The Dominican Repubkic is a nation of 10 millions inhabitants with a 1 million immigrabts without any kind of papers. There’s no a country on this planet capable of resisting this, again that’s why the CARICOM don’t allow the Haitians to move within the zone without visa because they are afraid of an avalanche of Haitians. A town in Brazil declared state of emergency after the huge amount of Haitian entering there. The int community offered so much and haven’t…

  10. ANTIFAKE
    June 24, 2015

    expell them, let them go and rebuild their land

    • out of south city
      June 24, 2015

      This is a very ignorant (lacking wisdom) statement. How would you like Dominicans to be deported from the outside world to further build their land? Let’s not be snobbish toward our Haitian brothers and sisters because many of our loved ones occupy foreign lands illegally. Haitians are the most despised people in the Caribbean and also some foreign countries. They are hated because of their African belief system which many of us call voodoo which the Europeans have given a negative connotation. It is an African spiritual belief which has been demonised because it originated in Africa. We have not studied that belief system so we condemn it not knowing what it means. If voodoo was so evil, why is it that the people of the DR are not wiped out by the Haitians.
      What about some people right here in Dominica who perform evil towards their fellowmen and they are church goers? Before we look at the beam in others’ eyes, we must check our eyes first.

      NO APOLOGIES

    • The Real Facts
      June 24, 2015

      If they were not born there and do not know the country, why is the D.R. government sending them back? It is wicked of them to do so.
      Why does this government not leave them alone and encourage them to obtain employment and even education? It is doing them a grave injustice by demanding they leave and deporting them, just because their parents, some of whom have passed on, were Haitians.

      • wordforthetime
        June 25, 2015

        employment n education nowadays no government get that enough for themselves. so war everywhere; where will it end?

    • Boyie
      June 24, 2015

      UNCLE TOM

  11. UserName
    June 24, 2015

    CARICOM….The Unification of Hispaniola by Haiti which lasted 22 years, from February 9, 1822 to February 27, 1844 still hurts racist DRs! and thats where all things start. Previously known as the Captaincy General of Santo Domingo, the criollo class within the country overthrew the Spanish crown in 1821 before unifying with Haiti a year later. At the time Haiti had been more economically and militarily powerful and had a population 8 to 10 times larger than the former Spanish colony, having been the richest colony in the western hemisphere before the Haitian Revolution. DR military officers agreed to merge the newly independent nation with Haiti, as they sought for political stability under the Haitian president Jean-Pierre Boyer, and were attracted to Haiti’s wealth and power at the time. As such the DR Independence War gave the Dominican Republic autonomy from Haiti on February 27, 1844 and they vowed never again to be ruled by!!!! I had to literally live it to try and understand it

  12. Henry
    June 24, 2015

    Very nice from the CARICOM but can they explain why they don’t allow Haitians travel without visa withing the CARICOM countries? why Haitians are the only ones? if they are part of the CARICOM fully? This what I call double standard and double moral obviously they… CARICOM DONT WANT THEM! They should fixe or explain that before giving lectures to others. The CARICOM hasn’t done absolutely nothing for the poor Haitians not even when the earthquake, so I guess if they want redeem themselves of that they should allow the Haitians to move around the CARICOM zone freely without visa like the rest.

    • The Real Facts
      June 24, 2015

      Dominican Republic, Santo Domingo and Haiti are not considered part of the West Indies. First of all, they are not English speaking. They are set apart from those other countries. You know, as the French West Indies colonies and African countries. There are other reasons but for now this is what my mind tells me.
      Do Guadeloupe and Martinique which are referred to as our, D/ca’s sister islands, yet so close, feel that they are part of us, this country and the other West Indian islands?

  13. Jay
    June 24, 2015

    The Dominican Republic is linked to Haiti, not just physically but through Caricom, where the D.R. has Observer status as well as the the E.U. Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) & Cariforum (EPA). What is more, under this agreement they are subject, in certain areas to the European Court of Justice. Perhaps, the services of the latter can be used to resolve, or at least mediate this humanitarian tragedy.

  14. BrEv
    June 24, 2015

    If a child’s mother is from the Dominican Republic and the same child’s father is from the Commonwealth of Dominica is the child Dominican or Dominican?

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