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#1615: News digest about Haiti in Dominican press (fwd)
From:Karioka9@cs.com
[The latest news, not yet reported in the press but confirmed by political
activists in the DR, is that the deportations have resumed, business as
usual, after a brief lull around Christmas. The report is that dozens,
perhaps hundreds, of people were rounded up at different points and deported
the same day (yesterday, 12/28/99), without the legal niceties about due
process agreed on by the two governments. P.S. The news digest below
compiled from DR1 should be read critically! Just because it is printed
doesn't mean it is so.]
Colombians plant drugs in Haiti near DR border
Tuesday, 28 December 1999. The Listín Diario reports today that hundreds of
Colombians have installed themselves in impoverished frontier towns in Haiti
where they are planting marihuana to be shipped to the DR. The newspaper says
that the money for the drug transactions that is pouring into Haiti is
apparent in the more comfortable dwellings that are going up in impoverished
areas along the frontier that contrast with the huts of indigent Haitians.
This situation has placed a red alert among Dominican military that seek to
impede that drug traffickers take a hold of the frontier. The DR frontier
with Haiti is 378 kilometers from Pedernales to Monte Cristi. More than 300
military have been stationed in 68 booths in strategic points considered the
most vulnerable for the trafficking of weapons and drugs into Dominican
territory. News reports say that some 15,000 marihuana trees were confiscated
in the first days of the frontier operation unfolded by the newly created
Destacamentos Operacionales de Inteligencia Fronteriza. These are located in
Elias Piña, Dajabón, Pedernales, Independencia, Comendador and Bahoruco. The
marihuana bushes were planted among potato, onion, vegetable and legume
plantations.
General Brigade Gustavo A. Jorge García commands the 24 hour activities. He
operates in coordination with the national drug control department, the
department of migration, the Dominican military and the Ministry of Foreign
Relations.
[read the entire article in Listin Diario at:
http://listin.com.do/281299/rep11.htm]
ONGs pay US$1,500 to Haitians to give birth in DR
Thursday, 14 October 1999. The legal consultant of the Executive Branch,
Dr. Abel Rodríguez del Orbe denounced that there are non-governmental
organizations that pay US$1,000-US$1,500 for Haitian women to give birth
here. The press note says that the moneys are being paid to Dominican
physicians and clinics that assist the women in the labor. He said the object
is that the children of Haitians be given Dominican birth certificates.
Rodríguez del Orbe said that this will create an "explosion of incalculable
consequences in 20 to 25 years". He said that even when these persons may
have Dominican birth certificates, they will be brought up as Haitians, not
Dominicans, as both cultures are very different. He commented that the
persons will grow up in Haiti, and one day will come to the DR saying they
are Dominicans.
"If necessary, for humanitarian reasons, the women that live near the
frontier may give birth here, if we can provide the service, we agree to that
but to nationalize as Dominicans, persons that are not Dominicans, is a
crime."
He said it is the Haitian consulate that has the responsibility of providing
the birth certificates to the Haitians that are born in Dominican territory.
The Dominican constitution does not regard persons born of illegal parents as
Dominicans.
The controversy arose when Father Luis Rosario of the Pastoral Juvenil of the
Catholic Church requested that Congress consider legislating so that all
those born in the DR may receive Dominican nationality. The Catholic Church
hierarchy later denied that the request of Father Rosaro was that of the
Dominican Catholic Church. Local authorities recognize that the children of
Haitians have a problem when registering in school or at the time of
graduating. The Haitian Embassy in the DR has been contributing by assisting
thousands of Haitians that entered the DR without any legal documentation, to
get their Haitian nationality papers.
Supreme Court president Jorge Subero Isa reaffirmed recently that the
Constitution is clear on the issue when it states that the Dominican
nationality will be given to: "All persons born in the Dominican territory,
with the exception of the legitimate sons of foreign diplomats and those that
are in transit." The illegal Haitian residents are considered "in transit"
and thus do not merit Dominican nationality. The Haitian Constitution, in
turn, recognizes through the third generation sons and daughters of Haitians,
regardless of whether they are born abroad or of one foreign parent.
Catholic Church denies request to nationalize Haitian children
Monday, 11 October 1999. The Conferencia del Episcopado Dominicano, the
ruling body of the Roman Catholic Church in the DR, denied it was behind the
request of Pastoral Juvenil Catholic Church group that requested the
Dominican government give Dominican birth certificates to hundreds of
Haitians that are born in the DR to Haitian parents, most of which do not
have birth certificates themselves and live in extreme poverty in the DR.
Monsignor Francisco José Arnaiz, secretary general of the Episcopado, and
spokesman for the religious group said that in 1996 the Dominican and Haitian
Catholic churches established a joint position on the issue when in a joint
declaration on 12 October 1996 they stated: "We are concerned that so many
people lack an ID document, as having one in today's modern world is a
fundamental right. We make an urgent call to governments of both countries so
that to each it be demanded that they facilitate the procuring of the
document."
The church spokesman said they maintain the same position. In the opinion of
the Church, it is evident that one has to distinguish between the case of
Dominican children and the case of the children born to Haitians that are
illegal residents. He said that the cases need to be resolved following the
legislation of each nation.
The Dominican Constitution does not grant Dominican nationality to the
children born of Haitian parents. If one of the parents is a Dominican, than
the child can acquire the nationality of the mother, but extensive paperwork
has to be completed. The Haitian Constitution recognizes the children of
Haitians as Haitians down to the third generation, regardless of where they
are born.
Monsignor Arnaiz clarified that the position of the Pastoral Juvenil, spurred
by Padre Luis Rosario, is not that of the Catholic Church. He denied that
Cardinal Nicolás López Rodríguez had placed a calling to urge National
Congress act on the matter, as reported in the Dominican press and picked up
by this daily news service.
DR and Haiti advance on bilateral talks
Monday, 11 October 1999. Negotiators for the Dominican and Haitian
governments made important advances during the most recent round of bilateral
talks. The fourth round of meetings of the Bilateral Commission ended in
Santo Domingo on Friday. Minister of Foreign Relations of Haiti Fritz
Longchamp told the press that he is pleased with the progress. On Friday,
agreements to deal with vandalism, drug trafficking and contraband along the
frontier lines were signed. There were also advances on agreements regarding
farming, education, culture, health, sports and tourism. The most difficult
issue of all is that of migration, but Longchamps said that far from
discouraging them, they are stimulated to double efforts to resolve this
rapidly. The parties agreed to meet every six months until an agreement is
reached. He called out for increasing joint efforts to confront poverty in
both countries at the start of a new century, in these days of a modern
dependent and solidarian world. He said they would be giving priority to
continuing the talks and concertation. He announced that completion of the
agreements for the protection and promotion of reciprocal investments, sports
cooperation, and youth cooperation.
Major progress was made on the agreement regarding the circulation of
vehicles through the frontier, restitution of stolen or retained vehicles,
with a timetable set for three months to complete it.
The parties agreed to continue working on a tourism cooperation agreement to
promote the development of a hotel industry in Haiti, train personnel, and
exchange experiences. This will be a joint effort of the local association of
hotels (Asonahores) and the Tourism Association of Haiti.
The countries will increase cultural and educational activities, and progress
was made towards the installing of a Dominican culture house in Port au
Prince and a Haitian culture house in Santo Domingo. The parties agreed on
preparing a compilation of Haitian and Dominican authors.
Discussions also advanced on environmental issues, focusing on biodiversity,
and the struggle to confront the turning of the land into a desert. Haiti
committed to complete the draft of the plan for the managing of the
borderline Artibonito River so that cooperation can be secured from
international organizations. Likewise, the parties agreed to work together
for the creation of a bi-national fund for the conservation of the
environment, with emphasis on marine-coastal areas and frontier areas.
Both parties agreed to increase sanitary control programs, seek financing for
swine cholera eradication program, and modernizing of the farm sanitation
programs, as well as farm plague controls.
Other joint projects focus on frontier infrastructure, bilateral trade talks.
Indigent Haitians burden frontier hospital finances
Tue Tuesday, 7 September 1999. El Siglo newspaper reports that public
hospitals in the frontier provinces spend 50% of their resources on servicing
Haitian patients. For humanitarian reasons, public hospitals located from
Pedernales to Monte Cristi, along the frontier, offer emergency services to
Haitians. El Siglo reports that most of the cases they see are births,
tuberculosis, AIDS, malaria, injuries, malnutrition, diarrhea and respiratory
infections. The public hospitals have to finance the transportation of the
sick Haitians back to Haiti or to regional hospitals within the DR. Minister
of Public Health Juan Octavio Ceballos recognizes the problem, but said that
the authorities do not have a solution.