27193: (news) Chamberlain: Two dozen Haitians found dead in Dominican van (fwd)

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

Posted by Chamberlain

     SANTO DOMINGO, Dominican Republic, Jan 11 (Reuters) - At least 24
Haitians suffocated to death in the back of a van thought to have smuggled
them into the Dominican Republic, local media reported on Wednesday.
     The bodies were found in the van by members of the Dominican armed
forces, Radio Popular said. An army spokesman said the driver and owner of
the van had been arrested and an investigation was underway.
     Up to 1 million Haitians, most of them illegal immigrants, are
believed to be living in the Dominican Republic, which shares the Caribbean
island of Hispaniola with their impoverished and chaotic homeland.
     Most work on cattle ranches and sugar plantations, or as domestic
servants and construction workers in conditions that human rights groups
say frequently approach slavery.
     But conditions are better than in Haiti, where half of the population
lives on $1 a day. Haitians reportedly pay Dominican smugglers between $40
and $60 to take them across the porous border.