Source: http://ufdc.ufl.edu/AA00001353/00001
Timestamp: 2019-04-26 05:04:13+00:00

Document:
﻿ Dominican Republic : Illegal people : Haitians and Dominico-Haitians in the Dominican Republic.
Dominican Republic : Illegal people : Haitians and Dominico-Haitians in the Dominican Republic.
New York : Human Rights Watch, 2002.
Haitian sugarcane cutters in a batey near Barahona, in the Dominican Republic.
We would also like to thank The John Merck Fund for its generous funding.
collect her two youngest children, ages four and six, before being deported from the Dominican Republic to Haiti.
David Pere Martinez, deported from the Dominican Republic that same month, faced a similar situation.
whose language he did not speak.
was born. They looked instead to the color of his skin, which is black, and decided to deport him to Haiti.
rounding up thousands of people in a period of weeks or months and forcibly expelling them from the country.
nature of such actions, which myriad international human rights bodies have condemned, is glaringly obvious.
"rougher skin," the subdirector declared that "they're much blacker than we are. They're easy to recognize."
years, decades, or even generations, are thus wrongly squeezed into a category meant for brief and casual visitors.
the direction it appears to be moving in substance.
its compliance with the rulings of the Inter-American Court of Human Rights.
opportunity to defend against deportation.
should also be permitted, at least in cases in which a claim of Dominican citizenship is asserted.
ever try to apply for identity documents?"; "When did you come to the Dominican Republic? How?"
deportation; and give Haitian authorities advance notice of repatriations.
Protection of All Persons Under Any Form of Detention.
Haitian descent who were born in the Dominican Republic to Dominican identity documents.
parents are documented or undocumented.
or she was not already registered in another district.
racial discrimination to taint decisions regarding the provision of identity documents.
local schools comply with the secretary of education's July 2001 resolution regarding access.
undocumented children to send them to school.
organizations whose work on these issues is crucial.
Haitians have yet to overcome this legacy of hostility and mistrust.
on the many thousands of Haitian sugar cane cutters who labor for low wages in terrible conditions.
economic difficulties in Haiti, the question of Haitian migration is unlikely to recede in importance.
countries, the Haitian population is generally considered "blacker" than that of the Dominican Republic.
2 Shelley Emling, "Inmigrantes haitianos impactan a la economic dominicana," Latinolink.com, March 30, 1997.
3 CIA World Factbook 2001, chapters on the Dominican Republic and Haiti.
the Bateyes (1996), p. 6.
' See NCHR, Beyond the Bateyes, p. 14 (citing unofficial estimates ranging from 400,000 to 1 million).
7 Human Rights Watch interview, Manuel E. Polanco Salvador, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, June 13, 2001.
the country. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Summary Record of the 1365t meeting, U.N. Doc.
CERD/C/SR.1365 (September 1, 1999), para. 4.
Haitians ousted the French in 1804, while in 1821 the Dominicans proclaimed their independence from Spain.
however. The following year, the Haitian army invaded the eastern portion of the island, holding it until 1844.
remains a crucial contributor to the country's prosperity, particularly in the agricultural and construction sectors.
NCHR, Beyond the Bateyes, p. 7. The final demarcation of the border was done in the 1930s and 1940s.
1999 (warning of a likely Dominican invasion of Haiti).
dismay of many Dominican nationalists. Sagas, Race and Politics, p. 40.
14 The CEA was created in 1966 by Law No. 70.
Oppression: Forced Labor in the Dominican Sugar Industry," A Human Rights Watch Short Report, June 1990.
Haitian migrants, a popular target of resentment, is frequently characterized as a threat to national sovereignty.
Dominico-Haitians and even Dominicans without Haitian ancestors.
18 Ibid. (estimating Dominicans' per capital income at $2,100, and Haitians' at $510).
19 Sagis, Race and Politics, p. 36.
2 See, for example, NCHR, Beyond the Bateyes, p. 8 (citing estimates ranging from 5,000 to 37,000 killed).
as stark proof of the existence of enormous resentment and prejudice against Haitians.
more organized."36 For several weeks, coverage of the alleged flag-burning dominated the local news.
9 of the Convention, Addendum, Dominican Republic, U.N. Doc. CERD/C/331/Add.1 (February 11, 1999), para. 6.
by States Parties under Article 9 of the Convention, Concluding Observations, Dominican Republic, U.N. Doc.
Romana Respecto de la Supuesta Incineraci6n de la Bandera Dominicana, por Inmigrantes Haitianos (undated).
31 Human Rights Watch interview, Romulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
32 MUDHA, Resultado de la Investigaci6n.
33 Ibid., pp. 2, 7.
35 Ibid., p. 2; Human Rights Watch interview, Romulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
36 "Por qu6 quemaron la bandera?," El Siglo, April 22, 2001.
37 MUDHA, Resultado de la Investigaci6n.
expulsions. Suspected undocumented Haitians are singled out for deportation based on the color of their skin.
status. Low-level army or migration officials make the decision to deport them, and that decision is final.
deportees report having been physically abused by Dominican officials prior to deportation.
back. They may have to beg for food and for a place to sleep.
obviously suffer as well. Children separated from their parents are likely to be particularly traumatized.
Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination; and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
Convention (ILO No. 97), and the Migrant Workers (Supplementary Provisions) Convention (ILO No. 143).
43 See discussion below of the annual numbers of deportees.
operations, having been transported to the border and expelled together with fifty to 100 other deportees.
authorities, and the large majority of them were picked up in the cities, including several in Santo Domingo.
matter if you were born here,""
The following are some representative case histories.
Haitian roots go back three generations to his great-grandparents the guards insisted that he was "from Haiti."
directly to the border at Jimani, where Dominican officials ordered them to cross into Haiti on foot.
mountains who offered to let him live with them if he would work on their farm.
Ruquoy has worked in Dominican batey communities for nearly thirty years.
correspondiente a la investigaci6n realizada en Batey Bella Vista, Sosua, Puerto Plata, los dias 20 al 23 de enero 2001,"
Pedro Ruquoy, June 5, 2001.
47 Human Rights Watch interview, R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
48 Human Rights Watch interview, Aniseto Bria, Batey Mata Mam6n, June 2, 2001.
49 Human Rights Watch interview, David Pere Martinez, Batey 7, Dominican Republic, June 5, 2001.
managed to reenter the Dominican Republic and return home.
Creole is peppered with Spanish words.
asked to see any identification. Instead, he put La Guerre on a bus that already held several dozen people.
resisted arrest. Once the bus was full, the guards took them to a army garrison in Monte Plata, an inland town.
animals just outside of town.
does it even have a real address; it is simply a shack adjoining a sugar cane field in Batey Cuja, La Romana.
re-cross the border without documents.
Cristobal, where they joined hundreds of other detainees who were being held there awaiting deportation.
24, 2001 (certifying that David Pere Mendez is Dominican).
51 Human Rights Watch interview, Johnny La Guerre, Fonds Parisien, Haiti, June 11, 2001.
52 Human Rights Watch interview, Jorge Rene M6ndez, Batey 7, Dominican Republic, June 5, 2001.
the documents of any of his companions.
directly to the border at Jimani.
mangoes; at night, he slept in roadside drainage ditches.
live on. Trapped in Batey 7 by the threat of deportation, however, M6ndez may not have another option.
"Every day when I wake up, I'm thinking about my kids."
the group to board a bus that was parked nearby and took them to a police station on the other side of the capital.
detainees. They slept on mattresses on the floor in an open-air courtyard. They were given water, but no food.
They saw guards hit other detainees.
The next morning, they were taken to the border at Dajab6n in a bus with a group of other detainees.
her children were "very tired."
alive or dead. I want to see my children.... Every day when I wake up, I'm thinking about my kids."
53 Human Rights Watch representatives saw the c6dula during our interview.
54 Human Rights Watch interview, Lucia Frangois, Oumaninthe, Haiti, June 9, 2001.
55 Elencio, nine years old; Ouelio, five years old; Ram6n, three years old, Maribel, three years old, Santo, three years old.
"You came to the Dominican Republic with nothing and that is how you will leave."
2000, immigration officials banged on the door of M6sidor's home in Villa Faro. They yelled, "Immigration!"
Republic with nothing and that is how you will leave."
crossing at Jimani, where they crossed on foot.
day of my life. I was so worried about my children."
hospital, far from his home, he was picked up by three members of the military: a sergeant and two soldiers.
on a bus to Haiti that same day. "I arrived without a penny in my pocket," he told Human Rights Watch.
Dominican Republic. To survive, he tends animals.
the deportees were permitted to collect their belongings or contact their families prior to deportation.
political message not just to respond to immediate migration concerns.
56 Human Rights Watch interview, Marlene Mesidor, Fonds Parisien, Haiti, June 11, 2001.
57 Human Rights Watch interview, Fayette Baltazar, Fonds Parisien, Haiti, June 11, 2001.
2001 (describing the "violent and brutal" immigration round-up of some 150 people at Barahona market on February 15).
occasions is to clear the country of large numbers of Haitians.
ended not long after the September 1991 coup that overthrew Haitian President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
40 of the Convenant, Addendum, Dominican Republic," U.N. Doc. No. CCPR/C/DOM/99/3 (September 29, 1999), p. 12.
American Commission on Human Rights, Informe Anual 1991, Chapter V (1991).
63 See International Women's Rights Action Watch, "Country Report: The Dominican Republic," September 1996, p. 5.
64 See National Coalition for Haitian Rights, "Dominican Republic Launches Massive Deportation of Haitian Residents,"
65 IACHR, 1999 Dominican Republic report, para. 325.
6 See ibid., chapter IX (Situation of Haitian Migrant Workers and their Families in the Dominican Republic).
New Round of Dominican Expulsions of Haitian Immigrants," Haiti Insight Online, November 1999.
however, are largely ignored in practice.
discussion of this litigation, see the section on the International Response, below.
Bandera Dominicana, por Inmigrantes Haitianos" (undated), p. 6.
Dominican Republic," March 20, 2001, p. 32 (estimating 24,000 to 30,000 deportations per year).
R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
Rights Watch interview, Sonia Vidal, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
Manuel E. Polanco Salvador, Santo Domingo, June 13, 2001.
76 Columbia Human Rights Clinic, "The Situation of Haitians," p. 32.
77 Ley de Migraci6n No. 95, del 14 de abril de 1939; Reglamento de Migraci6n No. 279, del 12 de mayo de 1939.
78 See Reglamento de Migraci6n No. 279, Secci6n XIII (Deportaci6n).
against its adoption. A new migration bill was introduced in the Senate in July 2001.
bothering people, selling drugs." When that happens, we send a team out.
recognizable "by their way of living." "They're poorer than we are," he explained. "They have terrible homes."
Also, he added, Haitians are recognizable by "their way of walking."
December 2, 1999, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
done very little to uphold its responsibilities under the agreement.
82 Human Rights Watch interview, R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
83 Human Rights Watch interview, Miguel Visquez, Director General de Migraci6n, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
85 Human Rights Watch interview, R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
interviewed concurred with this account.
consistent with the accounts of deportees.
Haitian affairs claimed that Haitians routinely tell migration officials, "Send me now. I'll be back tomorrow."
some of whom clearly felt that their lives were left in tatters.
human rights treaties binding on the Dominican Republic.
86 Human Rights Watch interviews, Miguel Visquez and R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
Bateyes, p. 27 (stating that the army conducts round-ups of Haitians on its own initiative).
88 Human Rights Watch interview, R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
89 Human Rights Watch interview, Edwin Paraison, Haitian Consul in Barahona, Santo Domingo, June 2, 2001.
9" Human Rights Watch interviews, Miguel Visquez and R6mulo de los Santos, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
sets out the due process protections covering determinations of a person's rights.
92 U.N. Human Rights Committee,General Comment 15: The Position of Aliens under the Covenant, U.N. Doc.
HRI\GEN\1\Rev.1, p. 18 (1994) (hereinafter U.N. Human Rights Committee, General Comment 15), paras. 9-10.
European jurisprudence can be another source of interpretative guidance.
94 U.N. Human Rights Committee, General Comment 15, para. 9.
95 U.N. Human Rights Committee, General Comment 15, para. 10.
de Derechos Humanos: Dominican Republic, U.N. Doc. CCPR/CO/71/DOM (2001), para. 16.
97 See ICCPR, art. 12.
9 See also U.N. Human Rights Committee, General Comment 8, para. 4.
'0 American Convention on Human Rights, arts. 22(5), 22 (6), and 22(9).
his rights and obligations of a civil, labor, fiscal, or any other nature.
interpretation of the Convention's requirements, however.
'10 Loren Laroye Riebe Star, Jorge Alberto Bar6n Guttlein and Rodolfo Izal Elorz v. Mexico, No. 11.610 (Inter-Am. Comm.
the pronouncements of scholars to give specific content to the general idea of due process.
103 Riebe Star Case, para. 71.
Principles for the Protection of All Persons Under Any Form of Detention.
Under the Dominican Constitution, all persons born on the country's territory are Dominican citizens.
proof of citizenship become progressively more onerous.
extent this case heralds a general reform in the country's citizenship policy, it is undoubtedly a positive sign.
"An illegal person cannot produce a legal person. "
exception: it does not extend to the legitimate children of foreign diplomats or of foreigners who were "in transit"
106 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Country Report on the Dominican Republic (1999), para. 363.
108 Human Rights Watch interview, Manuel E. Polanco Salvador, Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, June 13, 2001.
Dominicano (Santo Domingo: Editora Corripio, 2000), pp. 129-56.
days will normally be considered sufficient to allow passage through the Republic."
services too are frequently denied undocumented Haitians.
haitianos y sus descendientes nacidos en Repiblica Dominicana," 1991, pp. 68-80.
Dominican Republic, OEA/Ser.L/V/II.104 (1999), para. 352.
Reports, Comments and Information Submitted by States Parties under Article 9 of the Convention," U.N. Doc.
CERD/C/SR.1365 (September 1, 1999), para. 17.
or she may obtain an adult cedula.
every child born in its territory immediately after birth. Convention on the Rights of the Child, art. 7.
the sworn testimony of seven witnesses and the parents of the applicant.
procedures, ethnic Haitians face daunting obstacles to obtaining proof of their children's Dominican citizenship.
Rafaelina Peralta Arias, Legal Advisor, Junta Central Electoral, Santo Domingo, June 13, 2001.
19 Human Rights Watch interview, Miriam Jacquenera de Jesus, Santo Domingo, June 4, 2001.
122 Human Rights Watch interview, MUDHA staff, June 7, 2001.
123 Human Rights Watch interview, Padre Pedro Ruquoy, Batey 5, Dominican Republic, June 5, 2001.
fact, have legitimate claims; they are just unable to successfully assert their claims using legitimate means.
?percent ofDominico-Haitian residents had no official documentation).
'26 Human Rights Watch interview, Bemarda Jojo, Batey Mata Los Indios, Dominican Republic, June 3, 2001.
127 Human Rights Watch interview, Victoria Baluisa, Batey Mata Los Indios, Dominican Republic, June 3, 2001.
128 Human Rights Watch interview, Jacquelin Baluisa, Batey Mata Los Indios, Dominican Republic, June 3, 2001.
Jesis tried to obtain Dominican birth certificates for his children at the official registry in San Cristobal.
certificates for their children when the registry official labeled them "Haitian" because of their dark skin.
vulnerable to summary deportation the Dominican Republic seriously enfringes upon their rights as citizens.
129 Human Rights Watch interview, Pedro San Milis, Batey Mata Los Indios, Dominican Republic, June 3, 2001.
130 Human Rights Watch representatives viewed these documents.
131 Human Rights Watch interview, C.P., Batey Mata Mam6n, Dominican Republic, June 2, 2001.
132 American Convention on Human Rights, art. 20(1); see also ICCPR, art. 24(3).
Dominican citizenship of Dominican-born children of Haitian residents be recognized "without delay").
135 ICCPR, art. 26; Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, art. 5(d)(iii).
a future of low skill and low status jobs.
undocumented children's access to education is still precarious.
baby, believing that it would be impossible.
in classes. He was asked for identity papers, but was allowed to enroll even without them.
to persevere in its efforts to obtain documentation.
Movimiento de Mujeres Dominico-Haitianas (MUDHA), Santo Domingo, June 7, 2001.
Human Rights Watch that she was born in the Dominican Republic, but lacked a birth certificate.
140 Human Rights Watch interview, MUDHA staff, June 7, 2001.
14' Luis Beiro, "No exigiran actas de nacimiento para inscripci6n en escuelas," Listin Diario, July 1, 2001; Susannah A.
Nesmith, "Haitian Children Will Be Allowed to Go to Dominican Schools," Associate Press, July 3, 2001.
142 Human Rights Watch interview, Claubian Jean Jacques, Batey La Lecheria, Dominican Republic, June 13, 2001.
But without documentation, Claubian has been frequently warned, he will not be able to graduate.
to make public education available and accessible to all young people.
citizens, restrictions on the right of non-citizen children to education are equally unjustifiable.
143 "Jacques will not be expelled from school," Dominican Republic One Daily, April 7, 1999.
144 Human Rights Watch interview, Claubian Jean Jacques, Batey La Lecheria, Dominican Republic, June 13, 2001.
SSee, for example, ICCPR, art. 26.
Discrimination against Palestinian Arab Children in Israel's Schools (New York: Human Rights Watch, 2001), pp. 162-64.
nationals resident within their territory the same access to education as that given to their own nationals."
Education (Article 13), U.N. Doc. E/C.12/1999/10 (1999), para. 34.
the situation draws on the continuing efforts of local human rights groups in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.
even more drastic measures to expel undocumented Haitians.
that were instituted soon after the report's release were also disturbingly reminiscent of the Balaguer approach.
These attacks were particularly virulent during the April 2001 flag-burning scandal.
in 1991, after making an on-site visit to the country. In June 1997, the Commission made another on-site visit.
bateyes', and labor rights violations.
Already in," Miami Herald, February 6, 2000.
Article 9 of the Convention, Addendum, Dominican Republic, U.N. Doc. CERD/C/331/Add.1 (February 11, 1999), para. 6.
152 Human Rights Watch interview, Dominican human rights advocates, Santo Domingo, June 7, 2001.
153 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Annual Report 2000, Chapter 5 (April 16, 2001).
providing birth certificates to the two children.'"
154 Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, Report No. 28/01, Case 12.189, Dominican Republic (February 22, 2001).
en la Repiblica Dominicana," October 3, 2001.
University of California at Berkeley, and others, March 16, 2000.
Repiblica Dominicana (letter to the Dominican government), November 22, 1999.
Commission on Human Rights), December 23, 1999.
Andrea Alezy, Janty Fils-Aime, Berson Gelim, and William Medina Ferreras).
Republic have drawn attention to abuses against Haitians and Dominico-Haitians.168 Most recently, the U.N.
Ferreras and requesting additional information about Rafaelito Perez Charles and Berson Gelim).
Interamericana de Derechos Humanos Respecto a la Repiblica Dominicana, August 31, 2000.
Inter-American Court of Human Rights), January 2, 2001.
Ruquoy, Batey 5, June 5, 2001.
2002. The committee is to consist of various Dominican government officials and representatives of the petitioners.
U.N. Doc. CCPR/C/79/Add.18 (May 5, 1993).
discrimination against ethnic Haitians and related issues of nationality, due process, education and labor rights.
program director; Wilder Tayler, legal and policy director; and Joanna Weschler, United Nations representative.
Jonathan Fanton is the chair of the board. Robert L. Bernstein is the founding chair.
Pinto Kaufman and David E. Nachman are vice chairs.
169 U.N. Human Rights Committee, Concluding Observations of the Human Rights Committee, U.N. Doc.
CCPR/CO/71/DOM (April 26, 2001), para. 16.
and article 13 outlines the due process protections that should be followed in expelling aliens.

References: art. 12
 v. 
 art. 7
 art. 20
 art. 24
 art. 26
 art. 5
 art. 26