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Several men of Haitian heritage wait to be processed at the Ministry of the Interior in Santo Domingo, for paperwork to allow them to stay in the Dominican Republic. EFE/Orlando Barría
Several men of Haitian heritage wait to be processed at the Ministry of the Interior in Santo Domingo, for paperwork to allow them to stay in the Dominican Republic. EFE/Orlando Barría

Beyond racism: Three perspectives on the Dominican-Haitian situation

Although the international narrative tends to label the situation as a racial conflict, doing so does not do justice to its complexity — and turns attention…

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It’s estimated that around four hundred and sixty thousand immigrants of Haitian origin currently live in the Dominican Republic, a country that has historically sustained a turbulent relationship with its neighbors in the small island of La Hispaniola, the Haitians. Although the international narrative tends to label the situation as a racial conflict, doing so does not do justice to its complexity – and turns attention away from other, not least important factors that exacerbate it. In a recent visit to the country, I had the opportunity to speak with several people who, in one way or another, are affected by this issue. Their perspectives, though divergent, point to the gravity of the situation and to the multiple past and present factors that feed into it. Below I share some of their comments, as well as their proposals to solve this growing problem.

Emilio Pérez, worker of Haitian origin 

Emilio calls himself a “handyman,” doing construction, agriculture and other sporadic jobs. He left his country at a time of big instability, during which Haiti was facing an increase in civic violence, political conflicts and deteriorating institutions. After twenty-six years, two daughters (a twenty-four year old and a three year old) and two grandsons  — who have never visited Haiti and don’t even speak Creole —Emilio faces a possible deportation, under the Dominican government’s National Regularization Plan for Foreigners.

On his experience in the country:

"I’ve been here 26 years, since 1989, I have built a life here. I don’t have any documents but I don’t want to leave because I’ve been here for a long time and I want to stay, to be here. Some of my friends have gone back and tell me that they require a translation [of the documents] to Spanish and many other things. They make it very difficult to obtain those documents. That's why I have not left yet. ”

On finding a just and humane solution to the problem:

"I would ask the politicians to agree, if they can. There may be many more [Haitians] like me who have been here a long time, because we are hard-working people. In the neighborhood where I live, they know me. I’ve been there for 15 years. I have never had problems with anyone. Everybody loves me. If they could, they should fix this [situation] and let people like me live here in peace. If they deport me, there’s nothing else for me to do. The only thing that I can do is go away. Nothing else at all.”

Antonio Ciriaco Cruz, Director, Institute of Socioeconomic Research at the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo (UASD)

Dr. Ciriaco Cruz is a renowned professor in the Faculty of Economic and Social Sciences in the UASD, the first university in the Americas.

On the current situation:

"Historically, Haiti has had many problems: Political instability, social problems, dictatorships, government coups... All of these generate a completely unequal society. We’re talking about this being the poorest country in Latin America. In terms of purchasing power parities, Haiti has approximately $600 to $700 dollars a year per capita, compared with approximately $11,500 dollars in the Dominican Republic. This presents a marked difference in quality of life, which is an important, attractive incentive for [people] to emigrate to another country that has different conditions.”

On the factors that have brought about the current situation:

"It is clear that when you are in a country where the characteristics and socioeconomic indicators are like what the Haitian government offers; where you basically have a level of poverty of between 60 and 70 percent of the population; and where levels of malnutrition and illiteracy are very high, then I believe that there is clear a failure of the political class.
"And what is this political class doing? They are often stimulating the migratory processes. That is a way of relieving themselves of pressure in political and social terms. But until that nation, until that political class gets empowered, no country is going to solve their problem for them. No country has ever solved the problem of another, anywhere in the world. That is the history of this kind of issue. And development is the result of an endogenous process of the social class, of the political class and of social empowerment.”

On finding a just and humane solution to the problem:

"First of all, we are an island. I believe that it’s necessary to find an element that unites us, an element of cooperation that allows us to maximize our relations, because we need to consider the fact that Haiti is the second big trading partner of the Dominican Republic. That is the reality. At the margin of everything, there are Dominican companies that operate in Haiti, and there’s very fluid commerce. These are elements that, I believe, we must maximize.
"I think the Dominican Republic has failed in explaining the Dominican-Haitian situation well. For a long time, the Dominican Republic kept its distance from international organizations, which allowed them to condemn us at the Human Rights Commission, at the OAS (Organization of American States). We didn’t know how to defend our position. I believe that in many ways, we are harvesting our weakness in international relations.
"On the other hand, there is something that goes on in the imagination of Dominicans: Dominicans associate poverty with blackness. It is a situation that historically has been so. And the ruling class has acted thusly. And so, it is like they [Dominicans] don’t want those type of people next to them. I think that Haiti will have a different image to the extent that it works to improve its quality of life.
"Things will also change in the future to the extent that Dominicans become conscious of their origins. Education has much to do with this, the kind of education we’ve been given. As education changes, and with it educational levels, people will change their profile, the way they see others. We must have a more inclusive education [in our country], in which one recognizes oneself, one’s origins and limitations. I believe that, with time, this is going to change.
"I believe that the [Dominican] government’s position is correct. To the two hundred nine thousand persons [of Haitian descent] who are Dominicans, we are going to give them documents as Dominicans, and solve this problem. Everyone [else] who wants to come to the Dominican Republic has to do so under a legal process. That is the way it must be. Those are the rules of coexistence. That’s an essential element: It’s the process of normalizing bilateral relations through the regularization of immigrant labor. That’s the first thing. And then, it’s about giving them the rights that the constitution of the Republic grants them. That is not a matter of human nature, but of respect to their rights. There are two hundred nine thousand people who should not be left in limbo. To those who were born and have grown up here, even if their parents were undocumented Haitians, we need to give them these documents, because it is their right. Period. ”

David Phipps, Pastor, National Vice President and Commissioner of the National Commission of Human Rights for the Northeast region

The National Commission of Human Rights works to defend the fundamental rights of human beings. They provide guidance, and negotiate and monitor Haitians' cases in order to prevent the abuse of their individual and civil rights.

On the current situation:

"They [Haitians] want to come to look here for a better life, because in Haiti there is no life. What they have there is problems: The economic situation, poverty. After the earthquake, the situation took a turn for the worst. They emigrate from their country, whether they jump the fence or cross the river, just to come here and look for a better life. There is mistreatment, rejection towards our Haitian brothers in the sense that when they are caught for some reason during a raid, or when they’re not carrying their papers, their documents, they cannot prove anything. At that point, we go to the jails and ask for their freedom, because there is something called a fundamental right to transit, even if they have no documents. We are also encouraging and working with [Haitians] so that they know that if they get organized in this country, they can obtain the necessary documents to live here in peace, with civil rights and duties. ”

On the factors that brought about the current situation:

"There are people who have vested interest in making Haiti fight against our country. It’s a question of economic interests. Since the times of Trujillo, up to the present, these [groups] that bring Haitian brothers [into the country] continue to exist. And they bring them to be slaves, to use them here in the harvesting of sugar cane. Now it’s not so much the case, because Haitians are waking up, and they now come to work in construction. Dominicans complain about that the Haitians are taking up their space of terms of labor because it’s easier for [Haitians] to find work and they are more dedicated.
"Then there are also the traffickers, the people who bring them. The ones who bring them are not poor people. They’re powerful people who invest and sell [Haitians] to the construction industry, to companies. What they do is human trafficking. That is illegal. The fact that these people are treated as slaves is prohibited in the United Nations resolution. [Haitians] accept this because they’re looking to improve [their condition]. But we also see the mistreatment they get. There’s also the humanitarian aspect of things, in terms of health. Many Dominicans complain that the Haitians are taking up medical treatment meant for Dominicans, but the right to the health is everyone’s right. Everyone in the world must have health, housing, and education."

On finding a just and humane solution to the problem:

"We [the Commission] have been conclusive in our rejection of the ruling from the constitutional court. It was exclusionary. The very people who issued it are children of immigrants. This ruling must be reviewed again, and amended in order to give [Haitians] the opportunity to obtain their documents.
The government must be transparent. Be it through the international organizations or through the chancellery, it must set forth a good education, and guide the community, both at local and international level, [to the fact that] there is not going to be any more racism here; that we can all live, coexist, in peace. That is the idea. ”

 

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