The alert from the United States Embassy in the country assuring that the Immigration Directorate detains Afro-American citizens because of their skin color caused the discontent of ruling party and opposition politicians who questioned the occurrence of these events.
The Dominican government considered the document presented on Saturday by the United States “manifestly unfounded, untimely and unhappy.”
“The terms of said statement contradict the excellent bilateral relationship that exists between the Dominican Republic and the United States in all areas: political, economic, military, social, and cooperation, whether in the matter of drug trafficking, human trafficking, arms smuggling, and ammunition, corruption or the fight against impunity, among others,” read the statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
And he added: “Our country is the first commercial partner of the United States in the Caribbean and the sixth in Latin America. We have been one of America’s most trusted allies in maintaining a free, open, prosperous, and secure international system for all nations. In this vein, we founded the Alliance for Development in Democracy, to promote democratic values and human rights”.
a manipulation
For José Ricardo Taveras, former director of Migration in the period 2011-2015, the note published by the embassy is a “manipulation” against the Dominican government that a few weeks ago refused to stop the deportations of Haitians as requested by the UN High Commissioner .
“I cannot endorse the Embassy’s complaint because that is not true. The Directorate of Immigration may make a mistake as they are made, as the North Americans do because they have more than 20,000 returns every day at the border with Mexico and they confront the Haitians with whips from a horse, so with what moral authority does the American embassy to summon the Dominican people in this way, to discredit us, manipulating, an embassy lying because I have not heard the first complaint from an American citizen who has had any kind of problem”, he deplored.
“What the Dominican government must do is comply with due process for those it considers to be illegal in its territory”Expert in International Politics
The US embassy said in its warning note that it has reports that “detainees are held in overcrowded detention centers, without the ability to challenge their detention and without access to food or toilets, sometimes for days before being released.” or deported to Haiti”, faced with this “situation”, he advised his dark-skinned citizens to take their passport and a charged mobile phone with them and report to the embassy or the Ombudsman.
No case
Diario Libre contacted the ombudsman, Pablo Ulloa, to explain whether in recent weeks he has received complaints similar to those expressed by the embassy.
“No specific case of what is stated in the document has reached us. However, the Ombudsman is ready and willing for any situation that arises where the human being feels violated or lacerated by the public administration”, indicated Ulloa.
The resident coordinator of the United Nations in the Dominican Republic, Mauricio Ramírez Villegas, said that he has no reports of situations with African-Americans at the ports of entry into the country either, but that “there are undoubtedly cases of Dominicans and UN officials who for their skin color are treated as presumed Haitians.”
“The Immigration authorities do not systematize information based on skin color or ethnic origin either, it is only done by nationality, however, the alert issued by the United States government must be based on complaints that its citizens have presented to your Embassy,” he explained.
The international policy expert, Iván Gatón, said that despite the media repercussions that may arise from the embassy alert, the Migration Directorate should only worry about carrying out the interdictions under due process. “What the Dominican government must do is comply with due process for those it considers to be illegal in its territory and continue to act in accordance with the interests of the Dominican State,” he said. Contrary to Taveras, who considered the US public warning disrespectful, Gatón said that countries have the right to make “the pronouncements they consider to be in the best interest of their citizens.” The statement from the Foreign Ministry stated that the “Dominican Republic strives to provide hospitable treatment to the millions of tourists who visit us annually from the four corners of the planet, particularly from the United States. Our economy depends to a large extent on the comfort and safety of each of these foreign visitors, of which more than a million and a half have come from the United States this year, with overwhelmingly positive experiences.”
Full statement
Response of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the statement of the Embassy of the United States of America of November 19, 2022
Sunday November 20, 2022
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs expresses its strongest rejection of the statement “Alert: Reinforcement of migration in the Dominican Republic” issued by the Embassy of the United States of America in the DR this past Saturday, November 19, considering it manifestly unfounded, untimely and unfortunate. .
The terms of said communiqué contradict the excellent bilateral relationship that exists between the Dominican Republic and the United States in all spheres: political, economic, military, social, and cooperation, whether in matters of drug trafficking, human trafficking, arms and ammunition smuggling. , corruption or the fight against impunity, among others.
Our country is the first trading partner of the United States in the Caribbean and the sixth in Latin America. We have been one of America’s most trusted allies in maintaining a free, open, prosperous, and secure international system for all nations. In this vein, we founded the Alliance for Development in Democracy, to promote democratic values and human rights.
Since the beginning of this government, we have repeatedly and systematically denounced before the international community the alarming situation in Haiti, aggravated since the assassination of President Moise, without it having taken the appropriate measures to confront the explosive humanitarian, social and political reality. in the neighboring country, which seriously affects the national security of the Dominican Republic.
For several decades, the bulk of the burden has fallen, particularly in terms of migration, on our country. An important part of the current Dominican health budget is dedicated, free of charge, to the foreign population, primarily Haitian: 32.4% of the maternity beds in our public hospitals; 10.3% of emergencies; 14.9% of hospitalizations; 9.8% of surgeries; 8.3% of the queries.
Without the support of the international community, we have made an extraordinary effort to keep the border open to allow the Haitian population access to vital food, medicine, fuel, water, etc. Likewise, we have kept the commercial flow open, despite the number of kidnappings of Dominicans, including a diplomat from our embassy in Haiti. For their part, our armed forces unilaterally bear the high cost of providing security to the entire border between the two countries, maintaining some 9,000 troops in that place.
Just like every sovereign country that repatriates the foreign population in an irregular migratory situation, including the US, the Dominican Republic has been forced to deport a high number of Haitian migrants who no longer tolerate the situation in that country and who overwhelm Dominican possibilities. Dominican Republic can’t take it anymore.
By way of contrast, the same Biden administration has deported to Haiti, between February 2021 and February 2022, more than 20,000 Haitian migrants.
The Government of the United States has not provided any evidence, beyond anecdotal cases without independent verification, that there is a systematic pattern of violations of the rights of migrants, ordered by the Dominican authorities. Isolated cases could occur, as in any part of the world, which, if reported to the relevant authorities, would be duly investigated and punished, if their veracity were proven.
The Dominican Government would never have imagined such serious insinuations about our country, whose population evidences “in its skin color” a wide melting pot of races; much less of an ally who has been the subject of numerous accusations of xenophobic and racist treatment of migrants and even sectors of his own population.
The Dominican Republic strives to provide hospitable treatment to the millions of tourists who visit us annually from the four corners of the planet, particularly from the United States. Our economy depends to a large extent on the comfort and safety of each of these foreign visitors, of which more than a million and a half have come from the United States this year, with overwhelmingly positive experiences, regardless of their race or socio-economic status. economic.
The November 19 communiqué could have a negative impact on thousands of Dominican workers, as well as on our economy, even if this was not its objective. Accordingly, we hope that the US government will consider removing the unverified terms of this ambiguous statement as soon as possible.
The Dominican Republic is a country whose friendly population opens its arms to anyone who visits and lives legally on our borders, “without any distinction of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or any other opinion, national or social origin.” economic position, birth or any other condition”. The cheerful spirit and the hospitable warmth of the Dominican will never change.
The government and the Dominican people will continue to provide all the support, within their possibilities, to the sister Haitian people. No country has made a greater effort than the DR, advocating for the international community to help Haiti, but we declare once again with all the necessary vigor that there is not -nor can there ever be- a Dominican solution to the Haitian odyssey.
Full statement from the US Embassy in RDAlerta: Reinforcement in the course of migration in the Dominican Republic
This message is to inform U.S. citizens that in recent months travelers to the Dominican Republic have reported being delayed, detained, or subjected to further questioning at ports of entry and in other encounters with immigration officials based on their color. skin. Reports of the unequal treatment of US citizens by Dominican authorities are a matter of constant concern to the US Embassy.
In addition, in recent days, as reported in the Dominican media, Dominican Migration (DGM) agents have carried out widespread operations aimed at detaining those they believe to be undocumented migrants, especially people of Haitian descent. In some cases, the authorities have not respected the legal status of these people in the Dominican Republic or their nationality. These actions may lead to increased interaction with Dominican authorities, especially for darker-skinned Americans and African Americans. There are reports that detainees are held in overcrowded detention centers, without the ability to challenge their detention and without access to food or toilets, sometimes for days, before being released or deported to Haiti.
Please notify the Embassy immediately (emergency number (809) 567-7775 and the Ombudsman at (809) 381-7777.
The Embassy advises US citizens to:
• Take your passport with you.
• Bring a charged mobile phone and notify the Embassy immediately if you need help.
