February 11, 2023, 9:35 AM
February 11, 2023, 9:35 AM
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, questioned the massive repatriation of Haitian migrants to their country, sunk in poverty and prisoner of gang violence, as well as the “humiliating” treatment that many of them receive.
After a two-day official visit to the island, Türk pointed out that the “multiple crises” in Haiti, where armed gangs sow terror and cause thousands of displacements each year, “do not allow the safe, dignified and sustainable return of Haitians to Haiti”. Still, “176,777 Haitian migrants were repatriated last year,” he said in a statement released by his office.
“During my visit to Ouanaminthe (border with the Dominican Republic), in the northeast of the country, I heard terrible stories about the humiliating treatment to which many migrants are subjected, including pregnant women and unaccompanied or separated children,” the official said.
“Let me emphasize this again: international human rights law prohibits refoulement and collective expulsions without an individual assessment of all protection needs prior to return,” Türk stressed.
Although the high commissioner did not explicitly mention the Dominican Republic, the country bordering Haiti is the one that receives the most migrants from the neighboring nation. In November 2022, Türk asked the government of President Luis Abinader to stop the deportations. His statements were considered “unacceptable” by the president, who then assured that his Executive would not only continue the expulsions of Haitians, but would also increase them.
Faced with the seriousness of the situation, the high commissioner urged the international community to provide “active attention and specific support” to the country where more than half of its 11.8 million inhabitants live below the poverty line.
What was said by the representative of the United Nations generated discomfort in the Dominican government. “Mr. Volker Türk, what is heartbreaking is seeing the inaction of the international community in the face of President Luis Abinader’s repeated requests to seek a solution in Haiti to Haiti’s problems. There is no solution. Our country will continue to exercise its sovereignty,” published Homero Figueroa , spokesperson for Abinader, in Twitter.
The Dominican Republic has seen an increase in the exodus of Haitians to its territory after the crisis in the poorest nation in America worsened after the assassination of President Jovenel Moïse in July 2021.
