Deportation - Haiti Observer Blog

Tragedy once again among Haitians guilty only for attempting to get a better life for their family. According to a upi.com, at least 18 Haitians migrants perished at sea when their boat capsized near Turks and Caicos Islands

The accident happened after Turks and Caicos marine branch police captured the boat and was towing it to a port. It was reported by the Caribbean Journal that 32 people were rescued by Turks and Caicos; however for 18, nothing could be done before they all drowned.

The last incident where Haitian boat people died at sea took place just one Month ago. In November, more than 30 people died when their boat sank off the Bahamas.

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The Dominican Republic (DR) Constitutional Court (CC) gave a ruling on the status of undocumented migrant workers from Haiti. It stated undocumented migrants as far back as 1922 were not considered DR residents, although they had settled in the DR. And so even the children they bore with natives were also not considered Dominican. The DR contains 450,000 Haitian-Dominicans who, believe they are Dominican, and yet are being denied identity cards.

The CC ruling came as a result of a case filed by a Haitian-Dominican daughter of immigrants. The DR denied her an identity card because her Haitian parent was an undocumented worker. The Court justices look at undocumented immigrants as "in transit" workers, a sly term meant to obfuscate the fact Haitian immigrants settled in the DR.

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Live Border Shoutout between Dominicans and Haitians - VIDEO

This video was Uploaded on Nov 29, 2010. it is regarding a previous incident between Dominicans and Haitians at the border.

The situation between Dominicans ad Haitians seems to take a turn for the worst after the Dominican authorities have decided to expel more than 244 Haitians.

This is the video of the event that took place in November, 2010; at which time the Dominicans were shooting at the border in direction of Haiti. In all other countries, that would have been an act of war, but not Haiti

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It has been reported that a Dominican elderly couple was slain in a burglary and as a consequence, 244 Haitians were picked up and expelled by Dominican authorities. Was the crime committed by Haitians in the Dominican Republic? No one is certain

According to Rev. Antoine Lissaint who is heading a Refugee and Migrant Organization in the country, a mob retaliated upon hearing the news by killing a Haitian man. The man was killed because he happens to be Haitians while Haitians were blamed for the fatal stabbing of the elderly couple.

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The Dominican Republic's (DR) Constitutional Court ruling descendents of illegal immigrants are not entitled to citizenship status has created an outcry among the international community (IC). Fears of mass deportations--as a result of the ruling--have led observers to declare many thousands of deportees will become stateless. They believe re-patriated Haitians will face obstacles negotiating Haiti's requirements for citizenship.

Suggestions the DR is engaging in ethnic cleansing have provoked a rebuttal from the Haitian Ambassador to the U.S., Anibal De Castro. She states the High Court ruling does not set precedence, only a reaffirmation of a ruling in 2005, which was amended in the 2010 Constitution. She adds the DR has every legal right to regulate immigration and develop transparent policies for obtaining citizenship.

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In a blatant disregard of human rights, several hundred repatriated Haitian seasonal workers were abandoned at the Haitian Customs Office in the Dominican Republic in May. Human rights agency Siské Jano Border Network (SJBN) investigated and discovered not one of the workers employed as sugarcane cutters for Barahona Sugar Mill Consortium (BSMC) possessed a visa, required to work in the Dominican Republic (DR) where BSMC is located.

The Haitian Directorate General of Immigration (DGI) is responsible for issuing visas, but apparently made concessions to BSMC, so BSMC could avoid the cost of providing workers' documentation. And it seems DGI didn't want to absorb the cost either. The Haitian Customs Office could not process the repatriates without a record of their immigration status. But they are also at fault for not alerting the DGM, according to that office.

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Since its start in 2009, the program, established to dissuade migrants from the Northwestern coast of Haiti, who seek escape to neighboring countries like the United States, Cuba, Turks and Caicos and the Bahamas, has helped in giving aid to some 22,000 returning people intercepted at sea who are often worse for wear during the taxing journeys.

Having given assistance to thousands of people since its inception with help from local businesses, fund and awareness raising efforts, the program has garnered the attention of the US State Department's Bureau of Population, Refugees and Migration (PRM) who work assiduously to keep the rise of irregular migration into US shores under control. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) has thus received a donation of $100,000 to be used to improve the program and give 300 assistance packages to detained migrants.

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For the many scores of Haitians living in the United States, the Dominican Republic and other countries within the realm of the United Nations, deportation back to a country still devastated after the 2010 earthquake is an imminent threat. Many living in the U.S. before the earthquake, set for deportation after serving prison sentences or being caught by immigration, were given a reprieve that has since been recalled in light of the current stance of the U.S. on issues of immigration. However, this spate of deportation to the still-crippled nation has many human rights experts crying shame on participating countries and asking for their reconsideration.

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The Turks and Caicos Islands Government announced Thursday that they will resume deportation of Haitians who were there illegally. This will affect only those who came before the January 12 2010 earthquake.

The Haitians in the Turks and Caicos Islands have been enjoying special protection after the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees had urged governments all over the world to grant interim protection to Haitians on humanitarian grounds to those who had left Haiti.

Turks and Caicos Island has an estimated population of 32,000 people. There is a large community of Haitians who left their country in search of a better life for their family. The Turks and Caicos Islands Government says it deported 938 Haitians in 2010 and 611 in 2011.

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Deportation has been a long-standing practice of the United States of America. With the Alien Act (1798), the president was able to deport an alien classified as dangerous, and the new Naturalization Act stated that 14 years, not 5, was the acceptable period for an immigrant to reside in the US before being considered for naturalization.

With the promise of a better life a shiny beacon to people in struggling countries, the U.S. has seen a steady influx of immigrants of various ethnicities and religions. Thus, the rate of U.S. deportations is well into the millions, with Ellis Island acting as a microcosm from which 12 million deportees, between 5 and 10 thousand per day, were deported during a 32 year period. Many were expelled for failing medical exams due to illnesses they picked up during their sea-voyages. A recorded 3000 took their lives after being turned away.

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