Amnesty International has criticised the Dominican Republic, urging it to stop mass deportations of Haitians and accusing authorities of racism. But many in the Dominican Republic say they cannot shoulder the acute crisis in Haiti, just because they share an island.

Santo Domingo

Amnesty International has issued a criticism towards the Dominican Republic for its treatment of Haitians, specifically urging the nation to halt the mass deportations that are taking place. They have accused the Dominican authorities of displaying racist behavior towards Haitians. This criticism comes amid a backdrop where individuals within the Dominican Republic argue that their country is unfairly burdened with the consequences of Haiti's acute crisis, solely because the two countries share the same island.



Dominican Republic: Authorities accused of racism towards Haitians

The Dominican Republic and Haiti share this Caribbean island. But in more ways than one, they're distant neighbors. One speaks French, the other Spanish. But more importantly, Haitians suffer from acute poverty, extreme political instability, and now uncontrollable violence. On the other side of the border, in the capital Santo Domingo, life looks peaceful and prosperous. But looks are deceiving. We're afraid. Haiti is close to us. We've seen the videos of killing there. It's like you have a dangerous neighbor living next door, and you don't know if they will hurt your family. In the last three months, the Dominican Republic has deported more than 2,500 undocumented Haitians, arguing reasons of national security. We asked Foreign Minister Roberto Alvarez to respond to charges by Amnesty International of racism and inhumane treatment of Haitians. 73% of our population is mixed blood, 16% black, 11% white. So there's never been, within Dominicans, a distinction as to race. That is completely false, number one. Of course we're more than willing to help with the international community, with any humanitarian assistance, but the question is being asked, why isn't the Dominican Republic shouldering the bulk of it? In Villa Duarte, working-class Dominicans we met insist their country is doing its fair share already. They say hundreds of thousands of Haitians live here, everyone mixed together. Imagine two people live in your house and five more arrive. Your share of everything shrinks, but we've put up with it because they are our brothers, our neighbours. But the presence of so many Haitians is also creating tensions. I feel sorry for them, but they should be sent back to their country. We're being flooded by Haitians. You go to a hospital and there are ten Haitians and two Dominicans. That can't be. They are taking away our rights. We're in the general hospital now and indeed there are many, many Haitians here, many Haitian children as well, but that's only part of the story. They didn't just arrive yesterday. Many have been here for decades undocumented and they are here in the country doing the hardest jobs and the lowest paying jobs. And Haitian children born in the Dominican Republic are not eligible for citizenship. Back in Villa Duarte, there are two things people agree on. The fear that the violence next door could spill over into this country and the desperate need for Haiti to restore law and order with the help of an international community that seems to have forgotten this island. Lucia Newman, Al Jazeera, Santo Domingo.

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Canberra

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Kyiv

Ukraine Invasion

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Council of the City of Sydney

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Israel-Gaza War

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