The Dominican Republic announced on Wednesday that it has begun mass deportations of Haitians living in the country illegally, expelling up to 10,000 of them per week.
Government spokesman Homero Figueroa told reporters that the government made the decision after noticing a “surplus” of Haitian migrants in the Dominican Republic, which shares the island of Hispaniola with Haiti.
Figueroa said officials noticed the increase in Haitian migrants because the police mission in Haiti to combat gang violence had been ineffective. He said authorities have also agreed to increase surveillance and control at the border, but he gave no details.
Last year, the Dominican Republic deported more than 174,000 people it believed to be Haitians, and it has expelled at least 67,000 more in the first half of this year.
Activists have long criticised the administration of President Luis Abinader for persistent violations of the human rights of Haitians and people of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic. They accuse the Dominican authorities of implementing racist immigration policies based on discrimination against Haitians.
The October 2 statement came a week after Mr. Abinader addressed the UN General Assembly, reiterating “decisive action” if the UN mission in Haiti fails.
Situation in Haiti remains tense
The security and humanitarian situation in Haiti has deteriorated since the assassination of President Jovenel Moise in 2021 and a devastating earthquake. In 2023, the UN Security Council approved the launch of an international mission led by nearly 400 police officers from Kenya to help Haiti fight gang violence.
Several police officers and soldiers from other countries such as Jamaica and Belize have participated in the mission. However, staffing and financial problems have limited the effectiveness of the mission.
On March 1 this year, an agreement was signed to send a Kenyan peacekeeping contingent to the country as part of a multinational mission to support the republic’s security forces, which began arriving in the country at the end of June. However, the security situation in Haiti continues to be difficult, with criminal gangs now controlling up to 80 per cent of the capital city of Port-au-Prince.
Violence has left nearly 700,000 Haitians homeless in recent years, and thousands more have had to flee the country. It is estimated that there are more than 500,000 migrants from Haiti in the Dominican Republic, most of them undocumented.
