Haitians deported from the Dominican Republic are facing dire conditions upon their return, with reports of widespread human rights abuses and the overwhelming challenges of reintegration. The text details their experiences, highlighting the harsh treatment they face at the hands of Dominican authorities and the desperate situation they encounter in Haiti.
A recent morning saw a crowd of 500 Haitians descend from dusty trucks and shuffle through a tiny gap in a border gate separating Haiti from the Dominican Republic. They were the first deportees of the day, some still clad in work clothes and others barefoot.
As they lined up for food, water, and medical care in the Haitian border city of Belladère, they recounted their experiences of alleged abuses by Dominican officials since President Luis Abinader ordered the deportation of at least 10,000 immigrants a week in October. Odelyn St. Fleur, who had worked as a mason in the Dominican Republic for two decades, shared his story. He claimed Dominican officials broke down his door at 4 in the morning, while he was sleeping next to his wife and 7-year-old son. Reports of human rights violations, ranging from unauthorized home raids and racial profiling to deporting breastfeeding mothers and unaccompanied minors, are surging as Dominican officials intensify deportations to Haiti. Activists like Roudy Joseph accuse officials of ignoring due process during arrests, stating, 'Every day, children are left abandoned at schools.'On a recent afternoon in Belladère, dozens of vendors lined up on either side of the men, women, and unaccompanied children who marched into the city after being deported. The air hung heavy with the smell of urine as their feet sank into a muddy, garbage-strewn trail. Vendors offered them jeans, water, SIM cards, and even illegal trips back to the Dominican Republic. Some deportees, like Jimmy Milien, a 32-year-old floor installer, found themselves making the journey back for a second time. Arrested in Santo Domingo in 2024 and again in mid-January, he left behind his wife and two young children, unsure when he'd see them again. He hoped to travel to Port-au-Prince, but like many others, he faced the daunting prospect of crossing through dangerous gang territory.Mack, a Haitian involved in a smuggling operation, ferried migrants across the border up to six times a week, charging $3 per person and offering additional bribes to Dominican border guards. He believes the crackdown will ease eventually and plans to return to Santo Domingo. Military checkpoints dot the road leading out of the border, with authorities boarding buses, peering into car windows, and detaining suspected undocumented migrants. Many, however, manage to escape checkpoints and hop back on further down the road.The influx of Haitian migrants and their attempts to re-enter illegally pose a significant challenge for Dominican authorities. Vice Admiral Luis Rafael Lee Ballester, Dominican migration director, argues that the Dominican Republic has taken on too much responsibility for Haiti's situation and calls for Haitian leaders to establish order within their country. Dominican officials point to the strain on public services, particularly in education and healthcare, citing the enrollment of over 80,000 Haitian students in public schools in the past four years and Haitian women accounting for up to 70% of births in the country. Ballester plans to deploy additional migration officials to combat what he considers a surge in undocumented immigrants, calling them a burden and a danger to the Dominican Republic. While denying abuse allegations, he acknowledges that officials can enter homes during 'hot pursuit' and that personnel are undergoing retraining to ensure adherence to human rights. Ballester insists that the Dominican Republic does not deport unaccompanied minors and that officials now separate women and children from men during deportations
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC HAITI DEPORTATION HUMAN RIGHTS MIGRATION IMMIGRATION LABOR VIOLENCE GANGS
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