[Congressional Record Volume 161, Number 125 (Tuesday, August 4, 2015)]
[Senate]
[Page S6287]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          DISCRIMINATION AGAINST DOMINICANS OF HAITIAN DESCENT

  Mr. LEAHY. Mr. President, I have traveled to the Dominican Republic 
and Haiti and am familiar with the history of racial tensions between 
the population of Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian descent 
and other citizens of the Dominican Republic. These problems are by no 
means unique to these two neighboring countries, nor are there easy 
solutions. In addition to race there is competition for land, social 
services, and jobs. But while this situation should not be 
oversimplified, the way the Dominican Government is dealing with it is 
unfortunate.
  In a September 2013 Dominican Constitutional Court ruling the 
citizenship of more than 200,000 people--mostly Dominicans of Haitian 
descent--was summarily revoked, and they lost access to education, 
health care, and other essential social services, as well as their 
basic rights. Since that ruling the Dominican Government has threatened 
to enforce strict and prejudicial immigration laws. Many affected 
residents live under constant fear of deportation, and according to the 
United Nations nearly 20,000 have already fled the country in the past 
month, putting the island on the brink of a mass refugee crisis.
  By threatening to deport Haitian migrants and Dominicans of Haitian 
descent, the Dominican Government is on a path that not only disregards 
fundamental principles of international humanitarian law, but may 
provoke a reaction that makes the situation worse. Even as we are 
already seeing the consequences of the threat of mass deportations, 
following through with such a policy would likely greatly exacerbate 
tensions in the Dominican Republic and create a regional diplomatic and 
humanitarian crisis. Haiti, impoverished and still recovering from the 
devastating 2010 earthquake, does not have the capacity to handle the 
sudden arrival of thousands of homeless, jobless, Dominicans.
  The United States, with 319 million people spread across 50 States is 
among the most ethnically and racially diverse countries in the world. 
The challenges this has posed for our own democracy over the past two 
centuries are well known. We have not always handled these challenges 
as we should have. I hope the Dominican Government will learn from our 
experience and recognize the need to reverse course and reaffirm the 
legal status and rights of these people.

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