Haiti slams ‘xenophobic’ deportation drive by Dominican Republic

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Haiti accused the Dominican Republic on Thursday of committing xenophobic acts and violating the rights of Haitian migrants, particularly pregnant and nursing girls, amid its rising deportation drive.The authorities of Dominican President Luis Abinader has stepped up deportations in current months to Haiti, regardless of the nation’s mounting insecurity from gang violence.Nearly 20,000 individuals had been deported throughout the border in April, the UN stated on Tuesday, together with a “rising number of pregnant and breastfeeding women.”It stated UN and associate organizations had over the earlier month “assisted an average of 15 pregnant women and 15 breastfeeding mothers per day.”In a uncommon official response, Haiti’s ministry of overseas affairs issued an announcement noting broad mistreatment and saying its ambassador within the Dominican Republic would start organizing voluntary repatriation convoys to convey residents residence “in dignified conditions.” The ministry referred to as for dialogue and referred to as on civil society teams to implement the rights of Haitians, wherever they might be.Many Haitians have fled poverty, political instability, and gang violence, which has worsened over the previous 12 months, significantly within the capital Port-au-Prince.Dominican officers have applied a crackdown on foreigners since April 21, barring these with out papers from staying within the nation after receiving medical care.Since taking workplace in 2020 and his triumphant re-election in 2024, Abinader has toughened migration insurance policies, and has launched the development of a wall alongside his nation’s border with Haiti.Humanitarian organizations have voiced explicit concern for the plight of pregnant girls, with the UN on Tuesday denouncing the follow saying it is “in violation of international standards.”