Miami Herald
By Patricia Mazzei
August 18, 2015
Florida
Sen. Marco Rubio wants the U.S. to work with the governments of the
Dominican Republic and Haiti to resolve -- or at least ease -- turmoil
between the neighboring
countries over looming mass deportations.
In
2013, a Dominican court stripped citizenship from thousands of
Dominican-born children of Haitian migrants, effectively leaving them
stateless and prompting international
outcry. The Dominican government now has a "registration" plan for the
undocumented to legalize their immigration status, but the situation
remains tense.
Rubio
wrote to Secretary of State John Kerry on Thursday asking him to reach
out to the Dominicans. As a member of the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee, Rubio is an
avid letter-writer to Kerry, especially over Cuba and Venezuela policy.
"I
respectfully ask that you work with the Dominican government to ensure
that the registration process for Dominicans of Haitian descent is fair
and inclusive of those
born in the country and provides them with the opportunity to live in
the Dominican Republic," the Florida Republican and 2016 presidential
candidate wrote.
"I
also ask that you work with the Government of Haiti to ensure those who
decide to return to that country are treated humanely and receive
appropriate assistance. It
is important that all individuals who are affected by this ruling are
afforded all their rights as citizens of either the Dominican Republic
or Haiti and that no one is left stateless."
Read Rubio's full letter below.
This post has been updated to include the PDF of Rubio's letter.
August 13, 2015
Secretary John Kerry
United States Department of State
2201 C Street NW
Washington, DC 20220
Dear Secretary Kerry:
I
am writing to express my concern about recent developments in the
Dominican Republic, involving Dominican-born individuals of Haitian
descent.
As
you know, on September 23, 2013, the Dominican Republic’s
constitutional court issued a controversial ruling, which rescinded
citizenship previously granted to many
residents of the Dominican Republican with Haitian heritage. The court
issued a ruling that retroactively stripped citizenship from the
children of parents who were not “legal residents” at the time of their
birth. This ruling was made on the basis that their
parents were “in transit” and not residing in the Dominican Republic.
The
ruling stated that as a result, the children of the parents “in
transit”, and subsequent generations born on Dominican soil, are
excluded from the citizenship guarantee
provided by the Dominican constitution. This has effectively stripped citizenship from the descendants of Haitian migrants who have settled in
the Dominican Republic for over 80 years. The vast majority of these
individuals will be left stateless if this ruling
is enforced. Tens of thousands of people have reportedly left the
Dominican Republic voluntarily and face an uncertain fate in Haiti,
where they lack ties and Haitian authorities have not had the resources
to assist them.
While
the Dominican government has begun the process of registering both
Haitians born in the Dominican Republic and adults who have immigrated
to the Dominican Republic
in a program referred to as "regularization,” there are large numbers
of persons of Haitian descent who lack any documentation to prove their
nationality.
Therefore,
I respectfully ask that you work with the Dominican government to
ensure that the registration process for Dominicans of Haitian descent
is fair and inclusive
of those born in the country and provides them with the opportunity to
live in the Dominican Republic. I also ask that you work with the
Government of Haiti to ensure those who decide to return to that country
are treated humanely and receive appropriate
assistance. It is important that all individuals who are affected by
this ruling are afforded all their rights as citizens of either the
Dominican Republic or Haiti and that no one is left stateless.
It
is also important that the United States continue to support the people
of the Dominican Republic and Haiti, and I look forward to your updates
on your outreach to
both governments.
Sincerely,
Marco Rubio
United States Senator
For more information, go to: www.beverlyhillsimmigrationlaw.com
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