CRS - The Dominican Republic: Tensions with Haiti over Citizenship and Migration Issues
- Dominican Republic's 2013 Constitutional Tribunal ruling challenged the citizenship status of Dominicans of Haitian descent.
- The ruling retroactively applied a 2010 constitutional criterion, potentially rendering many stateless.
- The Dominican government developed naturalization and regularization plans to address the issue.
- International organizations and human rights groups have criticized the Dominican Republic's policies as discriminatory.
- Haiti has limited resources to deal with a large influx of deportees.
This report examines the tensions between the Dominican Republic and Haiti stemming from a 2013 Dominican Constitutional Tribunal ruling that challenged the legal status of people of Haitian descent born in the Dominican Republic to undocumented parents. The ruling retroactively applied a 2010 constitutional criterion, potentially rendering many stateless and subject to deportation. The report details the Dominican government's naturalization and regularization plans, international criticism of discriminatory practices, and the limited capacity of Haiti to absorb a large influx of deportees. It also highlights international efforts to resolve the issues through diplomatic channels and assistance programs.
How to cite
Congressional Research Service (CRS), 2015, CRS - The Dominican Republic: Tensions with Haiti over Citizenship and Migration Issues, accessed via HaitiDocs, https://www.haitidocs.org/doc/crs-2015-dominican-republic-tensions