Haiti became independent from France during Napoleon's rule....then when the King was back in charge, the Haitians paid the French off....in something like 1825.
Long time ago....France washed their hand of them with the payment.
The first and only French head of state to ever visit Haiti after it became independent was Sarkozy and only to see the devastation of the earthquake in 2010. By contrast, the DR is visited multiple times every year by various members of the Spanish monarchy, many Dominican families has personal relations with them, and all in all there isn't much of a distance in these relations nstionally and at personal levels. Heck, the former King of Spain left today for Spain after spending a week in La Romana. Almost every time the royal family visits this hemisphere, they feel the need to stop in the DR sometimes just to re-fuel (they could do that in PR where the jet fuel is actually cheaper, but no DR it is) or to spend a few days relaxing somewhere along the coast, usually in the east. DR is the only country they treat like that, of visiting even when their reason to cross the Atlantic has nothing to do with the DR.
One can always make the argument that blood (most of Dominican population is partially of Spanish descent, the average ranges from 40% to 60% of the genetic make up of random Dominicans according to recent DNA research) and cultural affinities could explain the much more closer relationship the DR has with Spain than Haiti is to France (heck, the DR has a more intimate relationship with France than Haiti does when it should be the opposite, not to mention that I personally am not too happy with all this smooching with the French. As far as I'm concerned, the only thing the French are good at outside their country is creating huge mess that they refuse to clean up, and Haiti is only one example -France is also the only colonial power to impose a debt that practically bankrupted its former colony just to recognize their sovereignty- because if anyone knows of a former French colony that has become at least somewhat successful, please mention them. Former Spanish, British, Portiguese colonies have checkered results ranging from very successful to not so much, but as a group all former French colonies are in deplorable conditions and this says to me that there is something wrong with the French way of doing things.) In the 2000 decade Spain even gave Dominicans preferential treatment in terms of granting visas not just compared to most other Hispanic countries, but also compared to most countries. While Spain was actively turning away the wave of Africans trying to enter illegally through Melilla and Murcia, the Spanish embassy in Santo Domingo was giving visas to any Dominican that asked for one and they even sent messengers to various towns in southern DR to spread the word of almost guaranteed visas to Spain. That's the reason why the Dominican presence in Spain ballooned in a very short time and most Dominicans living there are from the southern region. The Spanish prefer people that have a genetic and cultural linkage with them. I don't think France has ever done something like that with Haiti.
But, getting back to the French visit to Haiti, according to the rumor mill, once Sarkozy asked his aides to give him a short resume of Haiti's history, once he was told of the tortures and massacres the French were subjected to by the Haitians, he didn't mentioned Haiti ever again, and France itself continues with its aloofness regarding Haiti.
