Well, it seems to me that in the aftermath of Jeanne, the haitian situation will get even worse and that this will certainly have an impact on the DR. Because it is easier for Haitians to cross the border into DR than to reach Florida, I expect more will be going there.
This is so obvious!
It is true they are overwhelming the services of another poor country like the DR whose own people emigrate to Puerto Rico looking for a better life.
Hopefully the people in Washington would take note of that, oh wait, Puerto Rico is not really a part of the US, its just US controlled. Well, it might be better if PR becomes a state of the USA. That way, the US would do more to stop Dominicans from going overthere and the easiest way to do that is by releasing some of the pressure being put in the Dominican public system by removing the Haitians. Thus, the US start to invest more in Haiti to aleviate the DR which in turn would aleviate Puerto Rico. Once the US does something, the rest of the world follows.
Let's hope that the international community does something this time and really helps Haiti.
Keep hoping, one hundred years ago the US invaded Haiti because it was chaotic and unliveable. Today, 100 years later, they are still chaotic and unliveable with flareups once in a while. Somethings never change. The rest of the world will never help Haiti until Haiti posses a threat to them. Maybe if Al Qaeda makes a Haiti a training ground, watch how everything changes then!
What could the DR do in order to stop the flow of people crossing over from Haiti?
There are two ways of doing this:
1. The nicest way is by deporting all illegal haitians in the DR and tightening the border. Part of the tightening would be the elimination of the Haitian markets in Dominican border towns and strict surveilance of the border.
2. The nastiest way is by killing any Haitian seen crossing over the border and deporting those that are in the DR. The news will reach every Haitian that if they try to cross into the DR they will get shot and killed, watch the migration flow come to a screeching halt! Of course, the rest of the world would put their noses in this affair, but then again, the rest of the world is not being affected by the Haitian problem!!
Personally I prefer the second one simply because being a bit cruel yields results pronto! Being nice will yield results, but by that time, the entire island will belong to the Haitians with Dominican being a thing of the past!
Why would Haitians go and live in slums in the DR when they could do that in their own country?
I ask this question all the time. I guess its the fear of being seen as a loser back home for them. They go to the DR to search a better life, they find it a bit better but not much. They stay in the DR and when they visit Haiti, they brag about the life they are "living", little do the Haitians in Haiti knows that its not much different or better than before.
Or, it could be that SDQ has some first world areas which give a sort of respite from the pervasive poverty areas. That is something that Port-au-Prince lack!! Even Petionville, despite the mansions that area has an under construction feel to it.
This is something I do not understand. It seems to me that if you leave your own country, it is in order to have a better life.
That's the perception, but its not reality in most of the cases.
But what could the Dominican goverment and Dominican society do in order to stop this?
Advance ourselves and close the border! Make it a federal penalty to hire illegal immigrants and give capital punishment for those who don't comply with the law. Haitians must be pressured to accept their destiny as a country on their own. As long that they know they can just cross over to the DR if things get bad in Haiti, they will not do a thing to better themselves. Once they realize that there is no other place, they will demand better conditions. Its going to be bloody, its going to be rough, but that is the price for a better Haiti tomorrow.
Why is it that there are so many questions and complaints re this subject, but almost no answers or solutions?
There are answers, its just that the answers are not pretty and since people are afraid of admitting it, they decide to remain quiet. I don't, I say what has to be said. Whether I get criticized or not, in the end what had to be said was said!!!