The Listín Diario reports that while there are some Haitians that say they were mistreated by the military that arrested them for not having the right papers, others denied being mistreated. Foreign press wires carry news that the Haitian government is concerned there may be a surge of xenophobia against Haitians in the DR and called for Minister of Foreign Relations of Haiti Fritz Longchamps to carry out talks with the Dominican authorities. The Listín Diario said that some that were deported complained they were not allowed to go to their place of living to recover their belongings before being deported. The operation to deport Haitians has taken place primarily in Santiago, Mao, Puerto Plata, La Vega, Moca, Dajabón, Monte Cristi and Santiago Rodríguez where large numbers of illegal Haitians live. The government ordered the deportations be stepped up after the OAS recommended that the government nationalize illegal Haitians living in the DR. While press reports say "thousands" are being deported, the high cost of trucking or busing the Haitians to the frontier works in favor of the Haitians. An even stronger effort to repatriate illegal Haitians, and reduce Haitian migration, occurred during the government of Haitian President Jean Bertrand Aristide, when President Balaguer ordered the repatriation of Haitians as a response to Aristide’s acrid criticism of the Dominican Republic in a United Nations speech. With time, controls were relaxed. The director of the Department of Migration, Danilo Díaz said that while the illegal Haitians are being deported, they can do little to avoid their returning. He said nevertheless that the military is working on trying to increase controls on the border. He complained that there is no cooperation on behalf of the Haitian frontier authorities to impede the crossing of the illegal Haitians.
